The Law and New Covenant Believers
One of the most common questions asked of former Seventh-Day Adventists by current Adventists is, "How can you [theologically] justify keeping all but one of the Ten Commandments--i.e., the fourth?"
Let's take a look at Romans 10:4 as a starting point for this answer:
4For Christ is the end of the Law [the limit at which it ceases to be, for the Law leads up to Him Who is the fulfillment of its types, and in Him the purpose which it was designed to accomplish is fulfilled. That is, the purpose of the Law is fulfilled in Him] as the means of righteousness (right relationship to God) for everyone who trusts in and adheres to and relies on Him. (AMP)
or
4 For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given.[b] As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God. (NLT)
If Christ has 'already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given' or 'is the end of the law as the means of righteousness', then our failure or success to keep the law plays no role in the accomplishment of our salvation; we are no longer "under the law", see
Romans 7:6 But now we are discharged from the Law and have terminated all intercourse with it, having died to what once restrained and held us captive. So now we serve not under [obedience to] the old code of written regulations, but [under obedience to the promptings] of the Spirit in newness [of life]. (AMP)
(see also 2 Corinthians 3:6)
Also see Romans 6:14 "Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. (NLT)"...
...But verse 15 seems to be something of a contradiction: "15 Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! (NLT)"
After reading verse 15, the SDA may ask the former SDA, "Aha! So what do you think happens if you knowingly sin by breaking the fourth commandment?"
The answer of the new covenant believer is: "Not applicable. This question makes no sense to me as a new convenant believer. The question that perhaps you meant to ask which actually does make sense is, 'What happens if you go against the leading of Holy Spirit?' In which case my answer would be: 'If this has happened then I have intentionally sinned, but God is gracious and merciful to forgive me when I confess my sin and honestly repent (1 John 1:9). But if I intentionally persist in going against the Holy Spirit and thereby sinning then there no longer remains a sacrifice for my sin (Hebrews 10:26). Note, however, that Galations 5:4 says, 'For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.' (See also Romans 2:12, and Galatians 3:10) Oh, and faith does not lead you to keep the law--Galatians 3:12. This is the False Gospel outlined in a different post.) So there are two ways of falling from grace / missing out on salvation: Intentional, persistent rebellion against the Holy Spirit and/or putting yourself under the law and thinking that by thoroughly keeping the law that you will be right with God."
So, you see, the new covenant believer follows the prompting of the Holy Spirit and not the letter of the Law. (See Romans 7:6, quoted above.) And if we are no longer obeying the letter then, as expained in a previous post, it's quite possible that the Holy Spirit may lead me to break the letter of the law for the sake of the higher principle of love for God and my fellow man that is behind the Law. And, if the fourth commandment really is a shadow of what we find in Christ (Colossians 2:16-17), then I'm not surprised when the Spirit causes me to find my spiritual rest in Christ every day of the week ("today", as found in Hebrews 4:7) rather than a mere "shadowy" physical rest one day a week.
posted by Chad Borges @ 8:32 PM
13 Comments:
Excellent presentation! Either Christ is enough to save us or He is not. If He needs our help, if we must strive to perfection, daily gritting our teeth and dragging our feet, then I'm lost. If anyone could be perfect it would be me- as sincere and passionate as I am- yet it was not possible. I failed miserably. Either Jesus is enough or he's not. Many SDA are trapped in thinking that "we do our best and God does the rest"- in fact that was what I was taught back in academy. In actuality, God does it all and we accept that and enter His rest.
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!!!!! Most Christians sing this song, but don't truly believe the words.
Visit me at my blog sometime, would love your input.
All of that just to skip one Commandment?
I'd rather keep the Sabbath om Saturday and be done with it. Period.
All ten were given and remain binding upon all those who consider themselves to be disciples of Christ.
I'm not sure that Paul, when he talks about 'the law' refers to 'the law' that contains the Sabbath commandment. I think he refers to the law regarding the ceremonies that symbolized how the sin problem was to be taken care of, which were shadows of what Christ accomplished on the cross. How do we keep getting that mixed up. If Christ did away with 'the law' that contains the Sabbath commandment, then that also did away with the commandments regarding stealing, no other gods, murder, etc. Then where'd we be?
