It has been a while since I wrote my last installment in this series. If you need a quick refresher, here are parts one and two.
How is the Old Testament law still applicable to a New Covenant people? Depending on who you ask you will get a variety of answers, but no matter the answer there are some parts of the law that are not in effect[1]. There are those who say because there is a new covenant that the old is just not applicable anymore, others only the ten commandments, and still others say that only the moral law is applicable[2]. However, a more direct answer to the question can be found in the pages of the New Testament[3].
Laws Are Needed
The New Testament tells us that following laws are needed. To be clear, there many that do not apply, but there are also many that do. The need to follow the ten commandments (Mt. 19:18-19), and to live a life of loving God and loving neighbor. The beatitudes in Matthew chapter five are widely regarded as a restating, in a more positive fashion, of the commandments and assists in fulfilling them in a deeper way[4]. Other ways that the New Testament shows us the Old Testament law in pointing to values we should live by, points us to our sin, and shows the need for a savior[5]. They are very much needed. Following the law does not imply that one earns salvation. In fact, that is never what it meant. In the Gospels Jesus is not dismantling the law, but he is calling people back to it[6]. Though the dietary laws are no longer applicable (See Acts 10:14-15), the spirit behind other the other parts of the law remain[7]. We look to the spiritual intent behind the law and not to the outward manifestation of it. This is what the Pharisees were guilty of and Christ held them responsible for such evil actions.
How did we get to the point where the church started to ignore these texts of scripture? Initially this appears to be an overreaction to some principles of the Protestant Reformation. The reformers accused the Catholic church of works righteousness and following the works of the law. Since salvation is only in Christ, ironically a fact that both Protestants and Catholics agree with, nothing else can be added to it. Since the law is an addition to Christ it must be cast aside as not valid. This became known as antinomianism, and though Luther fought against this in his own congregations the idea has permeated through the centuries[8].
Old Testament and the Law
In the early years of the reformation Luther had appeared, at least to some, to have established a dichotomy between the works of the law and the doctrine of faith alone. This was a misunderstanding by some who came to think that how one lived one’s life did not matter as long as they had faith in the finished work of Christ. In visiting parishes, Luther became alarmed and set out to correct this and started emphasizing the role that the law played in the life of the Christian. In his later years Luther would say,
“works and the performance of the Law must be demanded in this world as though there were no promise or grace. This is because of the stubborn, proud, and hard hearted, before whose eyes nothing must be set except the Law, in order that they may be terrified and humbled. For the Law was given to terrify and kill the stubborn and to exercise the old man[9].”
Luther was not the only reformer who struggled with this issue. In Geneva John Calvin was encountering this idea of the law being useless by a group known as the Libertines[10]. This group essentially set themselves apart from the rest of the church by an outright rejection of the Old Testament law. Unfortunately, the idea that the law was now outdated would become a popular one in the Church. This can be seen clearly in the 19th century with the publication of a work titled The Fundamentals.
This work was instrumental for many reasons. It was answering a lot of the errors that Liberal theologians were making regarding the faith. This work sought to defend orthodox Christian teaching on such things as the inerrancy of scripture, the resurrection, and the virgin birth. However, when it came to the law it was simply discarded as works righteousness. The law had its role, but Christ is now our righteousness. Therefore, we are freed from the works righteousness of the law[11].
There are many more examples that can be given on how we arrived at this juncture. There were some, such as Calvin, who sought to introduce Theonomy into the Christian life, but that seems to be the exception rather than the rule[12]. It has taken 500 years to get to this point, and it will take some time to correct it. It must be corrected because the law is a blueprint of grace. In addition to regulating societal norms, the law stirs within us the need for something more. It shows us what is right and wrong and prompts us to make a decision. Will we follow the ways of the Lord or not? Following the law was not meant to be salvific apart from a change or heart orientated toward Yahweh. The law inspired us to follow God with our whole heart and soul and shows us the will of God[13]
The law also tells us how we are to act as Christians. It tells us how to care for the less fortunate, and how to relate to both God and neighbor. These are all things that Jesus emphasized in his earthly ministry[14]. The second person of the Trinity emphasized what was revealed in the Pentateuch. As Christians this is something that we must recognize and apply. The law has a place in the new covenant church. One saying that they are a Christian is not enough. By no means does this imply a diminishment or one’s profession but calls to question someone who says they are a generational Christian. This would be one who says they are a Christian because their grandparents and parents are. That is great, but the law and Jesus require a personal response. Faith is active and the law shows us what it means to be active.
The final installment in this series will come early next week.
God bless.
Works Cited
[1]. Todd James III, Sinai and the Saints: Reading Old Covenant Laws for the New Covenant Community (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2017), 40.
[2]. Ibid, 40.
[3]. Gane, Roy, Old Testament Law For, 161.
[4]. Charles Nathan Ridlehoover, “The Sermon on The Mount And Moral Theology: A Deontological Virtue Ethic Of Response Approach,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 63, no. 2 (June 2020).
[5]. Gane, Roy, Old Testament Law For, 161.
[6]. Carmen Joy Imes, Bearing God’s Name: Why Sinai Still Matters (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2019), 143.
[7]. Mark F. Rooker, Leviticus, vol. 3A, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 209.
[8]. Michael S. Whiting, Luther in English: The Influence of His Theology of Law and Gospel on Early English Evangelicals, vol. 3A, The New American Commentary (Eugene: Pickwick Publications, 2010), 124.
[9]. Michael S. Whiting, Luther in English: The Influence of His Theology of Law and Gospel on Early English Evangelicals, vol. 3A, The New American Commentary (Eugene: Pickwick Publications, 2010), 125.
[10]. Philip Schaff and David Schley Schaff, “History of The Christian Church,” Public Domain, 498, History of the Christian Church. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
[11]. R. A. Torrey, Charles Lee Feinberg, and Warren W. Wiersbe, The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2005), 104.
[12]. Gane, Roy, Old Testament Law For, 165.
[13]. Brad E. Kelle, Telling the Old Testament Story: God’s Mission and God’s People (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2017), 84.
[14]. Sailhamer, The Meaning Of, 460.
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