It might interest you to read Paul's letters. He repeatedly refers to the fact that the Law is no longer in force. For example, Romans 10:4 says: "For Christ is the end of the Law, so that everyone exercising faith may have righteousness."
And at Ephesians 2:15 he explains that "by means of his flesh he abolished the enmity, the Law of commandments consisting in decrees."
Another time he referred to this fact is in the seventh chapter of Romans, verse 6, which says: "But now we have been released from the Law, because we have died to that which restrained us, in order that we might be slaves in a new sense by the spirit and not in the old sense by the written code."
He explains the reasons for this, to a degree, in Galatians 3:23. "However, before the faith arrived, we were being guarded under law, being handed over into custody, looking to the faith that was about to be revealed. So the Law became our guardian leading to Christ, so that we might be declared righteous through faith. But now that the faith has arrived, we are no longer under a guardian."
So you see from those quotes that the Law is no longer in effect for Christians. With that being the case, what did Jesus mean in that quote you cited? Well, the next thing he said was: "I came, not to destroy, but to fulfill." Now, what does "fulfill" mean? Consider this example: A builder fulfills a contract to complete a building, not by ripping up the contract, but by finishing the structure. Then, once the work has been completed to the client’s satisfaction, the contract is fulfilled and the builder is no longer under obligation to it. Likewise, Jesus did not break, or rip up, the Law; rather, he fulfilled it by keeping it perfectly. Once fulfilled, that Law “contract” was no longer binding on God’s people.
I hope you can understand that illustration, and I hope this reply has helped you to understand the situation with the Mosaic Law better. :)
"I'd rather be right and on my own, than wrong in the company of everyone else."
reply
share
LightningBalt
10 years ago
Paul's authority supercedes Jesus's. Got it. Thanks!
reply
share
Calebxy
10 years ago
If you believe that the Gospels are the Word of God, and Jesus really is the Son of God and really did all the things the Gospels say he did, then logically you would likewise believe the same about the rest of the Bible (including Paul's letters).
If, on the other hand, the Bible isn't inspired and Jesus was just a man, then why would he have any more authority than Paul? In fact, what's the point in having this discussion in the first place?
The fact is, Jesus and Paul both said the same thing. The difference is, Jesus implied it, whereas Paul clearly stated and explained it. Jesus said that he came, not to destroy, but to fulfil the Law. If something is fulfilled, then it's not going to continue. It's done. Finished. Fulfilled.
Paul's authority doesn't supersede Jesus's. They don't contradict each other, they complement each other.
"I'd rather be right and on my own, than wrong in the company of everyone else."
reply
share