Jesus And The Law

Jesus condemned whoever sets aside the least of God’s commands. What does that mean? Let’s learn what our relationship to the law is. Let’s examine salt, light and the law in Matthew 5:13-20.

You ARE Salt

Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”

How can salt lose its flavor? Good Bible study involves historical research, in order to make informed conclusions. We must be open to ancient definitions of things. Their definition of “salt” was most probably a mixture of gypsum and what we call salt today. This mingling could lose its “saltiness.”

You ARE Light

Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Jesus said, his disciples are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. This was encouragement to be what they already were. We too are the salt that gives the world a good taste and the light that brightens this dark planet. Salt preserves. Let’s be ourselves.

Lamps Give Light

Matthew 5:15 “Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.”

Some Christians hide their faith. Being a closet Christian contradicts what Jesus taught. A city on a hill cannot be hid. A light is meant to be seen, not hidden away in secret. What must be seen? Our good deeds must shine, not to boast, but so that others may glorify God.

Good Works

Matthew 5:16 “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Jesus encouraged his disciples to do good deeds. We don’t do good works in order to be saved, but because we are saved. “Do-nothing” Christianity is incomplete and weak. Faith without works is dead. One of the most effective forms of letting our light shine is by our good deeds.

Law not Abolished

Matthew 5:17 “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.”

The law of Moses (the Torah) is the first 5 books of the Old Testament. The rest of the Old Testament is often called the writings. Jesus endorsed the entire Old Testament for Christians. Jesus did not do away with the Old Testament but fulfilled it. How? Let’s keep reading.

Letter or Spirit?

Matthew 5:18 “For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”

Has the Old Testament been handed down to us faithfully? Jesus claims that no part of it is missing, not the smallest letter. Jesus endorses of every part of the Old Testament, even those parts that moderns don’t like. The Bible is the most historically accurate document in all history.

613 Commandments

Matthew 5:19 “Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

In an age when some pick and choose which parts of the Bible they agree with or not, Jesus endorses the entire Old Testament, all its 613 commandments. After this Jesus began to teach how Christians obey the law better than the Pharisees did, in the spirit of the law.

A Better Righteousness

Matthew 5:20 “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Deuteronomy expounds the Ten Commandments (#1 6-11; #2 12; #3 13:1-14:21; #4 14:22-16:17; #5 16:18-18:22; #6 19-21; #7 22:1-23:14; #8 23:15-24:7; #9 24:8-16; #10 24:17-26:15).[1] However, the letter of the law kills (2 Corinthians 3:6) and there is a righteousness by faith that is superior to the righteousness of the law.

[1] Hill, Andrew E. & Walton, John H. “A Survey of the Old Testament.” Zondervan Publishing House. 1991. 58.

The only option left is keeping the law in spirit. For example, circumcision is not of the flesh but the heart (Romans 2:29); there remains a Sabbath rest in Jesus for eternity (Matthew 11:28; Hebrews 4) and love fulfills the whole law (Romans 13:8-10; Galatians 5:14).

The letter of the law is not righteous enough. It’s the way to cultish legalism. We fulfill the law via Jesus’ law of love. The law can teach us, but it is only a shadow of things to come. The cross is the reality. Love in action fulfills the law, all of it.