Wellington Church -

Question: The OT includes a lot of commands the Lord gave to the Jewish people such as not eating certain meats, washing your clothes after touching something dead and allowing the land to rest the seventh year. Should Christians still obey all these laws?  What exactly was the purpose for these laws and what role does OT law play in the life of the Christian?

Answer: The purpose of the law was threefold.  First, it served as a mirror reflecting God's righteousness which also reveals our sinfulness.  The law is meant to provide man with a knowledge of his sin (Romans 3:20; 4:15; 5:13), so he will be aware of his need for God's redemptive grace.  This knowledge is used by the Lord to bring man to repentance and faith in Christ (Galatians 3:19-24). 

Secondly, the civil use of the law was meant to restrain evil.  The law cannot change the heart, but it can inhibit lawlessness by threats of judgment (Duet. 13:6-11; 19:16-21; Romans 13:3, 4).

Thirdly, the law serves as a guide for Christians to know right from wrong.  The Christian is free from the law as a system of salvation (Romans 6:14; 7:4; Galatians 2:15-19), but is "under law toward Christ" as a rule of life (I Corinthians 9:21; Galatians 6:2).   

God's moral laws, which reflect His holy character, are always the Christian's duty if he desires to live in a way that pleases the Lord. He is set free from the law as a system of salvation when he comes under God's grace through faith in Christ's redemptive work on the cross; in other words, he is not justified (made right with God) by perfect obedience to the law, but by Christ's atoning death.  This is good news for sinners, because we have all fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and the wages of our disobedience is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ (Romans 6:23).  However, once we are born again in Christ, the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit gives us the desire and will to obey God's moral laws as a rule of life and that obedience reflects His holiness in our lives. 

The political laws of the OT simply applied principles of the moral law to Israel as a theocratic nation.  Many of these laws were the basis for establishing justice in America. 

The OT laws about ceremonial purity, diet and sacrifice were temporary enactments for purposes of instruction and/or preparation for the coming Messiah.  Our obligation to practice these ceremonial laws was cancelled in the NT once their symbolic meaning was fulfilled (Matt. 15:20; Mark 7:15-19; Acts 10:9-16; Hebrews 10:1-4).  However, many of these ceremonial laws regarding purity and diet have been determined by modern science to be of sound medical advice and when observed, to be beneficial to our health.  Even the principle of periodically resting the land has been discovered by farmers to be a wise and productive principle to practice.  

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