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Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law - Religion - Nairaland

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Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 1:37pm On Jun 07, 2020
Abolish mean to end, put away, or set aside and stop the practice of something. While fulfilled means to carry on, obey, follow, or comply to some rule, regulations and requirements. You can see that the two words stand opposite to each other.

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matt 5:17).

"The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God." (Heb 7:18-19).

"In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away." (Heb 8:13).

To fulfill the Law means to continue practicing the law; while to abolish it mean to end and put aside the Law. Jesus said he didn't come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it. Yet, in the other scripture we see that he abolish the Law. This has been a major cause for confusion to many Christians. We have not be able to reconcile this truths, and as such we have taken different camps. Some of us have camped with "abolish" and have rejected "fulfill", while some camp with "fulfill", and struggle with "abolish". And there is another group that are partially camping in "fulfill", and partially camping in "abolish".

"So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross." (Col 1:19-20 MSG).

"He set it all out before us in Christ, a long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth." (Eph 1:10 MSG).

We have this problem because we see abolish and fulfill as two contradicting things. But once you come into Christ, nothing is contradicting anymore, they are all one. All things had been summed up and harmonized in Christ. In Christ there is no longer contradictions and conflicts or division but all things had been made one. Abolishing is no longer contradicting to fulfilling, they are now one. No, we do not have two different camps, they are actually one camp. We don't need to be divided, or to struggle to decide where to camp, for everything has been harmonized and summed up into one.

In his birth, crucified, death and resurrection, Christ carried out all the requirements of the Law. If you study every aspect of the Law you will realize that they were all fulfilled in Jesus birth, his life on earth, his death and resurrection. Everything he was doing on earth was a fulfillment of not just the Law, but also the prophets, and the whole life and history of the nation of Israel. Now, everything Christ did he established them in himself as an everlasting reality. Hence, immediately you came into Christ you enter an everlasting reality that is the fulfillment of all the Law, the prophets and the whole history and life of Israel.

"Then He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.”" (Luke 24:44).

Therefore as you live in that reality called Christ, you are inside the fulfillment of the Law, hence you are fulfilling the Law. Living in this reality goes beyond just being born again, it involves walking and living by the life of Christ.

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Gal 2:20).

That verse describes how to live in this reality. Living in this reality involves dying to self and allowing Christ alone live through you. Each time you die to self, each time you refuse to live by your life but rather allow Christ live in you, each time you live by faith in the Son of God, you are fulfilling (carrying out) the Law. The Law to you now is living in this reality (living by the life of Christ).

So in Christ we have already fulfilled all the Law, yet we are fulfilling the Law. It is a reality that is both finished and ongoing. It is finished because this reality has been completed and perfected. It is ongoing because you continue to exist in it. It is not something you finish and then close the book and walk away. Rather it is something you finish and then you enter into it and start living in it. What this means is that the moment you receive Christ you have received the fulfillment of the Law, hence you have fulfilled the Law—finished. But then you entered into that fulfillment of the Law and begin to live inside the fulfillment of the Law, hence you are fulfilling the Law—ongoing.

"I have received Christ—I have already fulfilled the Law. I am living in Christ—I am fulfilling the Law".

It is the same thing as, when you receive Christ you became the righteousness of God, but yet you have to live in righteousness, you have to be doing righteousness. However, the righteousness you are doing is not a defined act—something that men defined as righteousness. It is rather a living person—Christ. Each time you do Christ (express the Christ in you) you are doing righteousness.

The fulfillment of the Law is no longer an act, it is now a person and each time you do this person you are doing the Law. I would pick one of the Law in order to demonstrate this to you. One aspect of the Law is carrying out sacrifices. If you want to fulfill this Law in the Old Testament, you will have to carry a lamb that has no deformity, take the lamb to the altar, slay this lamb, set it on fire, and watch as the smoke ascend unto God.

