Jesus, The Emobodiment of the Law

Last post, I talked a little about Jesus being the fulfillment of the Law.  Jesus is the completion of the Law in that he did what the Law itself could never do. That is, give new life. Not only was Jesus the fulfillment of the Law, but he was also the embodiment. In other words, the actions of Jesus were perfectly integrated with what he taught. As Frank Thielman puts it,

*all scripture references are to Matthew

"Not only did he urge his disciples to be merciful (5:7), but he showed mercy to others (9:7, 15:22, 20:30). Not only did he bless those who were persecuted for righteousness' sake (5:10), but he himself died unjustly, despite his innocence (27:23). Not only did he tell others to turn the other cheek (5:39), but he refused to strike back at those who arrested him (26:52-53). He urged his followers to deny themselves, take up their crosses, and follow him (16:24), and he took up the cross to suffer death for the forgiveness of others' sins (26:28, 39, 42; 27:26). Not merely Jesus' teaching, therefore, but Jesus himself is the expression-in deed as well as word-of God's will. Because of this Jesus replaces the Mosaic law."


Frank Thielman, Theology of the New Testament: A Canonical and Synthetic Approach (Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2005), 90. 

Jesus, The Fulfillment of the Law

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; 

I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

Matthew 5:17

These words Jesus spoke come right in the middle of his famous Sermon on the Mount. It directly follows the beatitudes and is followed by his teachings on murder, adultery, divorce, and love. In many ways, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is a parallel to the Law (think 10 commandments) given to Moses in the Old Testament. However, in his teaching on the Law, Jesus takes everything further. Whereas Moses taught "You shall not murder", Jesus proclaimed that everyone who is even angry with his brother, or speaks insult is liable to the same judgement. Where the Law of the Old Testament said, "You shall not commit adultery", Jesus said, "everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart."The Old Testament allowed for a man to divorce his wife, but Jesus said that the only legitimate reason for a divorce is sexual infidelity. 

What was Jesus doing here? He seems to be challenging and contrasting the ancient Law of God. These words would have undoubtedly caused his Jewish audience to question such a man claiming to usher in God's Kingdom. How can this be a man from God if he is changing what God has already given us?

This is where Matthew 5:17 comes in. What Jesus is saying here is that he came to fulfill God's own intention in the Law. The Law is meant to lead us in righteousness and point us to God's perfect moral character. Yet, in the Old Testament, the Law served more as a guide and restraint to an imperfect situation. For example, lust is an unavoidable reality among people, but instilling retribution (The Law) for such acts puts restraint on this action. However, this is incomplete; it never really gets at the heart of the action. 

Jesus fulfilled the Law in that he got at the heart of the matter. Jesus wasn't interested in giving his people a minimal standard of rules so that they could live functionally as a society. He came to bring so much more than that. Jesus came to call a new people, to which he would give completely new hearts. These new hearts wouldn't be fashioned after the minimal requirements of the Law, but would be fashioned after God's heart in the Law. Therefore, it was no longer an issue of literally committing murder or adultery, but rather, as God's new people, who have been given new life and new hearts, we are living under God's loving and righteous rule and reign. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law because he did what they Law never could do. The Law could never change hearts and give new life. Jesus came to assemble a new people who had the Law written on their new hearts, and who were free to follow God in righteousness. 

Meditating on the Law

"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the LORD, 

and on his law he meditates day and night"

Psalm 1:1-2

Why would someone delight in the law of the LORD? And Why would someone meditate on the law day and night? When I first read verses like this, my initial thoughts are usually that this seems like legalism. Good people try really hard to meditate on the law, while the sinners/scoffers are those who don't do the law. The law can't justify me, so why in the world would I meditate on it?

Let me say that I think this is a misunderstanding of the law and why the psalmist would write these things. Here are a few random thoughts on meditating on God's law and what it means for us. 

First, the law was a gift given to Israel. It wasn't originally intended to be a punishment or form of condemnation. Rather, it was given to Israel so that they would know more about the God who brought them out of Egypt. God's law is a written inscription of his character. It gives us a glimpse of his holiness and his character. Therefore, we are able to know more of who God is when we meditate on this law. 

