From: Terry Clifton <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Judy, Judy,
Judy! If you have never been under the law, you cannot fall back to
it.
jt: Never said I was ever under the Levitical Law and
am not falling back to anything Terry.
Study the two laws given us by Jesus. Try to find one moral law
that is not more than covered by these two that Jesus gave.
jt: I agree that love fulfills all of the Law
and the Prophets; this is not the problem.
Try to find one shred of dress code or dietary requirement or tradition
or tithing to priests or animal sacrifice that He requires of His
followers.
jt: The old Levitical system is out and the New
Covenant in force - No problem.
The two commands that I follow are far superior to the law given Moses.
The Mosaic law had value, but the teachings of Christ are more valuable.
Both had moral requirements. Jesus spells out those requirements more
completely than did the law of Moses.
jt: Actually God has not changed, He was just as holy
back when He gave the Law to Moses at Sinai as He is today.
I don't know that I would call New Covenant teachings
more valuable but we do have better promises. However, to
whom much is given much is required.
Old testament saints were in most cases allowed to hate their
enemy. We do not have that luxury. They were allowed to take their
brother to court to right a wrong. We are to suffer wrong rather than
sue a brother. Can you see from just a couple of examples that though
the law of Moses and the law of Christ had many similarities, the law of
Christ is superior?
jt: Yes, I see this and understand the reason
for the difference being that on this side of the cross because of
the
power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of individuals
we are enabled to love in a way that Old Covenant people were
not.
Can you see that while it offers more freedom concerning diet and dress
and giving, it is more demanding as to how we think and how we walk and how we
love?
jt: Yes I do.
Go back and read the last verse in Leviticus again. You will
either have to agree that you are not under Mosaic law or that God is a
liar. I am sure you will not choose the latter option, and if you do
not, then you must choose the first option, that being that you were never
under the law.
jt: I have not been saying that New Covenant
believers are UNDER anything but the Royal Law (which is to love) except when
they wilfully sin. When that happens the curse is released (which is the
curse of the Law) same as
when David neglected to repent for a year; he
describes the misery of his condition in Psalm 51.
Are
you accountable for your moral behavior? The answer is a resounding YES,
more so under the teaching of Jesus than any Jew ever was under Moses. I
am not saying that not being under the law allows you to be lawless. I
am saying that we who are Christians obey out of love for Christ. I am
sure that you agree. Terry
jt: Of course I agree - but like Izzy I don't see all
these divisions. I see God's ppl from Genesis to Revelatkion, yes there
are different dispensations but God's standards are basically the same because
he does not change. jt
Judy Taylor wrote:
Terry have you ever done a study of the
teachings of your Savior? If so, I am sure you found that they are all
rooted in the Old Testament God's statutes,
testimonies, and commandments have not changed because He has not changed
(Mal 3:6). Paul wrote "Do we then nullify the law through faith? May
it never be! On the contrary we establish the law" (Romans
3:31).
I've heard one Bible teacher use the analogy of the
"law of lift" which is from aerodynamics to explain the spiritual walk ie:
We are not under the law so long as we are walking by the spirit.
However, if we fall back and allow the flesh to take over once more the law
will judge us because "sin transgresses the law - sin is the
transgression of the law (1 John 3:4) jt
Judy, Judy, Judy! If you have never been
under the law, you cannot fall back to it. Study the two laws given us
by Jesus. Try to find one moral law that is not more than covered by
these two that Jesus gave. Try to find one shred of dress code or
dietary requirement or tradition or tithing to priests or animal sacrifice
that He requires of His followers. The two commands that I follow are
far superior to the law given Moses.
The Mosaic law had value, but the
teachings of Christ are more valuable. Both had moral
requirements. Jesus spells out those requirements more completely than
did the law of Moses. Old testament saints were in most cases allowed to
hate their enemy. We do not have that luxury. They were allowed to
take their brother to court to right a wrong. We are to suffer wrong
rather than sue a brother. Can you see from just a couple of examples
that though the law of Moses and the law of Christ had many similarities, t he
law of Christ is superior? Can you see that while it offers more freedom
concerning diet and dress and giving, it is more demanding as to how we think
and how we walk and how we love?
Go back and read the last verse in
Leviticus again. You will either have to agree that you are not under
Mosaic law or that God is a liar. I am sure you will not choose the
latter option, and if you do not, then you must choose the first option, that
being that you were never under the law.
Are you accountable for your
moral behavior? The answer is a resounding YES, more so under the
teaching of Jesus than any Jew ever was under Moses. I am not saying
that not being under the law allows you to be lawless. I am saying that
we who are Christians obey out of love for Christ. I am sure that you
agree.
Terry
