The Law of Moses -- Part 12 of the Tishbyte Foundational Bible Study series


		Why were the commandments given and how were they fulfilled? #12 of the tishbyte Foundational Bible Study series: How did Jesus fulfil the law? Are there any parts we still need to follow and/or learn from? #8 of the New Covenant section ©1997 Tishbyte Publishing r When man ate the forbidden fruit, 4 things happened: 1. He gained a knowledge of Good and Evil 2. He became unclean 3. He lost fellowship with God 4. He became susceptible to Satan's influence, and was prone to follow him and forget his creator r God remedied this situation by instituting a covenant that provided 1. Guidelines to follow so as to do good and not evil towards God and one's fellow man -- or *commandments of conscience* 2. Guidelines for separating the clean from the unclean, to surround himself with cleanliness so as to cover his uncleanness -- or *commandments of cleanliness* 3. A framework of sacrifice and priesthood so that man could maintain fellowship with God -- or covenant commandments 4. Promises and reminders so that man would continue to follow after God, and not forget those promises that remained as yet unfulfilled, so that through maintaining the mutual covenant, God's plan can be fulfilled on the earth -- or commandments regarding Sabbaths and feasts r For believers in messiah, the question must be asked, "Are these laws applicable to us today? If Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law, does that mean Christians can ignore all the commandments of Moses?" First, we must define what exactly we mean by "law", and then we will look at the four categories of commandments we have just defined. mThe Hebrew word translated "law" is actually Torah, meaning "The teaching of the ways of God." In the wider sense, it can be taken to mean "Old Covenant." mThe Septuagint -- the first version of the Old Testament to be translated from Hebrew into Greek about 200 b.c.e. translated Torah as nomos, or "law." For this reason, Greek speaking Jews said "law" when they meant Torah. The Greek New Testament simply used the word that was in common use to mean Torah, even though in the strictly legal sense, it is not a correct translation. mSince the Greek word nomos also means "law" in the legal sense, we sometimes have to examine the context to know what exactly the New Testament writers are referring to: tthe laws of nature, or the law of the land -- i.e. the Roman empire tthe code of laws within the Torah, or the mitzvot (plural -- Singular of this word is mitzvah, meaning "commandment.") t"Under the law," was the phrase Paul used to mean: legalistic bondage to certain mitzvot, i.e. circumcision, Sabbath laws, etc., or strict adherence to them with the attitude that these or other commandments are an end in themselves. Also, "works of the law" is a phrase used in this context to mean the mitzvot that are followed in a legalistic manner. This was history's first attempt to coin the word "legalism." These phrases have been misinterpreted so as to apply to those who simply fulfill the law out of obedience, simply out of devotion and gratitude, because one believes it is required by God; which is why many Jews today also keep the law. For Joshua, keeping the law was the means to success (Josh. 1:8). It was not a legalistic bondage for him, so he was not "under the law" in the sense Paul was talking about. In this sense, "law" can just as easily mean a commandment of Moses as a commandment of Jesus such as "turn the other cheek," or some statement of Paul such as women wearing a head covering. Even one's vision for ministry (or someone elses's vision) can degenerate into a bondage, and become "works of the law." mTwo questions that we must ask before looking at how the mitzvot were fulfilled: tHas the old covenant been done away with? vGal 3:6-18 -- especially verse 14 should indicate to us (among other things) that the old covenant hasn't been annulled; because if it were, gentiles would have no right to the blessings of Abraham. Jesus didn't annul the Old Covenant, but expanded it to include the gentiles -- and at the same time, canceled the curse of the law. Verse 17 moreover points out that one covenant doesn't annul another. The Covenant of Moses didn't annul the Covenant of Abraham. Neither does the New Covenant annul the old. vAccording to Matt 5:17, Jesus said, "Do not think I have come to destroy the law (Torah) or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." vRom 10:4, "...Christ is the end of the Law..." The word "end" does not mean “finished off" or "terminated." It means "fulfilled", just as Jesus said. It could read, "Christ is the fulfillment, or the ultimate goal of the Torah." The word "end" can be understood in its older English sence, as in "...to this end..." tAre there two types of righteousness that can lead to salvation -- the "works of the law" and "faith"? vRom 7:7 One of the functions of the law is to reveal sin. Therefore, apart from providing a guideline of how to live in society, be successful, and commune with God, the mitzvot also were a measure of how far short man has fallen by God's standards. YThe only way to please God, as King David found was to live in continuous repentance. His Psalms generally reflect this. YGod's divine attributes being justice and mercy: it is quite clear that we cannot live up to God's standard of justice as reflected in the mitzvot. Therefore, we must continuously plead God's mercy by continuous repentance. YMatt 22:37-40 Jesus quoted Deut 6:5 and Lev 19:18, saying that on these two commandments hang all the Torah and the Prophets. This is also acknowledged by the rabbis. Hillel is also credited with what we know of as the golden rule: "What you find hateful to yourself, do not do to others. On this hangs the Torah and the Prophets." YBy violating this mitzvah of love, both under the Old and the New Covenant, we put ourselves "under the law". Jesus stated this when he said, (Matt 7:1-2) "Judge not, that you won't be judged, for the same judgment with which you judged, you will be judged yourself. YEven under the Old Covenant, the Jews were able to please God, but not by being "under the Law" but rather by pleading God's mercy through repentance, and by emulating God's mercy by Loving others. vGal 3:11-12 — No one is justified by the law. Therefore, that is not a means of righteousness for salvation. In Paul's comparison of living by the mitzvot and living by faith, Paul's application of "shall live by", from Lev 18:5 and Hab 2:4, is for the benefit of the Galatian believers. For the Jew faithfully following the Old Covenant, obeying the commandments was an exercise of faith, as that is what was expected of him by God. For the New Covenant believer, however, especially gentiles as the Galatians were, going to the mitzvot is a step backwards, and therefore not an act of faith. The Galatians had a better option of walking in the spirit (5:16) and thereby fulfilling the mitzvot without paying attention to the details. It should be noted, also, that "...shall live by..." in both of the original contexts, should be read to mean, "...shall be sustained by..." or "...have life by..." It is not a guiding influence, such as "living by the rules," but rather in the sense of sustenance, as in "man shall not live by bread alone." vRom 10:3-8 seems to point to a duel righteousness. However, let's look at it more closely: Y"Law" here should be taken to mean Torah. YThis is not contrasting righteousness of faith with righteousness of the law. Faith has always been the only way to righteousness. The only contrast here is in verse 3: "their own righteousness" and "The righteousness of God" YVerse 4, "...Christ is the end of the Law..." as we saw already, should read, "Messiah is the ultimate goal of the Torah" YVerse 5, "...live by them," again should read, "have life by them." Under the Old Covenant, those who keep the mitzvot by faith will be sustained, just as Joshua had success by them (Josh 1:8), and ultimately arrive at the "end of the law" which is Messiah. YVerse 6, "But..." In Greek, there are 2 words for "but". The word used here does not imply a strong contrast. It could just as well read as "moreover." The righteousness of the Torah (vs. 5) and the righteousness of faith (vs. 6) are the same thing. They are not being contrasted here. This is obvious, because in verse 6, Paul again quotes the Torah (Deut 30:12-14) when he says, "Moreover, the righteousness of faith says, 'Do not say in your heart, who will ascend...'" vGod did not have one rule for those under the Old Covenant and a different rule for those under the New. The requirements have always been the same -- minding the mitzvot or guidelines as an act of faith in a spirit of repentance, and loving God and our neighbour -- except that under the New Covenant, a new dimension has been added that fulfills the mitzvot for those who walk in it: that is the dimension of the spirit. We will now look at how this fulfills the four categories of mitzvot. The duality alluded to in Romans and Galatians isn't between Old Covenant and New Covenant, but rather between justice and mercy. For the New Covenant believer that translates to flesh and spirit. qJesus fulfilled (not destroyed) the law. How did he do so, and which (if any) laws still apply? Let's look at the 4 categories of mitzvot. 