In Romans 3:31, Paul writes, “Does this mean that by this faith we do away with the Law? No, not at all; instead, we uphold the Law.” (GNB)
There is a lot of teaching on the grace of God and faith that we must place in Him. Grace and faith are fundamental for our walk with God, but it is important to understand that God desires that we have a balanced view of these important principles. Some have taken these teachings to the extreme, and thereby forgotten a very crucial aspect of our relationship with God, namely that God is also a God of justice. It is true that we are saved by the grace of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, and His finished work on the cross, but this does not in any way mean that once we are saved, God will ignore sin, for this will make Him an unjust God. There is an erroneous belief that as believers of the new covenant, there is no obligation to read or follow the Old Testament, as it based on the Mosaic Law. The consequence of such teaching, which overstresses the grace of God, is that it has led many believers to lead a life of indiscipline, with no fear whatsoever of sin or its consequences.
The purpose of the Law
1. The Israelites were redeemed from bondage
The people of Israel were in slavery in Egypt for more than four hundred years, with no hope whatsoever. The Lord intervened, and delivered them from their bondage with His mighty hand. There was nothing the Israelites could do to liberate themselves. The Lord made the way, and all they had to do was to sacrifice the lamb without blemish, smear the blood on the doorpost and lintels, to be set free from the cruel dominion of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. This was God’s redemptive plan for the people of Israel to walk out into freedom from captivity. It was also a fore shadow of the salvation that we were to receive through the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. The Israelites passed through the Red Sea
The Lord then led the Israelites through the Red Sea, as a sign of the waters of baptism that we go through after we believe in the Lord Jesus.
3. The faith of the Israelites was tested
The Israelites saw the wonders of God through the ten plagues, they witnessed His mighty hand of deliverance through the Red Sea, but the first thing that they encountered on the other side of Egypt, was the bitter waters of Mara. They came expecting a land flowing with milk and honey, but their first experience was the taste of the bitter waters of Mara. The Lord could have easily given them sweet water at the first instance, but He chose to let them be tested, so that their faith in Him could be refined. The next test was for food, and God graciously provided them with manna. Again they were encountered thirst, and this time the Lord brought forth water from the rock and quenched their thirst. These trials they confronted were lessons from God, to teach the Israelites to come to a place of complete dependence on God alone.
4. The Israelites are confronted by an enemy (Amalekites)
The next challenge the Israelites ran into was the threat from the Amalekites. There was a big struggle, but finally God helped them to have victory over Amalek. This symbolizes the struggle with the flesh that we so often are challenged with. Moses lifted up his hands in prayer for the people of Israel as they battled with Amalek, and God wrought a wondrous victory. So also, when we pray, we can have victory over our fleshly desires.
5. The Israelites quarrel among themselves
When the enemy was overcome, the people of Israel now started to fight among themselves. They all plodded to Moses, who was wearied with trying to sort out, and judge the numerous issues they faced with each other.
The Lord gives the Israelites the laws and commandments
It was at this time, not more than 3 months after the Israelites had come out of Egypt, that the Lord called out to Moses to come with Him on the mountain, so he could give him the commandments and the laws that were to be implemented among the people, so as to make them a civilized lot.
Even today we have many who are still in bondage to traditions, rituals, society, and are unable to step out in freedom. Irrespective of what we are in bondage to, when we have faith in the Lord, He is able to deliver us, and set us free from every form of enslavement in our lives. Once we have experienced the gift of salvation that the Lord Jesus offers, the laws of God are given to teach us to live a life that is pleasing to God. The salvation that we have received is totally free, and there is nothing we can do to attain it. However, we have a responsibility as ones who have experienced this gift of grace, to walk in obedience to the word of God.
God often leads us through trials and difficulties, those Mara experiences, to test us to see if our faith in Him is genuine or not. The Mara experiences may seem bitter, but the Lord also has the solution at hand to turn these bitter situations to sweet ones, and for our own good. Many people come in to the faith believing that their lives would be a bed of roses, and so are pleasantly surprised when challenged with hardships. These adverse situations are God’s ways of trying our faith to bring us to the point of total surrender, and dependence of Him alone.