Second, the law was given as a gift that showed Israel how to live life as it was intended to be. The law was given after the Fall, because before the Fall, there was no need for correction. Since the Fall, everything got jacked up. Our relationship with God was shattered, our relationships with each other were broken, and our relationship with creation was marred. The law was an agent to bring things back to the way they were supposed to be. The law was God's instructions and guidelines to live as his holy people. This was not a form of supression intended to hold Israel down with these intense rules. Rather, it was a form of love, showing Israel the best way to live. It was for Israel's good. 

These are a couple reasons why a psalmist might be so excited about the law! He (unlike us) didn't view it as a burdensome legalism. Rather, the law painted a portrait of the awesome God he served. The law was a gracious gift from the Creator. The law shows us what life should be like. Meditating on the law makes sense then, because by meditating on it, we are able to see God and understand him more. 

Lastly, as it relates to us, should be meditate on the law day and night? My only thought here, is that we should meditate on the law as well. We should meditate on God and all his excellencies. Only, for us it may look a little different. Jesus was the perfect fulfillment and embodiment of the law. He was the exact image of God, and the perfect living representation of everything in the law. It is through Jesus that we know God and his character most clearly, and it is through Jesus that we see what life was supposed to be like. 

We were created in the image of God, and were intended to live in that. However, when Adam and Eve ate the fruit, that image, like a broken mirror was shattered. What remains is a broken picture. The law gave us an inscription of what it looks like to live as a restored image bearing human. But, as we all know, we fail to do this. Jesus on the other hand, is himself, the perfect image bearer. He not only gives us an example of what it looks like to live in the image of God, he himself has the power to restore us to our image bearing humanity. 

So, yes, meditate on the law, but do so in the context that Jesus is the perfect embodiment and fulfillment of the law. Jesus did what the law, weakened by the flesh could not do. Jesus saved us from the condemnation that the law brought, and he gives us power to once again live as true humans made in the image of God. He restores life to what it was meant to be. The law was powerless to do this. So yes, delight in Jesus, the perfect fulfillment of the law!

Blessings For Obedience

"If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely. I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and non shall make you afraid."

Leviticus 26: 3-6

Wow! The author of Leviticus paints this amazing picture of human flourishing under the reign of God. God says that he will give rain to the Israelites, the land will be blessed, it will produce abundantly, the Israelites will be satisfied completely, they will dwell securely, there will be peace, and there will be no more fear. What a glorious promise! This passage is a description of total human flourishing. 

However, there is one hitch. All these promises are contingent upon the Israelites obedience. If Israel keeps and obeys God's commandments, the outcome will be this immense blessing from God resulting in total flourishing. So, the question is, what happened? Did Israel obey?

Well, the short answer is no. Much of the Old Testament captures Israel's repeated failures to follow God and to obey his commands. Israel, like a stubborn child, refused to live as God's chosen people. Yet, God remains faithful. Despite Israel's numerous failures, God keeps making these promises to restore that which is broken. God keeps talking about this desire to bless his people and return them to this state of flourishing described in Leviticus 26. So, how does God accomplish this?

The answer is Jesus. Where Israel failed to obey God, Jesus obeyed perfectly. In Leviticus 26, we see the obvious blessings for obedience. The truth is, we all radically fail to obey God's commands. Left to ourselves, we don't deserve any of God's blessings. The good news is that Jesus came to fulfill the commandments of God perfectly, so that by his life, death and resurrection, the blessings in Leviticus 26 may be secured for us. 

Talk about a good deal! This literally is too good to be true, yet it is true. Jesus took upon himself the punishment for our disobedience, and in return, we get the blessing of his obedience. This can't be attained through any of our own goodness, but it is attained through repentance and faith. The ultimate blessing for which we were created to be in relationship with God. Only then will we be satisfied, secure, and at peace. In Romans, Paul describes how Jesus Christ's perfect obedience justifies us before God. 