Those are some very interesting thoughts and conclusions. I wonder though? It seems that it gives a lot of personal responsibility to the person when it comes to judging "of what spirit he/she is of".
It seemed that the post pointed to the individual person following the spirit's guidance and therein knowing what was right or wrong.
Isn't that contradictory to what the bible teaches in its entirety?
The bible seems to warn us against our own understandings and impressions. It points us to following the convictions of the Holy Spirit, of which always lead us to the Word of God. In turn the Word is quick and cuts to the very heart of our motives.(Heb. 4:12)
I am also wondering, how does the book of Galatians fit into all of this? I find it to be a powerful book that helps us to understand the two covenants. What do you think?
Harlan, I think you left this comment quite a while ago. I apologize for not responding until now.
I would like to suggest a simple exercise that I went through myself recently. Read the entire epistle to the Galatians, noting each time "the law" is referred to. Is there any point in this, Paul's classic tirade against legalism, at which the ceremonial law is distinctly separated from the entire law? I don't think that you can honestly say that there is. (If this is true, I had to ask myself once upon a time, how could I have mistakenly and rashly assumed that whenever "the law" was spoken of in the New Testament as being done away with, that the author "must have really meant" only the ceremonial law? I was reading my own assumptions into the Bible.)
Note especially in chapter 3 where the apostle tells us that "the law" (which clearly does not separate the 'ceremonial' from 'the ten') was meant to last only until the coming of the promised child (Jesus). Also note the same idea in chapter five (vs. 18) where Paul asserts (as he does in Romans 7:6) that those who serve God in the new Way of the Spirit are not under obligation to the law. The way of the Spirit is vastly superior to the way of the letter! (And no, this doesn't mean that stealing, coveting, adultery, etc. are OK with God now--unless 'God' is your own fleshly impulses and not the Holy Spirit. How can you be sure which impulses are your own and which are of the Holy Spirit? I can't tell you HOW, just that you can be sure. I'm sure. Trust Jesus--and nothing else--and you will see.)
This was something that I was utterly blind to as an Adventist. Why? Because I was trusting in a system of theology, rather than in Jesus Himself, to make me right with God (an anti-grace thing, even anti-Christ thing to do--see Gal 5:4). To refer to Paul in Galatians again: (ch. 3 vs. 2) "...Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not!..." The theme that the new Way of the Spirit (intrinsic to the New Covenant) is superior to and makes obsolete the law (the terms of which were the commandments given by Moses), is rampant throughout not only Galatians, but Romans and Hebrews as well.
Jesus is the fulfillment of the Sabbath. I will embrace Him now and his shadow no longer (see Colossians 2:16-17). The Sabbath is not 'The Ultimate', Jesus is.
Matt, you said two things that really got my attention 1) "It seemed that the post pointed to the individual person following the spirit's guidance and therein knowing what was right or wrong. Isn't that contradictory to what the bible teaches in its entirety?"
Absolutely not! See the above comments to Harlan for just a sampling of what the New Testament has to say about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.
And 2) "It points us to following the convictions of the Holy Spirit, of which always lead us to the Word of God."
It seems like your trying to negate any real reliance upon the Holy Spirit by blanketly driving His flight (if you'll pardon the airline analogy) into the ground--the ground of the letter. Again, this is contradictory to what the New Testament has to say about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.
The only other thought I would add is that it is critical that we trust Jesus alone (and not things we hold to be right ABOUT Him or His ministry). From my own experience I can assure you that you will be timid regarding anyone's reliance upon the Holy Spirit (including your own) until you recklessly jump off the cliff of heeding-the-letter-to-ensure-rightness-with-God into the invisible-to-the-flesh utter security of God's forgiveness: Jesus alone. This idea is what the Gospel is all about. And it is Good News!