1 *Commandments for the Conscience* tThis includes commandments in a moral, civil and agricultural context tMany civil and agricultural laws are valid only in the land of Israel while the temple is standing and sacrifices are being offered daily. Many rabbis believe this will only happen again when Messiah comes. Instead of observing the civil laws in the Torah, we are told by Paul and others (Rom 13:1) to be subject to governing authority in which ever place we happen to be -- just as the Jews do. tMany of the civil laws found in the Torah are the basis of modern jurisprudence. The concept of two or three witnesses and of twelve people serving on a Jury are all based on Mosaic law. vA couple of quotes from the Mishnah: Whence is it that the small Sanhedrin consisted of twenty-three? As it is said, "The congregation shall judge...the congregation shall deliver: (Num 35:24 f). Since a "congregation" judges (i.e. convicts) and a "congregation" delivers (i.e. acquits), we have a total of twenty judges. But whence is it that the term "congregation" denotes ten persons? As it is said, "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation?" (Num 14:27). Here it refers to the twelve spies with the exclusion of Joshua and Caleb (and therefore indicates a body of ten persons). Whence is it that three more are to be added to the twenty? This is deduced from the text, "To be after a majority for evil" (i.e. a conviction, sic Exod. 23:2). I infer that I may follow a majority for good (i.e. for acquittal); if so, what is the purpose of the words "To be after a majority"? They teach that there is a difference in the majority required for an acquittal and a conviction. For the former a majority of one suffices; for the latter two are necessary (and so twenty-two are required); and to avoid the Court being equally divided one more is added, giving a total of twenty-three. What must the population of a town be to qualify for a Sanhedrin of its own? One hundred and twenty. Rabbi Nehemiah said, Two hundred and thirty, so that each member (of the Sanhedrin) should be "a ruler of ten" (Exod. 18:21) (Mishnah: Sanh. 1:6/ A.Cohen, Everyman's Talmud; p. 302 f.) Civil cases are decided by a court of three. According to Rabbi Meir, each party selects one judge and they jointly select the third. The Rabbis assert, the two selected judges appoint the third. Each party can reject the nominee of the third, so declares Rabbi Meir; but the Rabbis assert, They can only do so on bringing proof that the nominees are related to the litigants or otherwise disqualified. If, however, they are fit to act as judges or are experts, they cannot be disqualified (Mishnah: Sanh. 3:1/ A.Cohen, p. 304) YToday, a unanimous decision by a jury of 12 is required to convict. This would be equal to the majority required of a Sanhedrin of 23 judges. YIt is interesting to note that on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell initially on 120 believers, which included 12 apostles. Each apostle was thus a "ruler of ten". YLikewise, Jesus's instructions in Matt 18:15-20 regarding church discipline is based on rabbinical practice. This passage can be understood much more clearly once we understand the role of the "two or three witnesses" or judges, and also the role of the congregation. tExamples of laws of a moral context are found in Lev 18 vPaul quoted Lev 18:5 as we saw twice above (Rom 10:5 and Gal 3:12): "You shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the Lord." vPaul alluded to Lev 18:8 when he judged the man having sexual relations with his father's wife (ICor 5:1-8). vOn one hand, Paul is interpreted by many as using Lev 18:5 to say that we are free from any sort of obligation to the law; whereas here, he turns around and cites a mitzvah which is found 3 verses later in the same context, as the basis to judge the Corinthian man living with his father's wife. Was Paul taking the verse out of context in interpreting it as saying the law doesn't apply to us? vAs a rabbi and as a Christian teacher, it would have been contrary to Paul's practice to take verses out of context. The two passages can be reconciled if we look at Rom 8:1: "There is therefore no more condemnation to those in Messiah...who walk not according to the flesh but according to the spirit." YThe mitzvot are necessary because of our flesh. Gal 5:16 says that if we walk in the spirit, we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. YRom 6:1&15 shows us that deliberate sinning, or flagrant disregard for the law is not the proper response to the fact that we are not under the law, but under grace. The secret is walking in the spirit. YWhen we walk in the spirit, we are not under condemnation, even if we do tread unintentionally on some minor details. But neither will we tend to do anything contrary to God's standards. YIf the man in ICor 5 had been walking in the spirit, he would not have desired to take his father's wife. The very idea would have been revolting to him. He proved that he was definitely out of the spirit by the flagrant violation. YTherefore, according to Rom 8:1, he was under condemnation, because he was walking according to the flesh while thinking that he could disregard all standards of conduct. The mitzvah in Lev 18:8 therefore became a standard to determine whether or not he was in the spirit or not. Since he was not, he was judged by the law. YTo ask the question in a modern context, "Shall I marry my blood sister? After all, I'm not under the law, but under grace, and the only place that the Bible forbids it is in the law of Moses, and I love her, and think she's cute and ..." -- The answer is of course, "No." If I were to say further, "But God told me to!" The correct response is, "Obviously, you haven't been hearing from God, because the Bible forbids it." vTherefore, these laws are valuable to us and are still binding on us if we walk in the flesh. (It should also be added that when we judge (Matt 7:1,2), which is also an act according to the flesh, and not the spirit, we also put ourselves under the law -- although not the mitzvot of the Torah necessarily, but the law by which we judged our brother, even if they're of our own making.) If we are truly following our spiritual desires we won't tend to infringe on any of them seriously anyway. vOther laws of this nature that we tend to hold as binding (without realizing that they are the law of Moses) are: Yagainst fornication Yagainst occult paraphernalia and symbols Yagainst astrology Yagainst fortune telling Ymany others referred to in the New Testament. They are forbidden there because they are forbidden in the Torah (I Cor 5:1-8; Acts 15:22-29; etc.) -- not to imply that those that aren't mentioned in the New Testament are therefore okay. That would simply make the New Testament another law book. To say, "The New Testament says it; therefore it's forbidden -- The Torah says it but the New Testament doesn't; therefore it's okay," is just as much being "under the law" as only following the Torah. 