August 8, 2021
For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.
~Matthew 5:18~
We as Christians tend to get either too wrapped up in God's grace and mercy or the very opposite, in His Law. One side argues there is no need for Law at all with Christ's sacrifice while other believers make judgemental calls based off their lack of rules followed. We play luke warm or we play religious wing nut. There doesn't seem to be much balance in this. Jesus is wanting our balance, our understanding of how important both is without allowing the enemy to distort our mind set and damage others or our churches in general. If we ignore God's Law all together, we ignore the entire Old Testament, dont we? God speaks of the purpose of His Son's arrival to fulfill the Law and Prophets, not to get rid of them entirely; "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." (Matthew 5:17)
For those who believe God's grace cancels His Law, this verse proves that to be false. Not to say His grace isnt sufficient, but that we are still to be holy as He calls us to be. How do we do this? By following His moral Law and honoring Jesus Christ. Law will always be Law, that is why He spoke it to begin with. We can follow God's "set of rules" without becoming too wrapped up in religiosity and demands while still enjoying His mercy and grace without doing whatever we please. There needs to be a healthy balance. The enemy loves to trip us up one way or another, let us ask of the Lord what we need to do and what we need to stop doing. It is between us and Him. We are not here to judge or condemn; "Judge not, that you be not judged." (Matthew 7:1)
We are not here to live however we wish to because Christ shed His Blood for us; "She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” (John 8:11)
God's word is absolute from beginning to end. There needs no change; addition or subtraction. In fact we are warned against doing so. If, in fact, His Law was destroyed then why do we have these Books still to meditate upon? "I will meditate on Your precepts, And contemplate Your ways."
(Psalms 119:15)
We understand God is holy. We understand God is merciful. He is perfectly balanced and He calls us to be as well. He loves us and cares for us, He does not wish for us to be pulling our hair out over rules and regulations neither does He wish for us to live a loose Christian life. Let us pray for that balance in spirit and truth. Take a step back and ask Jesus to make things clear for the way we live so that we do not offend Him all while praising Him for the cross and giving us righteousness we could never earn on our own. Let us not reject God's Law when it was placed there to help us and let us not become as the Pharisees and believe we are holier then thou; "For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:20)
We enter in by faith and by standing in that faith! In order to stand we must have balance, without it we will fall. Let us truely stand my brothers and sisters!
Jesus Christ is Law, Jesus Christ fulfilled His calling, Jesus Christ lives in us!
One day we will have no need of it because we will all live glorified with the Lord Jesus Christ, until then let us have reverence for the Lord and love for others. For the new heaven and earth has not yet come but we must be prepared for when it does!
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for Your spoken word which is sufficient enough for me. Thank you that I am only righteous by Your Son's Blood but that I am called to follow Your word whole heartedly. I want to always fear You in a healthy manner and bring the love of Jesus to those who need it most. I ask for any area I may become judgmental to be broken off me in Your Name. I pray for the balance to stand in Your Law and in Your fulfillment by faith. Guide me Holy Spirit. When I become warped in my way of thinking help me to put on the mind of Christ so I may understand and not become discouraged or dragged into religiosity. I look forward to the day sin is completely abolished but until then I respect all that You have done and will do in the Name of Your Son and my Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.