Introduction
A great deal of confusion exists today regarding the role the Mosaic Law plays in the life of the Christian. While many of the principles of the Mosaic Law transcend both the Old and New Testament I believe the Christian today is no longer under the rule of the Mosaic Law. This truth is made abundantly clear throughout the New Testament. Romans (6:14) tells us, “For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”[1] One of the key questions that I will explore throughout this three-part devotion is what lens should be used to interpret this word “law.”
According to Dr. Keith A. Sherlin:
“Two main systems of theology exist in Christian circles. One theological system named ‘Covenant theology’ emphasizes the ‘deep sense of continuity between the OT and the NT.’ This system of theology differs in essence from the contrasting system of theology known as ‘Dispensationalism.’ Dispensationalism emphasizes ‘that there is much variety in the divine economy of the Bible, that God has dealt differently with men during different eras of biblical history.’”[2]
I believe the Christian is under the Dispensationalism lens today and as a result is no longer under the Mosaic Law but under “the Law of Christ.”
The Purpose of the Mosaic Law
While evangelicals acknowledge that the Mosaic Law was never intended to be a means of salvation there is disagreement on its purpose and function. According to Douglas J. Moo “…God gave the law (1) to reveal his character to the people of Israel and demand that the people conform to it, (2) to supervise Israel in the time before Christ, and (3) to imprison Israel and, by extension, all people under sin.”[3]
God chose national Israel to be his special people and he gave them the Mosaic Law not only for the three purposes listed above but to keep them a separate people. Dietary laws, laws against intermarriage and a host of other laws were specific to Israel and meant to be enforced until their fulfillment in Christ. From a dispensational viewpoint from the time of Abraham to Moses, and the Mosaic Law, 400 years stood between these two “eras” where there was no Mosaic Law. And from the time of Moses to Christ Moo, I believe, rightly divides these two time periods into two successive eras in salvation history. Moo argues “…that the Mosaic law is basically confined to the old era that has come to its fulfillment in Christ. It is no longer, therefore, directly applicable to believers who live in the new era.”[4] If this scenario is not true as covenant theologians will argue, at least in regards to the “moral” aspect of the Mosaic Law, then there are some profound practical implications for the life of the believer today in how we are to live our lives. Later on, in this devotion, I will explore how this impacts how we as Christians relate to the Sabbath.
The Unity of the Mosaic Law
Perhaps the greatest area of disagreement between those that hold that the Mosaic Law is still valid on believers today relates to the concept of the unity of the Mosaic Law. One camp of theologians say that the Mosaic Law can be divided into three parts: moral, civil and ceremonial and that the latter two are no longer applicable to present day Christians since they have found their fulfillment in Christ. However, they contend that the “moral” law (usually considered to be the Decalogue) is still binding on New Testament believers. Greg L. Bahnsen holds to this view. According to him, “It remains for us to see, now, that the moral instructions found in the law – God’s commandments revealed in the old covenant – have not been laid aside along with the redemptive instructions for circumcision, priesthood, sacrifice, and temple.”[5] But is there a real warrant to make this distinction between the moral and ceremonial law? I agree with Albert H. Baylis when he states, “It is so common to divide the Law into the moral, civil, and ceremonial that many are surprised to find out Moses did not outline it that way!”[6]
Nowhere in scripture to we see such an arbitrary distinction in the types of Mosaic Law. Romans (8:2-4) tells us, “Because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so, he condemned sin in the flesh,in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
These verses confirm that the believer in Christ is no longer under the Mosaic Law in its entirety. Since we have been delivered from the Mosaic Law to deliberately place ourselves back under its authority is not only unnecessary but can interfere with the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. While we as New Testament believers are no longer under the authority of the Mosaic Law this doesn’t mean that we can do as we please. From the beginning of time God has given us his eternal moral laws of right and wrong that we need to obey. We are now free to live by the liberty and power of the Holy Spirit and no longer by the rule of law.
One final point relating to the separation of the moral law from the rest of the Mosaic Law concerns how to interpret Jeremiah (31:33): “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” In Wayne G. Strickland’s response to Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. he disagrees with Mr. Kaiser’s belief that it is the moral part of the Mosaic Law that God writes on the heart. According to Strickland, “Indeed the new covenant is contrasted with the old covenant in this passage. Jeremiah could just as well be arguing that the moral standards that form the basis for the entire external Mosaic Law will be placed on the hearts of believers.”[7] It seems that this external and eternal moral standard is a better interpretation here since this would apply to the New Testament believer who is now no longer under the Mosaic Law but the Law of Christ.
[1] All scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV).
[2] Keith A. Sherlin, The Law of Christ Has Replaced the Law of Moses: A Dispensational Analysis of The Law of God, Essential Christianity Ministries website. http://www.essentialchristianity.com/pages.asp?pageid=20617
[3] Stanley N. Gundry, series editor, Five Views on Law and Gospel. (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1999), 324.
[4] Ibid., 322-323.
[5] Stanley N. Gundry, series editor, Five Views on Law and Gospel. (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1999), 99.
[6] Albert H. Baylis, From Creation to the Cross – Understanding the First Half of the Bible. (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1996), 126.
[7] Stanley N. Gundry, series editor, Five Views on Law and Gospel. (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1999), 215.