But if you want to fulfill this same Law in the New Covenant you will take (get a revelation of) the reality in Christ/the person of Christ (the perfect lamb), fix your eyes on the cross (place it on the altar), die to self (slay the lamb), rest on the Holy Spirit (set fire on the lamb), and then express the life of Christ in you (watch the smoke ascend to God). I hope you get it? Everything you would do while fulfilling the Law in the Old Testament has a counterpart when you are living by Christ, the fulfillment of the Law. Just as I picked "sacrifice" and demonstrated how you are fulfilling it in Christ, I can also pick any part of the Law—name it—and I will demonstrate how you are fulfilling it (unknowingly) as you go about doing Christ.

Each time you do Christ you are doing all the Sabbath, all the commandments, all the ceremonial cleansing, all the sacrifices, all the offerings and tithes, all the rules and regulations, all the Passover and the various other feast, all the fast, and etc. You are doing them all simply by doing Christ (allowing Christ live through you/living by the life of Christ). You may not know that you are fulfilling the Law, but you are.

"So why would you allow anyone to judge you because of what you eat or drink, or insist that you keep the feasts, observe new moon celebrations, or the Sabbath? All of these were but a prophetic shadow and the evidence of what would be fulfilled, and Christ is the reality." (Col 1:16-17).

Yes, the Law is an everlasting ordinance, and just by being in Christ you have everlastingly done it all and you are everlastingly doing it all. You have fulfilled it all because you are in the one who is the fulfillment of it. So yes the law is not done away with it is being fulfilled by your being and living in and by Christ. Here is the paradox, the law is not done away with, it is being fulfilled, but at the same time it is abolished. It is abolish because you are not obeying and following it as a thing in itself—a thing outside of Christ.

Let me put it plain and simple; "the Law is abolish as a thing in itself, but the Law is still being fulfilled as a reality called Christ".

In the Old Testament, the Law was a thing that existed independent of Christ. Jesus hasn't come then to establish the reality in Christ, so the Law was a thing existing in itself. It was a list with details that you must literally follow precept by precept. But now, Christ has become the fulfillment of the Law for you, so you are not carrying the Law as a list and literally trying to obey it one by one or picking which to obey and which not to obey, rather you are just busy doing Christ. You are focusing on living by the life of Christ in you.

It is like someone that is ask to take certain prescription of some drugs. Then someone helped you to select everything just right (following the prescription very precisely), and put all the drugs into a cup of water where it all dissolved, so that you can drink it. All the drugs that was prescribed for you are already together in that cup of water. It would be foolish of you to know this, yet take the list of the prescription again, and begin to collect all the drugs. Or you collect just some of them (maybe because you are not so sure the person put everything inside the cup, you don't trust the person), and then you drink it with that cup of water. That would be drug abuse, and it could cause serious damage to your health.

All that was prescribed in the Law has been carefully put together inside that reality called Christ—that Christ that you receive into your life. How many of us don't trust that Jesus did a good and perfect job? If none, then it would be utter foolishness to go back again to practice some aspects of the Law together with your being in Christ. It is ignorance that makes some of us go back to the Old Testament to pick which Law to follow. Some of us try to separate moral Law from the ceremonial Law, and then we tell ourselves that we must go back to the moral Law. Law is Law, and you are following it all by being in Christ and living by his life. If you are living by Christ, you will love your neighbors as yourself, and you will fulfill all the moral Law—it's just natural because that's the reality in Christ.

Just focus on Christ alone, for he is sufficient and he is all in all. Everything that the Law was to the children of Israel, Christ has become for us. He is our priest, our tithe, our prophet, our king, our shiloh ground, our Jerusalem, our sacrifice, our temple, and our all in all. Yes, focus on the faith in the Son of God, for that is the fulfillment of the Law. This Christ is both the fulfillment and the abolishment of the Law. In him the Law has been abolished (it is no longer practiced in itself) and in him the Law is being fulfilled everlasting.

Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by MightySparrow: 1:55pm On Jun 07, 2020
Bless you Sir. A part christians' congregations are still on Mount Sinai, others on Mount Calvary as there references: law and grace. A part cannot distinguish between the two. This is one of few insightful posts on nairaland. Bless you sir.

