commitment with God.
Under the Old Covenant, God-human relationship was based on:
1.Circumcision(Genesis17:2,11) and;
2.Keeping of Mosaic Laws(Exodus20:3-17).
Under this dispensation(The Mosaic Covenant),remission of sin was
achieved by sprinkling the blood of goats and bullocks(Lev.16:1-22).
Also, God's requirement from His people, for a genuine relationship
with Him was embedded in the Moral(Exodus20:1-17),
Ceremonial(Lev.1:1-13) and Civil Laws(Exodus24:10-11) of the old
testament.
A New covenant was promised, as a result of the limitations,and
frailties of the Old Covenant. 'For if that first Covenant(the Old
Covenant) had been
faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second(the
new covenant)'(Hebrew8:7).
This new dispensation is also known as the dispensation of Grace under
which, remission of sin is through the blood of Jesus(Hebrews9:14,
matthew26:28),justification and righteousness comes by faith in
Christ(Romans3:22,28) and not by the works the law(Romans3:20).
THE SUPERIORITY OF THE LAW TO GRACE
1. The Law came through a servant(Moses) while Grace came through the
Son(Jesus Christ), who was without the Adamic nature, as a result of
His Virgin Birth(John1:17).
2.Under the Law,God's commandmennts were written on table of stones,
while under Grace, God's commandments are written in the fleshy tables
of our heart(Heb.8:10; 10:16).
3.The ceremonial(ritualistiic) practice of the Law was unable to remit
sins and make the people holy,since it only dealt with their outward
sins, but the blood of Christ in the new Covenant has the power to
purge 'the conscience from dead works'(Heb.9:9-14).
4.The circumcision of the flesh practiced under the Law was unable to
make man holy,but the new Covenant came with a better Circumcision-the
Circumcision of the heart(Rom2:29).
5.The Law only gave man the catalogue of sin, thus making him aware of
what sin is, without giving him the power to overcome(Rom.3:20),but
Grace(The Gospel), when believed and accepted has the power to quicken
our mortal bodies unto good works.
IS THE LAW STILL VALID?
Are the Old Covenant laws still'valid? Do we still need to keep them?
Yes!, because they are 'God's injunctions to His people'. Our Lord
Jesus Himself asserted: 'Think not that I come to destroy the Law, or
the Prophets: I am not come to destroy but to fufill'(matthew5:17).
Jesus gave a far reaching explanation of the Law(matthew5:21-48),even
Christ's Law of Love is a summary of the ten
commandments(matt.22:37-40), telling us that the Law is still valid.He
actually did not come to destroy it, but to fulfill it.
His teachings was on this wise:
'You want to overcome adultery, then overcome lust' (matt.5:28).
'You want to overcome false swearing, then don't swear at all' (matt.5:36&37).
'You want to overcome murder, don't get angry'(matt.5:22).
These and many others were some of the deep suggestions Christ gave
in order to help us obey the Law.
However, the
coming of Christ put an end to the killing of animals & other
ceremonial practices, that brought forgiveness, cleansing and
purity(e.g:anointing oil, incense, washing with water, changing of
garments, separation of the unclean), since Christ, 'the Lamb of God
that takes away the sins of the world'(John1:29) is the perfect
provision for our forgiveness, cleansing and purity.
As for clean and unclean meats, Christ says: 'do you not percieve
that whatsoever thing from the outside (that)enters into a man, it
cannot defile him because it enters not into his heart, but into the
belly and goes out into the draught(toilet) purging(eliminating) all
meats'(mark7:19).
-As for the Sabbath,
Romans 14:5&6 reads: 'one man esteems one day above another: another
esteems everyday alike.
Let every man be fully persuaded in his mind.
He that regards the day regards it to Lord: and he that regards not
the day, to the Lord he does not regard it...'
The early apostles had fellowship on the first days of the
week(sundays)[Acts20:7, 1Cor.16:2], notwithstanding, they still had
fellowship with the people on saturdays [Mark1:21, Acts17:2].
Any day can be set aside for the Lord as a day of worship.
The Passover was also replaced with the 'Lord's Supper',(matt26:26,29)
Tithe paying is also still valid, Christ suggested that the Pharisees
should have both obeyed other important laws in addition to tithe
paying(matt23:23).
Accept Christ today, repent, confess,forsake your sins and believe in
your heart that Christ died and rose to remit your sins,afterwhich you
can start keeping God's commandments.
Your effort will prove futile when you decide to keep God's precepts
without accepting Christ, since Christ is the only way to the
Father(John14:6).
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