2 *Commandments of Cleanliness* -- separating the clean from the unclean tThis includes most dietary laws; laws regarding unclean diseases; transferal of uncleanness; rituals for cleansing, including ritual immersions and anointing with oil, etc. tThe underlying principal is, in Adam's disobedience, man became an "unkosher animal" or inherently unclean (Lev 16:16). Therefore, to be God's special possession, Israel had to "separate the clean from the unclean" (Lev 20:24-26). He had to have a clean substitute -- a kosher animal without spot or blemish for a sacrifice; surround himself with a clean environment; eat clean food; and be ritually clean when approaching God at the altar in the temple. tThe general rule that covers all of these laws (cleanliness laws) is that we have been made clean through Jesus's blood (Heb 9:13-14). Therefore, we are released from the obligation to separate clean animals and objects from unclean. vActs 10:9-23 -- Peter's vision of the animals refers not only to the animals themselves, but also to the gentiles, on whom the Holy Spirit was about to fall. vMatt 15:10-20; I Tim 4:3-5 tEven though these laws are not obligatory to us, certain aspects deserve special mention -- both for practical reasons and teaching value. vKosher dietary laws YMany medical experts have pointed out that most of those animals listed as unkosher in Lev 11 are also unhealthy for medical reasons. Some therefore hold that the kosher laws were given solely for health reasons. lIt is indeed a miracle that modern medical science has confirmed the ancient distinctions of clean and unclean, not only in this but also the matter of washing of hands, and quarantining the leper (which helped bring an end to the black plague of medieval Europe) etc. lHowever, health was not the sole reason for these laws. Some unkosher animals aren't so obviously unhealthy -- the rabbit for instance. While bathing is hygienic, the New Testament practice that is derived from ritual immersion, baptism, is only practiced once in a lifetime. Doctors would suggest something more like once every day. Some of the medical sources also cite blood as being full of germs drawn from the rest of the body, and therefore unclean. However, the Torah never classifies blood as being unclean. In fact, it is sacred, as the "life of the flesh is in the blood," and for that reason, it's forbidden for food. If it were classified as ritually unclean, it couldn't be offered on the altar. lTherefore, the real reason for these laws is not only for reasons of hygiene, but because God said, "Be holy for I am holy." (Lev 11:44,45) -- not, "Eat healthy for I am a health food nut." If health were the only reason, these foods would still be forbidden to New Covenant believers, just as marriage to one's blood sibling. YSome, for the reason that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, also abstain from unkosher food for health reasons, and reasons of conscience. This is fine, so long as these aren't made to be binding on all believers -- or that others aren't made to feel in any way "less spiritual." (I Tim 4:1-5) YSome Jewish believers in Messiah Yeshuah also keep a kosher diet so as to identify with their Jewish heritage. As the "gifts and callings are without repentance," They feel that as Jews, they are peculiar people set apart for a purpose, and ought therefore to continue to keep the mitzvot. This is fine, and laudable. Paul himself, for a season, observed the vow of a Nazarite, letting his hair grow long, and abstaining from wine, alcohol, or any by-product of the grape, and not touching anything ritually unclean (Acts 18:18; 21:22-27 -- based on the mitzvah in Num. 6). If Paul observed the vow of a Nazarite as a believer in Messiah (which even for a Jew was going beyond the normal binding obligations), how much more is it permissible for Jewish believers to simply keep an all around kosher diet -- so long as they remember Paul's guideline in Gal 2:11-14 and Peter's in Acts 10:9-23, and not allow this to come in the way of fellowship with gentile believers. The New Testament nowhere commands a Jew to eat pork, but Peter and Paul here insinuate that it may be a good idea at times to observe fellowship by eating what the host serves up. Diet is not obligatory, but fellowship is, and eating together is an important part of fellowship. On the other hand, gentiles should also keep in mind that it is no more a bondage for many Jew to keep a kosher diet than for an Englishman to abstain from horse meat. If you don't want to eat horse meat, then keep some kosher food on hand for when you entertain your Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ. vRitual immersion -- This is one mitzvah that has found its way into Christian practice. YLev 15:5,16; 17:15; 11:24-28; 14:8 -- Most of these references contain the phrase, "He (or she) shall wash his clothes, and bathe in water and be unclean until evening, then he shall be clean." lThe rabbinical rule of immersion (Mishnah: Mikvaot -- the whole tractate discusses immersion) is that one must fully immerse oneself in a pool or stream of naturally flowing water. A mikvah, used in most synagogues simulates a natural flow that satisfies rabbinical requirements even though it is an artificial pool. According to the Dedache, the early believers had similar requirements for baptism. lJohn the Baptist immersed people in the river Jordan for repentance. The Essenes also immersed people to initiate them into their sects. Conversion to Judaism, to this day, also includes immersion. lJohn's reason was that it's not so much the touching of a carcass or a hemorrhage that makes one unclean, but sin in the heart, or as Jesus said (Mat 15:10ff), it's that which comes out of the mouth that defiles a man. Outward washing became symbolic of inward repentance. lJesus therefore commanded to baptize (Matt 28:19) as the fulfillment of the mitzvah. This is explained by Peter (IPet 3:21) as not so much the removing outward uncleanness, but inward -- cleansing the conscience. YOther applications of the mitzvah of washing in the New Testament: lJust as a person under the Old Covenant had till sundown to be immersed, the New Covenant believer has till sundown to apoligise and forgive those with whom he is angry (Eph 4:26) Bitterness and unforgivness are what makes one unclean and disqualified to enter God's presence (Matt 5:23,24), just as ritual uncleanness disqualified one to approach the altar to present an offering. lJust as a Jewish bride would immerse herself so as to be ritually clean for her bridegroom, even so, the church, the bride of Christ is being cleansed with the washing of the water by the Word (Eph 5:25-27). Bitterness, unforgivness, old ways of thinking, bad habits must be purged through the cleansing action of God's Word by the Holy Spirit. 3 *Covenant Commandments* tThese are commandments regarding the bringing of sacrifices and offerings of various kinds; laws regarding Levitical priesthood; laws regarding the temple; rites of passage such as circumcision, redemption of first born, and bar mitzvah. Included with much of the above are rites such as anointing with oil and laying on of hands. tThe covenant is necessary in order to provide the means for man to approach God. tThese commandments are for the maintenance of the Old Covenant which required blood sacrifice. The key verse is Lev 17:11, "The life of the flesh is in the blood." vLev 17:10-14 therefore forbids the eating or drinking of blood. This does not fall under the category of unclean food since it is not uncleanness that is the reason cited, but rather that the life is in the blood. If it were ritually unclean, it couldn't be offered as a sacrifice. It's the sacredness of life rather than the uncleanness of the blood that is the issue here. vThe rule of thumb in Lev 3:17 is that those parts that are specially removed from the animal sacrifice to be offered on the alter is forbidden for consumption -- namely the blood and the fat surrounding the inner organs. vThe consumption of blood is part of the pagan practice of blood covenant. Jews under the Old Covenant and believers under the New already have a covenant in blood, and are therefore forbidden to participate in blood covenants in which blood is consumed. vThe New Testament confirms the prohibition against consuming blood (Acts 15:23-29) tCircumcision was the first requirement to be instituted (Gen 17). vIt involved the drawing of blood in a covenant context. The new born male child of 8 days is thus brought into the covenant. Where one's circumcision was either neglected, or put off for