Gracious Jesus 3 – Kingdom Lifestyle Part 1 Sample

Fulfilling the Law When Jesus came to the earth, He introduced new sacraments and a new way of living. Where does that leave the Old Testament and precepts that had been followed for centuries by the Jewish nation? Jesus reiterates that He had not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. How did Christ accomplish this and fulfill the law? First of all, we need to understand what the “law” comprised of. As Jews were under the rule of God, God set up laws which included civil, ceremonial and spiritual aspects: * The civil laws were for the governance of the nation. And today, each nation has its own civil laws. * Then there were a number of ceremonial laws especially around cleansing and purification. The perfect sacrifice of Jesus had not been made during that time, so there were sacrifices of sorts that served as substitutes. After Christ’s death and resurrection, He introduced two sacraments – Baptism and Holy Communion. * Finally, there are the moral and spiritual laws encapsulated in the Ten Commandments - these are timeless and applicable to all. Obeying the law Jesus beautifully demonstrates that love is the perfect fulfillment of the law. Loving God and loving others is the key to obeying God. While most of the then religious leaders tried to fulfill all aspects, these two were severely compromised. This reduced their religion to meaningless rituals. In Romans 13:8-10, Paul also explains Jesus’ summation of the commandments in “love”, a quality of God Himself. The term “fulfill” gives a perspective of “fullness” which does not leave scope for any compromise when it comes to obeying Christ. Obedience involves regular cleansing through the blood of Christ and growing to maturity through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is accompanied by a deep desire to help others grow to maturity. Relaxing the law As imperfect humans, we tend to relax the law in the following ways: * Question – did God really say this? * Rationalize – can’t be too bad, not possible, etc. * Avoid – imagine nothing happened at all Jesus’ position on relaxing the law is very strong. Those who compromise and encourage others to do so fall straight down the ranks to be the “least in the Kingdom of God” — if they are in the kingdom, in the first place. Those who take serious steps toward obedience and toward leading others in the right path are true disciples. What is our commitment towards accomplishing every single aspect of God’s teaching? Are we leading by example and encouraging others to obey the Holy Spirit and to listen to His gentle voice?