Oh YES! I love the way you put it: (Recklessly jump off the cliff):).
Your comments truly bring joy to my heart. I was just reading today in John 14 where Jesus yet again affirms that He did nothing except what He heard and saw from His father. His dependence upon His Father was indeed complete.(Reckless abandonment)
I full heartedly agree with you. My only concern is this.
When we talk to our Mormon brethren, (of which you may be), we are told to just let the Spirit lead you. Follow the impressions of the Spirit. So on and so forth. Forgive me if I am wrong but that was my impression.
Yet the Spirit that they are alluding that one should follow leads to another book(true) other than the bible.
Even today, we find may Christians who are so "filled" with the spirit and yet if showed that their filling is in contradiction to something the bible is very clear upon they tend to be very defensive.
Oh brother, I am with you a 100% in being completely, utterly, controlled by the Spirit of God. I just wonder in the context of John 3:21 how much we should check ourselves according to the bible to see what spirit we are actually of.
Hi Chad,
I agree with you that we need total dependance on Christ for salvation. There is absolutely nothing I can do to save myself. Satan himself claimed it impossible to keep God's law. That is why Jesus had to come to prove him wrong, and to pay the penalty for all of my sins and yours, and everyone's sins. If the law was to be done away with (which Satan claimed was bogus anyway) Christ would not have had to die at all. Sin is the transgression of the law. (see 1John 3:4) Yet we find that there must have been a law even before creation, (of earth as we know it) because in Ezekiel 28:15 (KJV), referring to Lucifer in Heaven says:"Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou was created, till iniquity was found in thee". Iniquity is sin, as I just stated, a trangression of the law.
Also, the Sabbath (7th day) was created during the creation week, and sanctified by the Creator. (See Gen. 1 for the creation story)
Jesus Himself said in Matt. 5:17-20 that the law was NOT done away with, and in verse 19 clearly states that who ever breaks one of the least commandments, and teaches men to do so, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven,....etc. (read the whole passage) Also, James 1:22-27 (especially vs 25) states we need to be a doer of the law of libety, not just hearers. Finally, in Rev.22:14 "Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
Paul in all of his writings brings a balance of faith and works. He states in Eph.2:8,9 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast." In Romans 3:31 "Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." Eph.2:15,16 "Having abolishd in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandment contained in ordinances: (note "contained in ordinances") for to make in Himself of twain one new man, so making peace; and that He might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby" This is clearly speaking of the law of ordinances often referred to as the ceremonial laws, these were nailed to the cross NOT the 10 commandments. James put it this way in James 2:18 "Yea, a man may say, thou has faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.....vs 24 "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." (cont reading vs 18-26)
It is only by faith, in Christ, that victory comes over things of this world. 1John 5:4 "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." My concluding text is very familiar. John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Jesus came to save us FROM our sins (transgression of the law), He did not come to save us IN our sins. (1 John 1:9)
I obey Christ, because I love Him. I do not do it out of fear, or to gain "brownie points". If I did not love my Lord and Savior, there would be no point in obedience or even believing in Him. Just as I stay faithful to the "laws" of marriage, (Marriage vows)I do it because I love my husband, not because I have to "work" or "earn" his love. I believe it's the same principle with God, and His law of love.
To do away with JUST the 4th commandment is crazy. It's all or nothing. I celebrate my birthday on the date of my birth, not just any day, or everyday. My birthday cannot be changed. Neither can the day that the Creator sanctified at creation. His law was written in stone. If it was nailed to the cross it would break. Like hammering a spike in a stone, would crumble the stone. The ceremonial laws were written on parchment or paper, which could easily be nailed to the cross. No where in scripture does it state that the Sabbath was changed to Sunday. The only place it is found that I have ever heard of is in the Catholic Catecism (sp?). Secular history supports the change as having been done by secular government joining church and state during the time of Constantine, a Roman emperor. If there is no longer a law, and only grace, then that would make me free to live as I please, good or evil, because I'm covered. Blank check....no consequenses, all I need to do is "believe in Jesus" and have "faith". Satan believes in Jesus, why won't he be covered by grace? I just don't see from scripture how grace or Christ's death abolished the law of God. There is too much evidence to the contrary. Daniel prophecied that in the last days men would think to change times and laws, and this is certainly being fulflled in our day.