health reasons, or where a gentile male enters into the covenant of Israel, circumcision can be performed as an adult. vRabbinical tradition states that a gentile who desires to worship The God of Israel may simply accept immersion and commit himself to follow the "seven commandments of the sons of Noah," or the "Noachide Law" without entering fully into the covenant of Israel and thus forego circumcision. How early this was generally practiced is hard to say. According to tradition, the 7 laws were: 1 The practice of equity 2 Against blaspheming the Name of God 3 Against idolatry 4 Against immorality 5 Against bloodshed without just cause 6 Against robbery 7 Against devouring a limb torn from a life animal (Babylonian Talmud: Sanh 56A) vAfter Jesus's resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, it was assumed that, being a Jewish faith, all non-Jewish convert s would need to be circumcised. However, when the Holy Spirit began to fall on the gentiles, it was shown to Peter (Acts 10:9-28) that the gentiles were not to be treated as unclean. The Holy Spirit came on them and they were immersed. vLater, when Paul and Barnabas began to make headway in reaching the gentiles, controversy arose regarding the requirement of circumcision and the other laws. The council of apostles and elders met in Jerusalem (Acts 15) and made the binding decision that circumcision wasn't necessary. Moreover, the gentile believers would only be required to follow the guidelines listed in Acts 15:23-29 vIt's possible that Acts 15:23-29 is an earlier version of the seven Noachide laws to that listed in the Talmud. However, unlike the rabbinical viewpoint, these gentile believers following only seven rules would not be treated as "second class citizens" of God's kingdom, but as full recipients of God's grace and co-heirs with the Jewish believers (Gal 2:1-21; Eph 2:11-3:7) vThe reality of being co-heirs in Christ was so real to Paul that he rebuked the Galatian believers for thinking that taking the extra step of circumcision would bring them closer (Gal 5:1-15). vThe general rule is, under the New Covenant, anything we attempt in the flesh to improve our standing in Christ is really a step backwards into legalism. That is an act of unbelief, and therefore takes us out of the umbrella of God's grace. Walking according to the flesh rather than the spirit (Rom 8:1), we are once again under condemnation, and judged according to the law. The remedy to this situation is simply to repent, and get back into the spirit and stand totally on faith in Christ. vThis doesn't necessarily make circumcision wrong -- just so long as it isn['t seen as a prerequisite to God's favour. YTimothy, who by rabbinical standards was Jewish because his mother was Jewish, was circumcized by Paul (Acts 16:1-3) so that he could better identify with the Jewish community in bringing them the news of Messiah. YSome would therefore argue that believing Jews should circumcize their children (or themselves) as a sign of their calling -- not as an attempt to gain acceptance in Christ. For that matter, bar mitzvah, etc. should also be practeced. This should not be frowned on. This doesn't make them more holy or more accepted by God any more than an apostle or prophet is greater than a foot-washer. YPaul (Acts 21:15-26) went to the temple shortly before his arrest to make a sacrifice on behalf of fellow Jewish believers who had completed a vow. Scripture doesn't censure him for this act. There is no evidence that New Covenant Jewish believers are discouraged from participating in Jewish ritual in the New Testament. Paul's declaration in the sanhedrin of being a Pharisee (Acts 23:6) is further evidence of this. tAnimal sacrifice has been performed since the time of Abel. Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Job and Balaam are all mentioned as having offered sacrifices to God outside the context of the guidelines laid down on Mt. Sinai. In many cases, it was the instrument through which God established His covenant. The blood of the animal substituted for the life of the sinful man offering the sacrifice, and (in some cases) entering into the covenant. With the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai, came the requirement that all sacrifices had to be made by means of the Levitical priesthood in the temple. vLev 1-6 describes the five kinds of offerings YThe Burnt Offering -- was fully burnt on the altar (except for the hide) YThe Meal Offering -- was any combination of grain meal, fruit, oil, or baked bread, either leaven or unleavened YThe Peace Offering -- was usually an animal sacrifice for the purpose of communing with God. Only the inner fat and the blood was offered on the altar. Part of it was given to the priest to eat, and the remainder to the one offering the sacrifice to enjoy a covenant meal. YThe Sin Offering -- was made to atone for general sins. Except for part that was given to the priest, it was mostly burnt on the altar. YThe Trespass Offering -- was made to atone for a failed vow, a mistake made in offerings that were supposed to have been made, infraction in violating rules regarding cleanliness, taking God's Name in vain, or accidentally going beyond the limits regarding privileges reserved for Levites and Priests. vMany occasions called for more than one of the above -- i.e. a man fulfilling the vow of a Nazarite brings a burnt offering, a sin offering, a peace offering and a meal offering. vIn every case, the one offering the sacrifice laid hands on the animal, or else "waved" or "heaved" the grain offering so as to establish identification with the offering. By this means, guilt was transferred and substitution activated. Laying on of hands is also a New Testament doctrine (Heb 6:1,2). Here, we see the principal of transfer by physical contact. vDepending on the type of sacrifice and how it was administered, parts of the sacrifice was eaten as food by the priest, and, in the case of the peace offering, by the one offering the sacrifice. YThe priest, being the mediator, ate his portion in the sanctuary. YThe one offering the sacrifice ate his portion with his family in the holy city within a day of his offering. YHere, we have the concept of the covenant meal, and the principal of participating in fellowship by eating together. vOfferings, especially grain offerings, are to be seasoned with salt (Lev 2:13; Num 18:19). Salt is a cleansing agent, and a preservative. tAlso, there are instructions regarding the priesthood. vMoses was commanded to appoint Aaron and his children to be priests. vThe priest is to represent the people to God and represent God to the people. Therefore, he was set apart so as to maintain ritual purity at all times. YMan, even in his ritually pure state, couldn't come directly to God. He could come only through a mediator. The closest he could come was between the gate of the temple, and the altar. YThe priest, even though he was set apart, still required a sacrifice for his own sin. Even then, only the high priest could come before God once a year. vThe temple (or tabernacle) was set up for various degrees of approach to God. YThe outer court between the door and the altar was for ritually pure Israelites to bring their sacrifice YBetween the altar and the door of the tabernacle was the laver, containing water for the priests to wash themselves before entering the holy place. YOnly the priests could enter this holy place. There was special bread for the priests, the menorah that was light at all times, and the altar of incense which was against the veil separating the holy place and the holy of holies. YThe Holy of Holies was where the presence of God rested. In it was the ark of the covenant, which was in effect a large box containing the 10 commandments, and a large lid called the mercy seat. All was overlaid with gold. YThe high priest, only, was allowed to go into the holy of holies once a year on Yom Kippur, so as to offer the blood of the annual atonement sacrifice, sprinkling it on the mercy seat. vEx 40 -- On setting up the tabernacle and installing the priests: YMoses anointed the pieces of furniture and the tabernacle YMoses then took Aaron and his sons and administered ritual immersion (vs 12) YThen, he put the holy garments on them YHe then anointed them with oil. YWashing for purification signifies