Three kinds of laws
The laws that God gave to Moses can be classified into three broad categories; the ceremonial laws, civil laws and moral laws.
• The ceremonial laws
These laws pertained to sacrifices and those on purification, before the people approached God at the tabernacle or the temple later on. These ceremonial laws explained in detail all that sinful man was required to do, in order to approach the presence of a Holy God. There was a veil that separated sinful man from the most holy place, and if sinful man approached without cleansing, He was in danger of punishment with death.
We read in Hebrew 9:10, “These gifts and sacrifices were meant to be food, drink, and items used in various purification ceremonies. These ceremonies were required for the body until God would establish a new way of doing things.”
These ceremonial laws were given as symbols, and were a fore shadow of the coming of Jesus, who would by His sacrificial death on the cross, tore down the veil that separated sinful man from a holy God. Jesus became the mediator between sinful man and a holy God.
To understand this we read Colossians 2:16 -17,“Therefore, let no one judge you because of what you eat or drink or about the observance of annual holy days, New Moon Festivals, or weekly worship days. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the body that casts the shadow belongs to Christ.”
Paul is explicit that all these ceremonial laws were only a shadow, and that when Jesus came down to earth, he changed everything by His atoning sacrifice. When He, the true light appeared there was no need for one to still hold on to the shadow. That is why the word of God is categorical that no one should judge another believer on the basis of food, drink, special days or Sabbath as all of these are just a shadow until Jesus appeared.
Many people are still holding on to the shadow, instead of clinging on to Jesus who is the true reality. To understand this let me quote an example from daily living. A person approaches an engineer for a plan to build his house, and the engineer draws out a detailed plan. The lay person is unable to understand the detailed sketch, and in order to make the plan more appealing, the engineer decides to make a model of the house that he has proposed to build. On receiving the model the person who receives it is so thrilled to see the beautiful architecture, that he treasures the model, and keeps it very safe. A few months later, the actual building is completed and the engineer hands over the key to the owner of the house. Just imagine, if the person refuses to receive the keys, and tells the engineer that he is satisfied with the model which he considers so lovely, and that it is more than enough for him. If there was such a person, we would probably pity him, and refer to him as unwise.
So also, many are so entangled with traditions and rituals, all of which Jesus came to break and release us from by His finished work on the cross, by making a way for us to approach the Father in heaven.
• Civil laws
The second category of laws that God gave to the Israelites were the civil laws. As the people of Israel lived together as a community in the wilderness, there were umpteen issues that arose between them. In order to bring about regulation and discipline in their day to day living, the Lord commanded Moses to execute for them civil laws, which would help them live in peace and harmony.
Every country where we live has laws that govern our dealing with others. These are laws that have been made by the leaders of the country to ensure that there is peace and justice in the land. The civil laws that God gave Moses have also come to an end, and are replaced by the laws of the country where we reside.
• Moral laws
The laws that distinguished the people of Israel from those around them were the moral laws that God gave them, an important part of which, were the Ten Commandments. The moral laws of God are immortal, and will never change with time. These moral laws are those that distinguish the people of God, as those separated by Him for a specific purpose. Jesus did not abolish the Ten Commandments, but on the other hand he explained them in greater detail and took them to a whole new level.
Many have a faulty understanding that the laws of the Old Testament are not applicable for today, and have therein sowed the seeds, to raise a generation that is undisciplined and does not fear God as they should. God has chosen us to be a people of renown, and this He has done by endowing us with these moral laws. However, in order to fulfil these laws the way God intended for us to, He has graciously bestowed on us (new covenant believers) the Holy Spirit, who is our helper to effectuate these laws. These laws of God are no longer written in tablets of stone, but in our hearts.
Do not take the name of the Lord in vain
In Exodus 20:7, we read, "Never use the name of the LORD your God carelessly. The LORD will make sure that anyone who carelessly uses his name will be punished.” (GW)
Let us consider one of these moral laws as stated in Exodus 20:7. The law about not taking the name of the Lord in vain. This law for instance will not change no matter how many generations may pass by. There is also a consequence mentioned for not obeying this law, and that is the fact that such a person will be punished by God.
