God’s Law Was and Is

The Law of the LORD was in the Old Covenant and is in the New Covenant. There, I can see, a tendency to split the law from the Old to the New Testaments in God’s Word, the Bible. I hear all of the time that things in the Old Testament are void based on a few items that no longer hold true in the New Testament. Take the eating of pork for instance. In the Old Testament pork is considered unclean and in the New Testament that has been voided.

“¹⁶The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. ¹⁷But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.” – Luke 16:16-17 (ESV)

It is not that the law of eating pork has been voided, it is that the eating of pork was a symbol of uncleanness and now, thanks to the coming, dying, and resurrection of Jesus, that symbol has been overridden. Pork is still unclean when one has not adhered to the salvation that comes with the acceptance of Jesus as our savior, it is just that the intent of the pork has lost its sting for those who have.

In Texas for instance, it is illegal to allow your camel to roam free on the beach in Galveston. The truth is that it is illegal to allow any large animals to roam free on public streets or other public property. When they animal is attended to there is no such restriction. When we are attended to by God, eating pork is not a thing anymore.

You see, the Law of the LORD was around in the beginning and the Law of the LORD is around today and the Law of the LORD will be around forever. The Old Covenant required the strict adherence to the law to be in right standing with the LORD and therefor. One set time and place was in place for the chance to seek and be granted forgiveness of our sins against the Law. This created the sense that there were those who were more holy than others as they were closer to the time and place regularly. In reality, it was just that those were “showy” in their adherence to the Law. In private there were those who where no different than everyone else.

In the New Covenant, this singular place and time were removed and all who accepted Jesus as Savior were made clean and were given the unlimited access to Him to seek forgiveness of our sins. We are no longer unclean and can come to Him for forgiveness. The New Covenant is in place for eternity. We all now have unlimited access to God.

Even with the unlimited access, the Law of the LORD is still in place and valid, The Ten Commandments are still there. Although that is just an example. The difference is that we follow the Law of the LORD today as a result of our forgiveness and not in our quest for it. The Law of the LORD is not the way to God, but is the way to show His example to others. The Law of the LORD was and is.

What is your view of the Law of the LORD? Is is something that no long applies as we have now moved into the New Covenant? What if we see God’s Law as always valid, only we don’t use it to get to salvation, but now it is the example of our salvation?

The Law Within

I have a comparison of the Old Covenant and the New Covenant in the back of my Bible and where my current study is not directly related to these, law is and is an important thing for me to remember. The Old Covenant was an external one where we were informed of what was needed so the LORD would not exact his wrath on us. We were given the law to abide and were reminded of our sin. The New Covenant is internal and we are drawn near to the LORD in protection from the evil in the world. We are given the law to remove sin from our lives.

“³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. An I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” – Jeremiah 31:33 (ESV)

The LORD will put His law within me, not just give it to me, but write it on my heart for always. My heart is within me and that is where He places His law. Reading and visualizing this morning has opened my eyes a bit more to the intentional actions of the LORD in my life. He does not just provide the law for me, He writes it on my heart within me. He no longer is driving fear in me, but faith. He does not keep me away from Him, but draws me near.

“¹I love you, O LORD, my strength.”

— Psalm 18:1 (ESV)

When I look to the New Covenant and see that the LORD writes His law on my heart, the above verse hits a little different. Our strength comes from the LORD, and now, I know and can take solace in the fact that strength has been written on my heart and comes from and will always be within me.

Where is God’s Law in your life? Are you still trembling in fear to keep from sin? What if you embrace the LORD and His Law as He writes on your heart and gives you strength to be realized is within you?

All Clean to Hear the Gospel

“²⁸And he said to them, ‘You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean.’” – Acts 10:28 (ESV)

Peter was in the house of an Italian, not exactly the kind of house a Jew was to enter and associate at the time according to the law. But, Peter was taking his direction from God and not from the law. The “new” law of God, the New Covenant, was the action that Peter was taking into account when he joined this Italian and all others in his house. Thanks to Jesus all people, yes all, were to be led to the LORD, Jew and Gentile.

“¹²In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. ¹³And there came a voice to him: ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ ¹⁴But Peter said, ‘By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.’ ¹⁵And the voice came to him again a second time, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.’” – Acts 10:12-15 (ESV)

You see, Peter had seen in a vision just a few days before that all was clean now thanks to the LORD. Yes, we see in the vision that there was reference to all animals, and not “all” lineage of man, but this was a vision and things are not always literal. The parallel is related to uncleanliness according to Jewish law. Like some animals, some people where considered unclean according to the law. But the law had changed.

Thanks be to God for the change in the law. He made it possible that I might hear the gospel and have the opportunity to be saved. Thanks be to God that I am not considered unclean and not able to know Him. Thanks be to God that Jesus came and died for my sins to wash me clean. Thanks be to God, thanks be to God!

What is your view of clean versus unclean? Are there those that would be considered unclean? What if we think in terms of the New Covenant and know that all are clean thanks to and in the eyes of the LORD to receive the gospel and know Him?