what baptism means to us under the New Covenant. YThe clothing represents being accepted, or our righteous standing before God. YOil is significant of the Holy Spirit. Anointing is a major for imparting the duties of an office on an individual. Kings such as Saul and David were likewise anointed. YThis is fulfilled in the New Covenant when the believer is baptized in water, is accepted by being clothed in righteousness, and receives the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Yvs 34-38 -- The results of all this -- the cloud of God's glory covered the temple so that Moses couldn't enter the tabernacle. vIn the New Covenant, the duties of priests, and the function of the sanctuary and the required blood of the covenant sacrifices has been fulfilled by Jesus (Heb 9) YThe blood of animals could only cover sin temporarily, but the blood of Jesus cleanses sin once and for all. YUnder the New Covenant, by faith in the blood of Jesus, one is made both ritually pure, accepted, given the privilege of priesthood, and anointed with the Holy Spirit, and is encouraged to enter straight into the holy of holies through Jesus (Heb 10:19-23) 4 *Commandments regarding Sabbaths and Feasts* tIn order to keep man in remembrance of the covenant, and to thus keep the door open to fulfill His plan on the earth, God instituted feasts and Sabbaths. tUnder the New Covenant, the feasts don't play as significant a role, because the indwelling Holy Spirit keeps the expectation of the glory of God alive in us. vIn the early church period, the gentiles in some cases, were made to feel obligated to observe the feasts, new moons and Sabbaths (Col 2:16,17). Paul wrote to them to remind them that their hope is in Christ, and the Holy Spirit within them is what maintains their consciousness of being sons of God (Gal 4:1-11). vOn the strength of their understanding of Paul's comments, the 2nd and 3rd century church went to the other extreme and forgot the Jewish feasts altogether, even looking down on, and later forbidding Jewish believers from observing any Jewish tradition. No where is this type of attitude sanctioned in the New Testament. Paul's instructions in Rom 14:1-13 were to allow for one another's convictions in these matters. This goes for all the laws we've discussed so far, which some may chose to keep voluntarily. tSabbaths is an especially touchy subject for many New Covenant believers because it is based on one of the ten commandments -- which for some, puts it into an altogether different category of mitzvah. vGod, after creating the world, rested on the seventh day (Gen 2:1-3). This seems to be a pattern established from the beginning -- cycles of seven days, seven weeks (as between Passover and Shavuot), seven years, and seven sevens of years in a jubilee. It is evident that Paul measured of the passage of time in multiples of seven years (II Cor 12:2; Gal 2:1) rather than in fives and tens, as we would do today. YOur body seems to run at its best on a seven day week cycle. Experiments have been made with an eight day cycle, and it was found that the body wears out much faster. Even the ancient Romans and Greeks had a seven day week. YExodus 20:8-11 -- God cited the seventh day of creation as the basis for keeping the Sabbath. On the Sabbath, no work was to be done. Num 15:32-36 indicates that the penalty for breaking Sabbath was death. Other scriptures: Ex 31:12-17; Lev 23:3; Deut 5:12-15 YEvery seven years, farmland in the land of Israel was to be allowed to lie fallow (Ex 23:10,11; Lev 25:1-7). After every seventh Sabbath year (or every 50 years) all slaves in the land of Israel were to be released and land returned to the original owner or his living heir. All land in Israel is uniquely considered as belonging ultimately to God. Therefore, there was no such thing as outright selling of land, but rather, a form of leasing; the expiry of the lease being the year of jubilee. vThe rabbis divided all forms of work forbidden on the Sabbath day into categories based on the work of building Solomon's temple (Babylonian Talmud: Shabbat) YSabbath was and still is almost like a weekly feast day. Even poor Jewish families save up special items of food for Sabbath. Everyone -- especially guests -- are expected to eat their fill ("C'mon! Have some more! It's shabbat!"). It's the day for forgetting one's troubles and enjoying relationships among family and friends. YWhen a situation occurred on Sabbath that required immediate attention, it made it awkward for one who was trying to keep Sabbath. Some provision were made for such situations, such as life and death situations. A lot of rabbinical discussion were about what could be done on Sabbath, and what couldn't be done. At the time of Jesus, there apparently wasn't yet a consensus as to whether miracles of healing were okay on the Sabbath. Jesus defended it by citing the rabbinical rule that life must be saved on Sabbath, even if it means breaking Sabbath, and that Sabbath is a time of loosing bonds. His discussions are typical of the discussions that took place among the rabbis. vHeb 3:7-4:10 -- By citing a word occurring both in Psalm 95 and in Ex 20:8-11, "rest," the writer of Hebrews establishes that it was God's ultimate intention that Sabbath rest become a daily 24 hour state of being. We can therefore say that one who is walking in the spirit according to Rom 8 is in his or her Sabbath rest, and is therefore fulfilling that commandment. vAs for the actual one day a week, the New Testament leaves it up to the individual's conscience (Rom 14:1-13). However, from about the 2nd century onward, as Jews became the minority in the church, observing the 7th day Sabbath began to become discouraged. It began to be emphasized that Christians rather observed the "Lord's day" on Sunday instead of Sabbath on Saturday. YThere is no commandment anywhere in the New Testament to observe Sunday as being anything special. It a couple of instances it is evident that believers met on Sunday, but that probably became the custom because Saturday was spent at the temple or the synagogue. At that time, believers were still very much a part of the Jewish community. Only later did Sunday meeting day become identified with the day Jesus rose from the dead, and thus "the Lord's day." This was possibly encouraged by John's brief reference to "Lord's day" in Rev 1:10. It's possible that this had become a tradition by this time (probably between year 86 - 91). However, there is no strong enough statement in the New Testament to suggest that it is a requirement. YTradition, in many cases, is sufficient authority to continue a practice. Tradition is not necessarily a bad thing -- except where it brings people into bondage, and violates scriptural authority. On the other hand, forcing people to discontinue a tradition can also be a bondage. One can be "under the law" in either direction. Since it is evident that "Lord's day" was a very early tradition, there is no reason to insist that it be discontinued, or that people who observe it out of conscience are doing wrong, or out of the spirit. YOne should, even if just for health's sake, rest at least one day a week. Even if one walks in the spirit 24 hours a day while ministering in the work of the Lord seven days a week, the body can become quite exhausted and prone to breakdown the moment one, out of sheer exhaustion, steps "out of the spirit." YIn some Muslim countries, churches meet on Friday, just as in Israel, many churches meet on Saturday, because Sunday is a work day just like Monday. Some missionaries and pastors who are responsible for numerous churches, have them meeting on various days of the week so that they can get around to all of them. YEveryone should follow their own conscience. Some believers, even apart from Seventh Day Adventists, are guided by their conscience to rest on Saturday, and do no work. They even feel that they've been blessed physically, spiritually and materially since beginning to do so. Others believe they must observe Sunday as a kind of Sabbath. Yet others, just so long as they fellowship sometime with other believers, and rest at least one day a week (on their day off from work), still feel at peace with their conscience. As long as we all observe Rom 14, there is room for all of these in the body of Christ -- even in the same