Jesus said that He did not come to abolish the law or the prophets. What did He mean? These were the two main divisions of the Hebrew Scriptures. So then, the Old Testament will not be abolished, but fulfilled. What does fulfill mean. It can’t mean abolish, because Jesus said that He did not come to abolish the law, any of it.
“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. 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. 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. 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.” (Matthew 5:17-20 NIV)
When Jesus upheld the commandments, did He only uphold the Ten Commandments or all 613 commandments from the Hebrew Scriptures? He did not specify, so we cannot assume that He only meant the ten. In fact, He mentioned that some were considered to be the least commandments. Is Jesus trying to tell us that all the commandments of God have a role to play in the kingdom of heaven? It seems so, but how? He goes on to comment on a few of the Old Testament commandments.
Did Jesus say He did not come to abolish the so-called moral law but only the so-called civil and ceremonial law? No, “until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law [all of it] until all is accomplished.” What did Jesus mean, “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven?” Does that mean that those who annul the so-called civil and ceremonial parts of the law will be the least?
If “whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven,” what does that mean? How can it be that, “unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven?” Could it be that the entire law, scripturally divided as commandments, statutes and judgments, has a spiritual application? Let’s look at Jesus’ commentary on the law.
The Spirit of Murder
In the letter of the law most of us would say we are not murderers, but Jesus has a different take on the spirit of the law against murder.
“You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell. So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God. When you are on the way to court with your adversary, settle your differences quickly. Otherwise, your accuser may hand you over to the judge, who will hand you over to an officer, and you will be thrown into prison. And if that happens, you surely won’t be free again until you have paid the last penny.” (Matthew 5:21-26 NLT)
Which of us has not been unrighteously angry or hurled verbal abuse at someone else? How hard is it to reconcile with those who have deeply hurt us or our families? How hard is it to quickly settle out of court rather than be taken to court by an enemy? Most of us can rightly claim not to have murdered someone according to the letter of the law, but the spirit and attitude of murder are very different matters.
The spirit of murder is found in unrighteous anger, verbal abuse and an unwillingness to even attempt reconciliation. It may not always be possible and mutual trust may not come for a very long time, but have we even tried?
How does this play out between the Oriental and Eastern Orthodox churches, the Eastern and Western church, between Protestants and Catholics, and between different Protestant denominations? Have we allowed too many twigs or non-essentials to murder fellowship? Would we excuse burning those of a different denomination at the stake as did some of our ancestors?
How is our attitude on the road? Do we drive like we have murder on our hearts? How is our attitude to politics? Though we may not trust either side, do we slay them with verbal abuse? Is the spirit of murder or value for human life, both born and unborn, within our hearts?