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Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 3:45pm On Jun 07, 2020
MightySparrow:
Bless you Sir. A part christians' congregations are still on Mount Sinai, others on Mount Calvary as there references: law and grace. A part cannot distinguish between the two. This is one of few insightful posts on nairaland. Bless you sir.
Bless you too brother.
We thank God for making his body one, and releasing revelations that will bring us together under one man—Christ
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by MightySparrow: 4:16pm On Jun 07, 2020
Hiswordxray:

Bless you too brother.
We thank God for making his body one, and releasing revelations that will bring us together under one man—Christ
Beautiful, i'm looking for more, more grace
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Kobojunkie: 7:36pm On Jun 07, 2020
@Poster, here's a topic for you to tackle if you will. The issue of grace. According to the world, "the grace of God is the unmerited favor of God". God does not show favor to any man, and His mercy is for all mankind, so also is His blessing.
Anyways, what I would like to know is this, what does the Spirit of God living inside of you tell you about grace? undecided undecided
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 8:18pm On Jun 07, 2020
Kobojunkie:
@Poster, here's a topic for you to tackle if you will. The issue of grace. According to the world, "the grace of God is the unmerited favor of God". God does not show favor to any man, and His mercy is for all mankind, so also is His blessing.
Anyways, what I would like to know is this, what does the Spirit of God living inside of you tell you about grace? undecided undecided
I don't preach concepts, and I don't preach the letters. I preach a person—Christ. He is the sum of all things, he is the grace God has given us. Christ is the grace where we exist and enjoy the fullness of God. It is the land, the new creation, a spiritual reality just like this physical world.

You mentioned that, "God does not show favor to any man, and His mercy is for all mankind, so also is His blessing." Now look at this natural world, the rain fall for both the good and evil man, the sun shine on both the sinful and righteousness. Everyone is enjoying the riches of this world no matter who they are and what they have done or are still doing. That is grace in it's natural sense. In ancient England, when one says, "grace of the king", they are probably talking about the riches they enjoy in the reign of the king. The benefits, the manifesto when implemented, all those are what is called grace in English.

So when you talk about the grace of God in Christ you are talking about the riches of the in-Christ reality. What do we enjoy in Christ? What are the wonderful things available to us in Christ? That is what grace is. It is the riches we now enjoy now that we are in Christ.
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 8:24pm On Jun 07, 2020
"For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17).

Truth refers to reality, while grace speaks of the things you enjoy in that reality. The benefits or riches of that reality.
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Kobojunkie: 8:29pm On Jun 07, 2020
Hiswordxray:
"For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17).

Truth refers to reality, while grace speaks of the things you enjoy in that reality. The benefits or riches of that reality.
In order words, The grace that we have through Jesus refers simply to all the resources available to us through Christ? undecided
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by oba4ever: 11:13pm On Jun 07, 2020
MightySparrow:
Beautiful, i'm looking for more, more grace

The laws of God do not change.

The summary of the change we experience between the old and new covenant is a change of priesthood. One of the changes is that we all are priest in the new covenant unlike the old where this function is limited to a particular tribe.
Also all the ceremonial cleansing and regulations do not apply in the new covenant. in the new covenant, we have access to the holy of hollies except you choose to stay away and so many other changes and new experience brought by the new covenant. A lot of us however confuse this grace to mean an abolition of the law. heaven and earth shall pass away but not one jot of the law shall go unfulfilled. so what is the law?, They are God's commandment to us which jesus summarizes in two sentences bordering on love. Grace does not cancel law, it only helps to keep the law
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by MightySparrow: 12:19am On Jun 08, 2020
oba4ever:


The laws of God do not change.