local church. The more, the merrier! tIn each feast is the seed of expectation for a new installment of God's plan fulfilled on the earth. Some of the feasts have been fulfilled already, but others, especially those falling during the autumn harvest season, still contain elements yet to be fulfilled. Therefore, it is good to at least study their significance, if not celebrate them from time to time so as to both remember the elements fulfilled, as well as heighten our expectation of those yet to come. -- After all, there is no command what-so-ever regarding the celebration of Christmas and Easter. Yet, we celebrate them faithfully. Why not the Jewish feasts that are commanded in the Torah, even if they aren't obligatory for us? tThe feasts fit basically into two times in the year -- the spring planting season and barley harvest: Passover, First fruits and Shavuot (Pentecost); and the autumn harvest feasts: Rosh Hashannah, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simcha Torah. The spring feasts were fulfilled with Messiah's first coming, his death being on Passover, his resurrection on First fruits and the Holy Spirit being poured out on Shavuot. The autumn feasts have their fulfillment with Messiah's second coming. YPassover -- 14-21 Abib -- Ex 12:1-20; 13:3-10; Lev 23:5-8; Num 9:1-14; 28:16-25; Deut 16:1-8 lA quote form the Passover Haggadah: Rabban Gamliel used to say: Whosoever doth not make mention of the three things used on the Passover, hath not done his duty; and these are they: the paschal lamb, the unleavened cake, and bitter herb. The paschal lamb, which our ancestors ate during the existence of the holy temple, what did it denote? It denoted that the Most Holy, blessed be he, passed over our fathers' houses in Egypt; as is said: And ye shall say, it is the Lord's sacrifice of the Passover, because he passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed their heads and worshipped. These unleavened cakes, wherefore do we eat them? Because there was not sufficient time for the dough of our ancestors to leaven, before the Supreme King of kings, blessed be he, appeared unto them, and redeemed them; as is said: And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough, which they brought forth out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry; neither had they made any provision for themselves. This bitter herb, wherefore do we eat it? Because the Egyptians embittered the lives of our ancestors in Egypt; as it is said: and they embittered their lives with cruel bondage, in mortar and brick, and in all manner of labour in the field; all their service, wherein they made them labour with rigor. It therefore is incumbent on every Israelite, in every generation, to look upon himself, as if he had actually gone forth from Egypt; as is said: And thou shalt declare unto thy son, on that day, saying, This is done because of that, which the Lord did for me, when I came forth from Egypt. It was not our ancestors only that the Most Holy, blessed be he, redeemed from Egypt, but us also did he redeem with them as is said: And he brought us from thence, that he might bring us to the land which he swore to give unto our fathers. lJesus celebrated the Passover on the evening before his death w Before Passover, all leaven (bread with yeast) must be removed from the home. Bread without leaven, called matzah (plural: matzot) is eaten for the Passover ceremony and used in place of bread throughout the whole seven days of Passover. w On the first two nights the Passover meal is eaten s The meal consists of four glasses of wine, three matzot, bitter herbs (parsley or onion can be used), and instead of the lamb, an egg and a shoulder bone of a lamb (this is because the actual lamb can only be sacrificed when the temple is standing in Jerusalem). s The three matzot are placed together under a cloth. The middle matzah is broken in two. The smaller half is wrapped in a napkin and hidden. This is called the afikomen, or "afters." s The first glass of wine is received as a kiddush, or a dedication. Then, the liturgy is read which includes the traditional question by the youngest son, and the quotation of Gamliel that we saw earlier. Part of the Hallel is sung at this point (Psalm 113 & 114). Later in the ceremony, the second glass (refilling the same glass), just before the matzah and the bitter herbs. Then the meal is eaten. After the meal is over, the third cup is blessed and drunk. s Then the children are sent to look for the afikomen. That is then blessed, broken and eaten by all. The rest of the Hallel is sung (Psalm 115 - 118). s Then the final cup is blessed and drunk. w Luke 22:14-20; I Cor 11:23-26 record the blessing of the afikomen, and the last cup of wine. Luke also mentions one of the earlier cups of wine as well). s The three matzot represent Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. s The second matzah, "the Son," is broken and the afikomen is wrapped up and hidden until the third glass of wine, just as the Son of God was broken on the cross, wrapped up and buried until it resurrected on the third day. s Jesus said, "This is my body," and of the final cup of wine, "This is my blood of the New Covenant." s Paul said that as we partake of this, we are proclaiming the death of Jesus until He comes (ICor 11:26) lJesus fulfilled both the Passover, by dying as the Passover lamb, and also the feast of first fruits, by rising up three days later as the "first fruits of those who have fallen asleep." (ICor 15:20) lPassover has been carried on in the church as Easter and Communion. In many cases, communion is celebrated on Easter, and some also have it once a month, and some, once a week etc. w Easter doesn't always coincide with Passover, because Pope Gregory I put all church holidays on the solar calendar, whereas all Jewish holidays are according to the lunar calendar. w The early tradition of "breaking bread from house to house" may be based both on Jesus's interpretation of Passover, but applied to the Jewish custom of Shabbat kiddush, where wine and bread (with the yeast) is taken. In this case, regular bread would have been used, and unleavened bread on Passover. w Many believers celebrate the Passover Jewish style, observing the Messianic fulfillment of the afikomen and the wine. YShavuot (Pentecost) -- 6 Sivan -- Ex 23:16;34:22; Lev 23:15-21; Num 28:26-31; Deut 16:9-21 lThe children of Israel were to count seven weeks from the feast of first fruits during Passover week, and the following day, the 50th, was the feast of Shavuot. (Shavuot (Hebrew) = "weeks" & Pentecost (Greek) = "50") lAccording to Jewish calculations, that was the day the Ten Commandments were given from Mt. Sinai -- thus it is the birthday of Judaism. lIn fulfillment, the same day the Ten Commandments were received, and the children of Israel committed themselves to abide by them; the Holy Spirit was also poured out and 3000 people committed themselves to follow Messiah in Jerusalem (Acts 2). Thus, Shavuot is also the birthday of Christianity. lBarley was harvested at that time, as the other crops were being planted. The first fruit offering, therefore, consisted to two loaves of barley bread baked with the leaven. Jesus once described the Kingdom of God as being leaven that leavens the whole lump. YRosh Hashanah -- 1 Tishri -- Lev 23:23-25; Num 29:1-6 lThis is the first of the autumn harvest feasts which have their fulfillment in the period leading up to and including Messiah's return. lEven though Passover is the religious new year, Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the civil or agricultural year for the Jews. The month of Tishri, in which all the Autumn feasts fall, being the seventh month of the religious year, can be seen as a Sabbath month. lTraditionally it is believed that God completed the creation of the world on Rosh Hashanah. This aspect will be fulfilled when God sums up the history of the world at Messiah's coming, fulfilling the reason for creating the world in the first place. lThe shofar (ram's horn blown as a trumpet) is traditionally blown every day in every synagogue beginning with Rosh Hashanah, until the completion of Yom Kippur on 10 Tishri. w From this, we get a fuller understanding of the seven angels with the seven trumpets of Revelation 8-11. w Traditionally, the blowing of the shofar