"For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners,

so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous."

Romans 5:19

An Open Letter To Mr. Grace-Loving Antinomian

A great post on Tullian Tchividjian's blog .... An Open Letter To Mr. Grace-Loving Antinomian

There seems to be a fear out there that the preaching of radical grace produces serial killers. Or, to put it in more theological terms, too much emphasis on the indicatives of the gospel leads to antinomianism (a lawless version of Christianity that believes the directives and commands of God don’t matter). My problem with this fear is that I’ve never actually met anyone who has been truly gripped by God’s amazing grace in the gospel who then doesn’t care about obeying him. As I have said before: antinomianism happens not when we think too much of grace. Just the opposite, actually. Antinomianism happens when we think too little of grace.

Wondering whether this common fear is valid, my dear friend Elyse Fitzpatrick (in C.S. Lewis fashion) writes an open letter to Mr. Grace-Loving Antinomian–a person she’s heard about for years but never met–asking him to please step forward and identify himself.

Enjoy…

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Dear Mr. Antinomian,

Forgive me for writing to you in such an open forum but I’ve been trying to meet you for years and we just never seem to connect. While it’s true that I live in a little corner of the States and while it’s true that I am, well, a woman, I did assume that I would meet you at some point in my decades old counseling practice. But alas, neither you nor any of your (must be) thousands of brothers and sisters have ever shown up for my help…So again, please do pardon my writing in such a public manner but, you see, I’ve got a few things to say to you and I think it’s time I got them off my chest.

I wonder if you know how hard you’re making it for those of us who love to brag about the gospel. You say that you love the gospel and grace too, but I wonder how that can be possible since it’s been continuously reported to me that you live like such a slug. I’ve even heard that you are lazy and don’t work at obeying God at all…Rather you sit around munching on cigars and Twinkies, brewing beer and watching porn on your computer. Mr. A, really! Can this be true?

So many of my friends and acquaintances are simply up in arms about the way you act and they tell me it’s because you talk too much about grace. They suggest (and I’m almosttempted to agree) that what you need is more and more rules to live by. In fact, I’m very tempted to tell you that you need to get up off your lazy chair, pour your beer down the drain, turn off your computer and get about the business of the Kingdom.

I admit that I’m absolutely flummoxed, though, which is why I’m writing as I am. You puzzle me. How can you think about all that Christ has done for you, about your Father’s steadfast, immeasurable, extravagantly generous love and still live the way you do? Have you never considered the incarnation, about the Son leaving ineffable light to be consigned first to the darkness of Mary’s womb and then the darkness of this world? Have you never considered how He labored day-after-day in His home, obeying His parents, loving His brothers and sisters so that you could be counted righteous in the sight of His Father? Have you forgotten the bloody disgrace of the cross you deserve? Don’t you know that in the resurrection He demolished sin’s power over you? Aren’t you moved to loving action knowing that He’s now your ascended Lord Who prays for you and daily bears you on His heart? Has your heart of stone never been warmed and transformed by the Spirit? Does this grace really not impel zealous obedience? Hello…Are you there?

Honestly, even though my friends talk about you as though you were just everywhere in every church, always talking about justification but living like the devil, frankly I wonder if you even exist. I suppose you must because everyone is so afraid that talking about grace will produce more of you. So that’s why I’m writing: Will you please come forward? Will you please stand up in front of all of us and tell us that your heart has been captivated so deeply by grace that it makes you want to watch the Playboy channel?

Again, please do forgive me for calling you out like this. I really would like to meet you. I am,

Trusting in Grace Alone,

Elyse

Exodus, then Law

"The covenant law comes after the exodus. That is, we have eighteen chapters of salvation in Exodus before we have a single chapter of law. Only after the story of salvation do we come to Sinai (Ex 19), the ten commandments (Ex 20) and the making of the covenant (Ex 24). The Sinai covenant, like all covenants, is founded on God's grace and motivated by God's mission. That is to say, it looks back to what God had already done for Israel out of his love and grace in delivering them from slavery, and it looks forward to God's purpose within history through Israel - to make them the instrument of his blessing to the nations."

