I believe that the Old Testament law lays out to us the standards by which to live that God created in us, but one act of disobedience broke the relationship with God allowing sin to dominate the earth and the entire human race, robbing us from our ability to live up to those standards! In His great mercy and love God gave the system of animal sacrifices and ritual service “… till the Seed should come…” Galatians 3:19 that is Jesus the Redeemer. After He came on the scene announced by John, He said, “The law and the prophets were until John, Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached…” Luke16:16. With the annunciation of John a shift began to take place that would culminate with Christ’s eternal sacrifice for sin, and the Bible says, “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” Romans 10:4, the animal sacrifices and rituals were done away with! That He fulfilled every “tittle of the law” is clear, Luke 16:17, but this does not mean we abandon the laws standards; rather it points to the restoration of the life of God within us enabling us to live by those standards, not to be righteous, but rather because we have been restored to God’s righteousness and relationship with Him when we believed on Jesus as our Savior, personally. In Luke 16:18 Jesus brings in the thought of marriage which God views as a permanent institution annulled only by death, Romans 7:3-4 (with the possible exceptions of immorality or an unbelieving spouse departing, Matthew 19:9 and 1 Corinthians 7:15). So by the death of Christ the law having been fulfilled has died and its rituals no longer bind us, “that you may be married to another – to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God” Romans 7:4, and the preaching of the gospel has opened up a whole new era of righteousness, Luke 16:17.
Message of the kingdom
By Rose Hill
The message of God’s kingdom must be preached,
If a lost and dying world is to be reached.
Preaching is more than doing good deeds,
It must be impassioned showing the world their needs.
This kingdom must be entered into by full surrender,
So we will not be merely a pretender!
Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version copyright …1982 by Thomas Nelson Co. used by permission.