The summary of the change we experience between the old and new covenant is a change of priesthood. One of the changes is that we all are priest in the new covenant unlike the old where this function is limited to a particular tribe.
Also all the ceremonial cleansing and regulations do not apply in the new covenant. in the new covenant, we have access to the holy of hollies except you choose to stay away and so many other changes and new experience brought by the new covenant. A lot of us however confuse this grace to mean an abolition of the law. heaven and earth shall pass away but not one jot of the law shall go unfulfilled. so what is the law?, They are God's commandment to us which jesus summarizes in two sentences bordering on love. Grace does not cancel law, it only helps to keep the law
ttrue
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Kobojunkie: 2:01am On Jun 08, 2020
oba4ever:
so what is the law?, They are God's commandment to us which jesus summarizes in two sentences bordering on love. Grace does not cancel law, it only helps to keep the law
According to the Spirit of God, Grace is the sum total of all the resources each person is given by God to aid them in their walk through this world of sin, back to him, and eventually in fulfilling the work that God has willed for said person to fulfill.

The laws that apply to each of the covenants are different

* The Old Covenant which was handed down by Moses, has about 613 different statutes/commandments (a heavy yoke), a hard burden (Israel), about 20 blessings, about 30 curses, 1 requirement (be an Israelite or live among His people), and a seal(circumcision)

* The New Covenant, in the person of Jesus Christ, comes with about 46 different commandments( a light yoke), an easy burden(each follower bears his cross) about 8 blessings, 9 curses, about 7 requirements for becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, and a seal of its own (God )

All the laws and the prophets DEPEND on the greatest commandments...

Deuteronomy 6 vs 4-7
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4. “Listen, people of Israel! The Lord is our God. The Lord is the only God.
5. You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
6. Always remember these commands that I give you today.
7. Be sure to teach them to your children. Talk about these commands when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road. Talk about them when you lie down and when you get up.


Leviticus 19 vs 17-18
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17. “Don’t secretly hate any of your neighbors. But tell them openly what they have done wrong so that you will not be just as guilty of sin as they are.
18. Forget about the wrong things people do to you. Don’t try to get even. Love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.


Matthew 22 vs 37-40
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37. And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
38. This is the great and first commandment.
39. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
40. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Goshen360(m): 6:51am On Jun 08, 2020
Agreed with the OP......Law keepers of the bible don't like this! We are in a new covenant and so stick with that...
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Finallydead: 7:54am On Jun 08, 2020
Hiswordxray:
In other words, Christ Himself is all the law there is, putting an end to ceremonies and rites and the law is only fulfilled when He gains expression through our lives, in the sacrifice of our own selves for this.

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Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by oba4ever: 1:49pm On Jun 08, 2020
Kobojunkie:

According to the Spirit of God, Grace is the sum total of all the resources each person is given by God to aid them in their walk through this world of sin, back to him, and eventually in fulfilling the work that God has willed for said person to fulfill.

The laws that apply to each of the covenants are different

* The Old Covenant which was handed down by Moses, has about 613 different statutes/commandments (a heavy yoke), a hard burden (Israel), about 20 blessings, about 30 curses, 1 requirement (be an Israelite or live among His people), and a seal(circumcision)

* The New Covenant, in the person of Jesus Christ, comes with about 46 different commandments( a light yoke), an easy burden(each follower bears his cross) about 8 blessings, 9 curses, about 7 requirements for becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, and a seal of its own (God )

All the laws and the prophets DEPEND on the greatest commandments...




Well done sir,
I agree with your submission, God is love and Love is the fulfillment of the law, that is why Jesus hammered more on love and the book of 1st 2nd and 3rd John.
I don't even know a tenth of those Regulations in exodus and Leviticus but Jesus summed them all in love that is if you have the love of God as poured out and received in our hearts by the holy Ghost, you will fulfill all those laws by walking in love without even knowing the law.

But the error we make as Christians is because we see the law as a burden based on our practical experience before coming to Christ, we therefore quickly exchange the law for grace and use grace as a license to fulfill our lustful passion once a while and that grace of forgiveness will cover. Grace is not the opposite of law rather grace empowers us to fulfill the law which is love.