- Christopher J.H. Wright, Salvation Belongs to Our God

....

In the same frequency, the gospel says, "I'm accepted; therefore, I obey."

Two Opposing Paradigms

"Imagine two people, both trying to obey the law of God, yet they operate from these two opposing paradigms. Both want to keep the Sabbath day, but in one case the obedience is a burden, an enslavement; while in the other it's a delight, a gift. How can that be? One paradigm is religion, which - as we observed before - is fundamentally advice. The other is the gospel of Jesus Christ, which begins and ends with news. These are two completely different things."

- Tim Keller, King's Cross

....

When I think of advice, I think of something I need to do or not do in the future. When I think news, I think of the newspaper. You are reading about what is already done. The Scriptures are revealing to us NEWS about what Jesus has already done for us what we could never do. That is awesome.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 Fulfilled in Jesus

 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, 

   “when I will make a new covenant  with the people of Israel 

   and with the people of Judah. 

It will not be like the covenant  I made with their ancestors 

when I took them by the hand  to lead them out of Egypt, 

because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them declares the LORD. 

 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel 

   after that time,” declares the LORD. 

“I will put my law in their minds  and write it on their hearts. 

I will be their God,  and they will be my people. 

No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the LORD,’ 

because they will all know me, 

   from the least of them to the greatest,” 

            declares the LORD. 

“For I will forgive their wickedness 

   and will remember their sins no more.”

God spoke through the prophet Jeremiah of a New Covenant that He would make with His people. It would be a new and better covenant. Whereas with the Old Covenant, God gave His people the law. Yet, they were never able to obey. They're hearts were sinful. They needed a heart transplant. With the Old Covenant, sin caused a separation of intimacy between God and His people. Though God was their husband, though He brought them out of Egypt, and gave them a King (David), and the prophets, Israel repeatedly turned from knowing God in an intimate way, as we were all created to know him. With the Old Covenant, God's people had to constantly atone for their sins through repeated sacrifices. They needed animal sacrifices and the work of the high priests for forgiveness.

However, the in the New Covenant, God fulfilled these things in Jesus. Through the New Covenant, we have a new experience of obedience, a new experience of intimacy with God, and a new experience of forgiveness. The Son came from heaven to earth, taking on human flesh, died on the cross, and resurrected in order to give us this new experience; in order that He would be our God, and we would be His people. 

In the New Covenant, we are united to Christ, and are therefore indwelled with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit gives us a new heart and new life. In our old life, we loved sin. We lived according to the flesh, according to the world. Our taste buds were for sin. Our delight was in sin. Yet, through Jesus, the Spirit dwells in us. The Spirit gives us new hearts; hearts that desire and long to obey God. The Spirit gives us new taste buds. Whereas in the past, sin tasted so good to our souls, it now is disgusting. Our taste buds long to feast on the things of God. We live according to the Spirit. God's law is no longer a burden, but it is a delight. It has been written on our hearts. (Romans 8)

In the New Covenant, we are united to Christ and therefore have an deep intimacy with God. Whereas before, sin and death inhibited us from having fellowship with God. Now, Jesus is our covenant representative. We have access to God through Christ. We were once enemies, but have been made friends. We were once fatherless, but are now called Sons/Daughters! The natural intimacy that Adam and Eve had with God before they rebelled can now be experienced. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me" (John 10:14), and "If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him." (John 14:7)

Lastly, in the New Covenant, we have a new experience of forgiveness. This forgiveness is different from the Old Covenant in that it is COMPLETE. It is complete in that this sacrifice was once for all. It was for ALL the sins of His people. No longer would God's people have to look to repeated sacrifices of atonement for forgiveness. Rather, with the New Covenant, they would look to their New Covenant representative for forgiveness. The Son came to earth, and died as the all time sacrifice for sins. Our sin greatly angers God. Our sin deserves wrath. It deserves punishment. That is why in the Old Testament, people had to constantly atone for their sins. Something had to pay the price. God is just. Sin can't go unnoticed. But the gospel tells us that God has made a new Covenant, where He would do the most radical thing. His Son would come to earth, and take the once for all punishment for our sins. Even though we have been unfaithful from the beginning. God so loved the world that He (the Son) sacrificed himself on the Cross for His people's sins, once and for all. Let's look at a few verses from Hebrews and Romans...