There is a widespread teaching about God being a loving Father who will never punish His children. This goes against the grain of even an earthly father. An earthly father would be considered loving, only if he disciplines his children, for he realizes that if he does not correct his child, society would have to do it at a later point, which would be very painful for his child.
The same command is represented this way in the New Testament. We read in Matthew 22:37-39, Jesus answered him, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. ‘This is the greatest and most important commandment. The second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.' (GW)
By explaining the first command this way, Jesus reiterates that when one truly loves the Lord their God with all their heart, soul and mind, there would be no way they would use the name of the Lord carelessly or in vain.
To understand this command better let us look at some examples from the Old Testament, where some people took the name of the Lord in vain.
We read in Genesis 27:19-20, “Jacob answered his father, "I'm Esau, your firstborn. I've done what you told me. Sit up and eat this meat I've hunted for you so that you may bless me." Isaac asked his son, "How did you find it so quickly, Son?" "The LORD your God brought it to me," he answered.” (GW)
A background to the above mentioned verses are that Isaac and Rebekah had two boys Esau and Jacob. The father favored the older son Esau, and the mother favored the younger boy Jacob. The reason was Esau was a hunter, an outdoors man and often returned with game that satisfied his father’s taste buds. Rebekah on the other hand loved Jacob, because he was a home bird who probably hung out a lot with his mother, helping her at home.
As Jacob grew very old, he called for his son Esau one day, and informed him that he wished to bless him before he died. He instructed him to go out, hunt some animal, prepare a tasty meal and bring it to him, so he could eat the same, before he pronounced his blessings on him. This was overheard by Rebekah who coveted these blessings for Jacob. She immediately asked Jacob to bring a lamb from their own livestock, which she prepared and cooked to take to his father Jacob, before Esau arrived.
Jacob was hesitant to do so, and told his mother that his father would probably recognize that he was not Esau. The reasons were Esau was a hairy man, and also Jacob feared that his voice would give him away. Rebekah’s love for Jacob so blinded her that she prodded him on by saying that if his father should curse him, then she would willingly take the curses on herself. She took the lambs skin covered his hands so that if Isaac were to feel Jacob, his skin would feel like that of Esau.
It was in this context that Jacob went into his father and in Genesis 27:19-20 and spoke to him this way. When Jacob entered in to receive the blessings, Isaac got a bit suspicious, as he wondered how Esau, was able to hunt, and cook the meal in such a short time. When he questioned Jacob about this, this was Jacob’s response to his father, "The LORD your God brought it to me," he answered.” Rebekah prepared the lamb, but Jacob used God’s name conveniently to cover his deceit.
Jacob deceived his father, used God’s name to cover up his wrong, and received the blessings. However, the consequence he faced later was that his father-in-law Laban, deceived him by tricking him to marry to marry Leah, his elder daughter, though Jacob only loved Rachel, the younger daughter.
As parents we must avoid showing favoritism, and must learn to demonstrate love to our children without partiality. When we favor one child over the other, this invariably leads to trouble in the family. We should be cautious not to be like Rebekah, who was willing to take curses on behalf of her son. We should not be irresponsible, and become recipients of undue curses.
Often we are found guilty of using God’s name for our own benefit like Jacob did. When someone invites us to a special meeting where God’s word is expounded, in order to avoid it for whatever reasons, we sometimes say ‘if the Lord wills, I will come.” Such statements are pretentious, as it is most certainly God’s will that we should be edified by His word. When there is something that we want to do, we go ahead with it no matter what, but when we do not want to do something, we quickly make it appear that it is not God’s will for us. Let’s be cautioned that when we do so, we are in a way using the Lord’s name in vain. Our heart and lips must always say the same thing, and we must refrain from using the Lord’s name for our own convenience, for when we do so we too are guilty of taking the Lord’s name in vain. We also are reminded from Jacob’s life that we will most certainly sow what we reap. Every time we use God’s name we must do so with reverence, and sincerely seek to honor God with our words.