signifies 3 things: 1 Call to repentance s The whole period from Rosh Hashanah, climaxing with Yom Kippur is a time of repentance for the Jewish community. During this period, Jews all over -- even secular non-religious Jews -- go around asking each other forgiveness and making up for old arguments of the past year ("Hey -- if I've done anything to offend you this year, forgive me, okay?"). During this time, congregations will make a trip to a body of water to cast in pebbles -- representing their sins -- into the water. s In the period leading into the return of Messiah should be a time of repentance for the church for our backslidings, our sectarianism, factions, unforgivness, and how we've treated the Jews. In the end, it will be a time of repentance for Israel, and the nations as the last days harvest is gathered in. When we repent, our sins are buried like pebbles beneath the deepest sea. 2 To remind God of His covenant -- to appeal to God to deal with His people according to His promise to Abraham. Both the first and second coming of Messiah are fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham. Israel, Abraham's seed after the flesh, still has a part to play. As we appeal to God to fulfill His covenant to Abraham in bringing Israel to repentance, God's plan for the ages can be fulfilled. The book of seven seals in Revelation which only Jesus as the Lamb slain, could open, can be seen as the summing up of God's covenant with Adam when he made him ruler over the earth. 3 To confuse Satan, who accuses Israel before God on New Years day. While this may sound like a quaint medieval tradition, we never the less see a parallel in Rev 11&12: After the last of the seven trumpets (11:15), we are told in 12:10 that the Devil, the "accuser of the brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down." This seems to be the result of much travail and intercession (12:1,2), spiritual warfare (12:7-9), and personal victory on the part of the believers, who overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony (12:11), and loved not their lives even to death. w The last trumpet of Rosh Hashanah is actually blown on the completion of Yom Kippur. We will see in a moment why Yom Kippur is significant in all this, but the last trumpet in Rev 11:15-19 and 10:5-7 seems to signify the completion of God's plan on earth. ICor 15:50-58 signifies that the last trumpet ushers in the resurrection. YYom Kippur (day of atonement) -- 10 Tishri -- Lev 16; 23:26-32; Num 29:7-11 lThis is the annual day of solemn fasting and of humbling oneself before God. lDuring the time the temple was standing it was the day of the annual atonement sacrifice, with the sacrifice of the bullock for the high priest, and two goats for Israel. That was the only time of the year that the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies. lIt is also believed to be the day of judgment on all Israelites whose repentance isn't genuine -- a day of reckoning. The credit limit has been used up and Israel humbly comes before God to beg for mercy. lThe application to the end times is the final day of reckoning for the world. w Israel will finally realize the identity of messiah and "look on him whom they pierced," and "mourn for him as one mourns for his only son and grieve for him as one grieves for a firstborn" (Zech 12:10-14). It will indeed be a time of solemn assembly and fasting and repentance on the part of Israel. w For those in the world that don't repent, it will be a time of final judgment -- possibly with the seven last bowls of God's wrath. w Then the final trumpet -- the shofar that signals the end of the day of atonement -- and the dead in Christ shall rise ... etc. YSuccot (Tabernacles) -- 15-22 Tishri -- Ex 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:33-36,39-43; Num 29:12-38; Deut 16:13-15 lWhereas Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur were solemn holidays marked by repentance and humbling of oneself, Succot and Simcha Torah are joyful feasts. lThis is the holiday celebrating harvest. The thithes and offerings are brought to the temple during this feast. lIt commemorates God's presence and protection with Israel in the wilderness until they entered the promised land. To do this, they reside in make shift shelters (succot) during this holiday. They also collect branches of the palm, myrtle and willow to make a lulav or branch, and with that and an ethrog (a citrus fruit) they make a special blessing according to Lev 23:40. lDuring this holiday period, a total of 70 bullocks were offered on behalf of the 70 gentile nations, or 70 general people groups that are believed to compose the gentile world. lA special ritual was performed in the temple that was to solicit God's favour in granting rain for the following year. A priest was sent to the pool of Siloam with a golden pitcher to fetch water, which was poured, along with another pitcher of wine, at the foot of the altar where it flowed through underground pipes into the brook of Kiddron. While this was being done, the Hallel was sung (Psalm 113 - 118). lThis again fits into the scenario of Revelation, if we consider Rev 14:14 ff. where the Son of man thrusts in His sickle to reap the harvest of souls from the earth. This seems to be the resurrection, or the rapture -- the harvest that this holiday is ultimately commemorating. lMessiah is often referred in the Old Testament prophets as "the Branch." Isaiah 4:2-6 follows a Succot motif, referring to Messiah, "the Branch" as the lulaf and going on to describe God's presence with Israel in the wilderness. lThe 70 nations are significant in the feast of Succot. Zech 14:16,17 says that in Messiah's kingdom, the nations that are left will come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. Succot seems to have special significance in the millennium, which Revelation describes in chapter 20. One Jewish tradition states that Succot will be the only feast celebrated during Messiah's reign. lZech 14:17 further says that those nations that don't participate in the feast of Succot will receive no rain for their crops. lRain is also significant of the pouring out of God's Spirit on all flesh, as we see in Joel. This will indeed happen both in the kingdom, and in the period leading into the kingdom, as Israel speaks the words of the Hallel, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord (Ps 118:26" in recognition of who Messiah is, in fulfillment of Jesus's prophecy in Matt 23:39. YSimcha Torah is the day of holy convocation on the eighth day of Succot (Lev23:36). lOn that day, the schedule of Sabbath Torah readings has completed its annual cycle, Jewish congregations having read through the whole five books of Moses. The giving of the Torah from Mt. Sinai is celebrated. lWhereas Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are days of dwelling on our deficit before God, and therefore a time of repentance, this is a day of dwelling on "credit" that has been extended to us, or grace (in the Calvinistic sense of "unmerited favour"). The believer, of course, lives by grace and God's imputed righteousness, but walking in that according to Rom 8:1 involves walking in the spirit, which is also a state of continuous repentance and sensitivity towards others in the body of Christ. Confessing our sins, and acknowledging our deficit (I John 1:6-10) -- that by ourselves we are nothing -- should be a daily experience, just as dwelling on our credit -- understanding our righteousness in Christ, and relying on His strength and not our own, and participating in continuous Sabbath rest. Thus, both Yom Kippur and Simcha Torah are daily experiences for the New Covenant believer. lOn this day, Jewish congregations celebrate by taking the Torah scrolls out of the ark (the place where they are kept in the synagogue), and dancing with them around the bema (podium). After this, the annual reading cycle begins once more with Genesis. Likewise, New Covenant believers receive a deeper foundation to their faith once they understand the Torah, and the purpose of the commandments -- how they have been fulfilled in Messiah, how the Torah serves as the foundation to our New Covenant experience, and which of the mitzvot serve as guidelines for our everyday lives under the New Covenant. No more lessons available as of yet Lesson Index