"he (Jesus) entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats or calves, but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption."  Hebrews 9:12

"But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." Hebrews 9:27

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith" Romans 3:23-25

"having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross." Colossians 2:13-14

Like One Who Finds Great Spoil

Sometimes I think we have a tendency to think God's grace is opposed to His law. That grace=good and law=bad. But this is not how the Psalmist speaks in Psalm 119. It is true, that God's law does bring us knowledge of sin, and drives us to God's grace as the source of our redemption and justification. Yet, God's law is also given for our good.

God didn't give us the commands as a 'booby trap' per se, where it is just a road block to make us turn to him. The law, the commands, are for our good. Does a Father give his young child rules just so the child knows he's an idiot and needs grace. No. Having rules will show the child how often he breaks them, and how much he needs mercy. But, the rules are also there out of the Father's care and provision. They are their because the Father loves the child. More so, when the child comes to a greater knowledge of the Father's love and delight towards him, the child will begin to willingly obey and delight in the Father's rules. They are no longer burdensome, because the child knows the Father loves him unconditionally, and has given him these commands for his good. My point is this, I think a lot of the time we have an overly Lutheran view of the law where ANY mention of the law is bad. Any mention of commands is BAD! I just don't think that is biblical at all. The law does give us knowledge of our sin. It is the hammer that crushes any hope of self-justification, leading us to look to Christ's finished work as our only hope of being righteous before God. Yes! But, for those who are children of God, there is great delight in the good commands our Heavenly Father has given us. We need to constantly remind ourselves that we can't earn God's love or favor by our obedience to the law, yet, it is right that we delight in His commands. It is right that we should find ourselves gravitating more and more towards imitating the written inscription of God's moral character. As God's grace transforms us, as children, we will begin to trust and delight in the commands our gracious Heavenly Father gives us.

"I rejoice at your word,
like one who finds great spoil.
I hate and abhor falsehood,
but I love your law....
I hope for your salvation, O LORD,
and I do your commandments.
My soul keeps your testimonies;
I love them exceedingly.
I keep your precepts and testimonies,
for all my ways are before you.
Let my cry come before you, O LORD;
give me understanding according to your word!
Let my plea come before you;
deliver me according to your word.
My lips will pour forth praise,
for you teach me your statutes.
My tongue will sing of your word,
for all your commandments are right."

Psalm 119: 163-172

Whiter than Snow: Sin is a Relationship

"The desire to be God rather than to serve God lies at the bottom of every sin that anyone has ever committed. Sin isn't first rooted in a philosophical debate of the appropriateness or healthiness of a certain ethic. No, sin is rooted in my unwillingness to find joy in living my life under the authority of, and for the glory of, Another. Sin is rooted in my desire to live for me. It's driven by my propensity to indulge my every feeling, satisfy my every desire, and meet my every need...Because sin is about the breaking of relationship, restoration of relationship is the only hope for us in our struggle with sin. It's only because God is willing to love us in our struggle with sin. It's only because God is willing to love us in a way that we refuse to love him that we have any hope of defeating sin. It's through the gift of adoption into relationship with him that we find what we need to gain power over sin. And what do we need? A greater love for him than we have for ourselves. His love is the only thing that has the power to produce in us that kind of love for him."

- Pastor Paul Tripp, Whiter than Snow

The Law of the Lord is Perfect

The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple;
the precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the LORD are true,
and righteous altogether.

- Psalm 19:7-9

...In knowing we could never keep even one precept purely, God graciously sent His Son, Jesus, who kept every condition perfectly for us. May we be eager to meditate on the law all the days of our life, for it is a reflection and revelation of its author, God himself, who is perfect in every capacity. Praise be to Him!