Absalom deceived King David
In 2 Samuel 15:7-10 we read, “Four years later Absalom said to the king, "Let me go to Hebron and keep the vow I made to the LORD. I made a vow while I was living at Geshur in Aram. I said, 'If the LORD will bring me back to Jerusalem, I will serve the LORD.'" "Go in peace," the king told him. So he went to Hebron. But Absalom sent his loyal supporters to all the tribes of Israel and said, "When you hear the sound of the ram's horn, say, 'Absalom has become king in Hebron.'"
David’s son Absalom had his heart set to usurp his father’s throne, in order to acquire the position and authority that his father held. He lied to his father David that he had made a vow to the Lord while he lived in Geshur, that if the Lord brought him back to Jerusalem, he would go to Hebron, and fulfill a vow he had made to the Lord. David believed his son Absalom, and sent him away with his peace and blessings. As David rejoiced that his son Absalom went to Hebron to serve the Lord and fulfill his vow, Absalom went forth with the evil intent to confiscate his father’s throne.
Absalom sent his loyal supporters, like spies to all the tribes of Israel, and summoned them to join in the conspiracy to make him king in the place of his father David. Absalom sent his men with the instruction that when the people heard the sound of the ram’s horn, they were to shout and proclaim that Absalom had become king in Hebron. While God sent Samuel to search out David, to make him King of Israel, Absalom conspired against his father and announced himself as king in the place of his father, King David. God watched Absalom, and true to God’s word, Absalom was punished and had a sadly pathetic end.
There are many people, especially youth, who have a form of godliness on the outside, but are involved in various things that displease the Lord. We are reminded that God knows every detail of our lives, inside and outside, therefore, it is only when we walk in holiness within and without are we assured of God’s blessings on our lives. The Lord desires truth in our inward parts, and the He does not attest to any form of pretense or dichotomy from his children.
There was a time when Christians were commended for their exemplary lives, and it was a given that a Christian would never engage in anything that is unlawful. But, sadly today by discarding the moral laws of God, and overemphasizing on grace, we have groomed a people who have no sense of fear or reverence for God and His laws. We are called to be those who are recognized for our integrity, who always speak the truth, and have no place for any form of deceit.
Let us come back to the point, where our witness for the Lord is so uncompromised, that people can recognize that we indeed belong to the Lord, for only then we can expect the start of a revival. The sign of revival is when every believer who claims to believe in Jesus and goes to church, decides to shine forth their light wherever they are, exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit in their day to day lives, with no duplicity whatsoever.
Unlike Absalom who exalted himself, the Lord calls us to humbly submit to Him for He has promised that He will lift us up in due time. The Lord calls us to be those who are genuine from the very depths of our beings. Our words and our motives must match, and have no contradiction whatsoever, for if not we too will be guilty of using God’s name in vain. The Lord is not pleased with a spiritual mask on Sunday, and a life lived in the flesh for the rest of the week. Let us decide to let our words and inner motives match each other, with no disparity whatsoever. May our ‘yes’ be ‘yes’ and our ‘no’ be ‘no’. If we live the life of holiness that God has intended for us, God will restore us back to the status that He designed for us, and many will approach us to be blessed by the Lord.
Jacob deceived his father Isaac, and got deceived himself. Absalom conspired against his father David, the consequence of which was he lost the throne and his life as well. Their lives are reminders to us that we must honor the Lord and His word, for only then the Lord will bless us and use us mightily. We dare not try to use God for our convenience, but rather submit to His authority completely, for when we do so, we will be transformed into those set apart for the fame and glory of the Lord, because that is the very purpose for which the Lord called us to His own.
The moral laws of God were given to the people of Israel to distinguish them from all those around them, and they apply to us today as well. If we chose to discard or disobey these precious laws of God, we will end up losing out on the blessings that God has instore for us, for all of them are given for our benefit and ultimate good. May we be those esteemed people who lead such exemplary lives, holding on to the laws of God, thereby being recipients of God’s blessings, and being a blessing to those around us as well.
Rev. F. Andrew Dixon
www.goodnewsfriends.net
Transcribed by: Sis. Esther Collins
