What Does Jesus Say About the Law and the Prophets? (Mosaic and New Part 4)

Jesus said, "Do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12)

Jesus said, "I have come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 5:17)

Jesus said, "All the Law and the Prophets depends on these two commands...Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. And, Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:37-40)
Jesus said, "The Law and the Prophets were in force until John; since then, the good news of the kingdom of God has been proclaimed and everyone is forcing their way into  it." (Luke 16:16)

Max Lucado wrote in a devotional March 13, 2015: “The list of our faults and mistakes…are covered. The sins are hidden…they are covered by his [Jesus] blood. He has utterly wiped out the written evidence of broken commandments which always hung over our heads, and has completely annulled it by nailing it to the cross.”

A few weeks ago my preschool class painted with red paint. They smeared it all over a heart using brushes and their hands. When we do a project like this, I have to let the paint dry and, only after it is dry, write the words on the page. If I put the words on first, they paint over them and their parents cannot read them.

Jesus did the exact opposite for us. God wrote all our shortcomings on the cross and Jesus smeared his blood over the words so they could not be read and held against us. 

We are often asked the question, “What are you going to ask God when you get to heaven?” Right after I ask him if I can come in, I’m going to ask God to replay the scene Hebrews 9:11-12 describes: “Jesus went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands…. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood.”

I can’t wait to see the exchange of sin for redemption. Was there a real list illuminated on a podium with smoke floating around it that Jesus smeared his blood on to cover the words? Knowing history and myself, a whole set of encyclopedias could not contain enough pages to hold all our sins. 

Thank the Lord Oh My Soul, Hebrews continues to say: “…the blood of Christ… cleanses our consciences from the acts that lead to death so we may serve the living God…. Christ is a mediator of a new covenant that those who are called are may receive the promised eternal inheritance— now that he died for a ransom to set us free from the sin committed under the first covenant.” 

We are set free from the sin of not following precisely the first/Mosaic Covenant and are not burdened with the laws it holds any longer. Our focus is NOT on following the laws about food, drink, sacrifices, stoning, cleansing, times and dates, and all the laws in the 34 categories of the Torah. Our conscience is set free from the old so we may now focus on the New Covenant which is simply serving the Living God. We all should serve the living God by following some of the laws in the Torah, however we do it out of love for God and our neighbor, not under obligation. (For more on obligation read Romans 4:4-25) 

So, for this Easter season, I challenge you to really examine how you are serving the Living God. Based on the resurrection we can claim, the New Covenant we can follow, the Holy Spirit living inside the new tabernacle (our bodies)… How do you serve God? What is your motivation? He sacrificed so much for us. How do we sacrifice for Him? (Hint: The answers will all be different and they will all be correct.) 

Law and Prophets; Torah; obligation; Easter