Hi Daisy,
Perhaps you could explain to me a little more explicitly, what role your efforts play in your salvation?
To accept Jesus by faith. Letting Him change me from the inside out.
The 10 commandments are summed up, as Jesus said, To love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and thy neighbor as thyself.
To be totally "in Christ" means to be one with Him. Just as I am "one" with my husband. I will not violate the marriage vows, neither will I violate my "marriage vows to Christ". His law. It is holy, just, and true. Reading scriptures teaches that from Genesis to Revelation. So in summary my part, is to be totally faithful to Christ.
Hi Daisy,
I, for one, find it impossible to be "totally faithful to Christ". Fortunately, He finds it possible to be totally faithful to me. God's one-sided covenants are amazing! Despite the failings of my "old man", I continually enjoy unprecedented Rest in Christ.
Hi Chad,
Do you you find it totally impossible to be faithful to your wife? This doesn't mean that you will never fight, or argue. You're human. When this happens, you ask your wife to forgive you, and you go on from there as if it never happened. That's what true forgiveness is. That's the way it is with Christ. When I fail Him, He truly forgives me. That's what His grace is all about. That's what His sacrifice on the cross was all about. To make up for my failings. Yes, I will fall, but that doesn't mean the "vows/10 commandments" are done away with, any more than a fight with your wife does away with your marriage vows.
Anyway, this is what I believe. And Jesus Christ is my best Friend, and I believe that at my baptism I spiritually became "married" to Christ. The old man, as Paul puts it, died, and now I live in Christ. I am covered by His grace. When I fail, He forgives, that's His grace. He didn't change the vows/law, He just forgives, and His grace makes everything all right again.
I sincerely hope that you can rest in Christ completely, but I have trouble understanding how you can with no "vows/laws" since you seem to believe they no longer exist. I'm sure glad my husband doesn't think that now that we are married our vows don't exist. I don't think we would stay married very long if that's the way he believed.
May God bless you, as you continue to study His word.
-Daisy
I just wanted to ask you one more question. How can any relationship be complete and fulfilling if it is only one-sided?
Just to clarify, I actually believe that Jesus raised the bar for obedience (and even thoughts!) far above and beyond the written letter of the law; so far, in fact, that it's probably safe to say that no written list could adequately describe it. This is how the old, lower way of the written letter is "out" and the new, higher way of following by the Spirit is "in". (Rom. 7:6)
Of course, keeping this higher law as a "balanced" part of my salvation plan is even more difficult than keeping the 10 commandments. That's why obedience to a written law or code or set of vows is not part of the terms of the new covenant as it was with the inferior (according the Bible) old covenant--which, "with [its] laws etched in stone [the 10 commandments, explicitly], led to death" (2 Cor. 3:7).
The problem with God's two-way old covenant--which had written terms for the Israelites to keep--was that trying (or even having a heart to try/obey) didn't count--at all.
To clarify further, it's the new covenant that's one-sided, not my relationship with God. It was the same way for Abraham with the Abrahamic covenant (Gen 15). For believers today, the benefits of the new covenant (salvation & more) are ours just through acceptance (faith) alone. We have no terms to fulfill other than accepting! Why? Because we can't fulfill any truly meaningful terms and God knows it but wants to redeem us anyway.
I do care to be absolutely righteous in a completely literal sense. And I count it a great lost opportunity to fail to obey any prompting of the Holy Spirit. But I trust that my Lord will make me righteous some day. Will it be in this earthly life? Most likely not, but Jesus Himself promised me that I am immortal (right now!) and will never pass under any judgment involving the potential for condemnation (John 5:24). Therefore He has all the time He needs--much in the way (as George MacDonald put it) that He could take a million years to make a man who would know Him and be blessed.
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