What I think the topic of this thread should read is
CHRIST IS THE FULFILMENT OF THE LAW AND ABOLISHING OF THE LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD AND ITS REGULATIONS
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Kobojunkie: 5:26pm On Jun 08, 2020
oba4ever:
Well done sir,
I agree with your submission, God is love and Love is the fulfillment of the law, that is why Jesus hammered more on love and the book of 1st 2nd and 3rd John.
I don't even know a tenth of those Regulations in exodus and Leviticus but Jesus summed them all in love that is if you have the love of God as poured out and received in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, you will fulfill all those laws by walking in love without even knowing the law.


* Jesus Christ(the new law)was not the one who summed them up the law and the prophets. God already did that in the old testament for the Israelites to understand. Jesus only repeated what was contained in the Old Covenant in answering the question posed to Him by the Pharisees of His day

* We cannot even receive the Holy Ghost(be Born again) without first obeying about 7 of the commandments that Jesus gave those who would choose to become His followers

* It is impossible to have the love of God within self without first obeying the commandments that are stipulated, in our case, the New Covenant, that is
Jesus Christ (the new law)

* What Jesus did was make those who would follow Him understand that their love for Him means absolutely nothing if they do not obey His commandments(all 46 or so of them included-the the new law).

oba4ever:
But the error we make as Christians is because we see the law as a burden based on our practical experience before coming to Christ, we therefore quickly exchange the law for grace and use grace as a license to fulfill our lustful passion once in a while and that grace of forgiveness will cover. Grace is not the opposite of law, rather grace empowers us to fulfill the law which is love.

* Jesus Christ took upon Himself the heavy yoke and burden of the Old Covenant and gave us a light yoke and an easy burden to bear. He gave us a New yoke and a New Burden to bear( a new set of commandments to obey). We have a new law and a new burden to bear now, in Jesus Christ.


Matthew 11 vs 27-30(ERV)
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27. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
28. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
In Christ, there is a new yoke to carry, albeit lighter than the old (the new yoke has about 46 commandments required of us), and an easy burden to bear(our individual lives/cross).

* According to God(not man's idea) Grace is nothing more than the sum total of all the resources God has made available(items, people, attributes, time, etc.) to help guide us back to Christ, to fulfill the plan He set out for us since the beginning(i.e. The grace of God which applies to all mankind, and the grace of Christ, which is available only to those who are followers of Jesus Christ).

oba4ever:
What I think the topic of this thread should read is
CHRIST IS THE FULFILMENT OF THE LAW AND ABOLISHING OF THE LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD AND ITS REGULATIONS
cheesy
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by donnie(m): 5:51pm On Jun 08, 2020
USELESS TEACHING. So a book was written and published to teach YAH's people how not to keep the Commandments? SMH. undecided

Even the title of the Book is a mess. Because the actual Hebrew and Greek words used in scripture means RENEWED Covenant; like to REPAIR, not NEW.
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by donnie(m): 5:59pm On Jun 08, 2020
Both the Hebrew chadash (Jer. 31:31) and the Greek kainos (Heb. 8:8 ) words for "new" may be more properly translated "renewed" as opposed to "new" or "brand-new"

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Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 11:49am On Jun 12, 2020
Finallydead:

In other words, Christ Himself is all the law there is, putting an end to ceremonies and rites and the law is only fulfilled when He gains expression through our lives, in the sacrifice of our own selves for this.
Exactly
Re: Christ Is Both The Fulfilling And The Abolishing Of The Law by Hiswordxray(m): 11:57am On Jun 12, 2020
Kobojunkie:
In order words, The grace that we have through Jesus refers simply to all the resources available to us through Christ? undecided
You are correct. In Christ we have forgiveness of sins. Our sins are washed away just as if we have never sin. In Christ there is no sin and there is no ability to sin.

"And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. 6 Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him." (1John 3:5-6).

You cannot sin in Christ, to sin you will have to get into the flesh. That is why we must learn to abide in him, for as long you are abiding in him you cannot sin. So grace is the land where all our sins are purged as if they never existed, and it is the land where we are incapable of sinning, we have lost the ability to sin. You cannot embrace grace and still sin, it is not possible.

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