Why were the commandments given and how were they fulfilled?

#12 of the tishbyte Foundational Bible Study series:
How did Jesus fulfil the law? Are there any parts we still need to follow and/or learn from?

#8 of the New Covenant section

r When man ate the forbidden fruit, 4 things happened:

1. He gained a knowledge of Good and Evil

2. He became unclean

3. He lost fellowship with God

4. He became susceptible to Satan's influence, and was prone to follow him and forget his creator

r God remedied this situation by instituting a covenant that provided

1. Guidelines to follow so as to do good and not evil towards God and one's fellow man -- or commandments of conscience

2. Guidelines for separating the clean from the unclean, to surround himself with cleanliness so as to cover his uncleanness -- or commandments of cleanliness

3. A framework of sacrifice and priesthood so that man could maintain fellowship with God -- or covenant commandments

4. Promises and reminders so that man would continue to follow after God, and not forget those promises that remained as yet unfulfilled, so that through maintaining the mutual covenant, God's plan can be fulfilled on the earth -- or commandments regarding Sabbaths and feasts

r For believers in messiah, the question must be asked, "Are these laws applicable to us today? If Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law, does that mean Christians can ignore all the commandments of Moses?" First, we must define what exactly we mean by "law", and then we will look at the four categories of commandments we have just defined.

mThe Hebrew word translated "law" is actually Torah, meaning "The teaching of the ways of God." In the wider sense, it can be taken to mean "Old Covenant."

mThe Septuagint -- the first version of the Old Testament to be translated from Hebrew into Greek about 200 b.c.e. translated Torah as nomos, or "law." For this reason, Greek speaking Jews said "law" when they meant Torah. The Greek New Testament simply used the word that was in common use to mean Torah, even though in the strictly legal sense, it is not a correct translation.

mSince the Greek word nomos also means "law" in the legal sense, we sometimes have to examine the context to know what exactly the New Testament writers are referring to:

tthe laws of nature, or the law of the land -- i.e. the Roman empire

tthe code of laws within the Torah, or the mitzvot (plural -- Singular of this word is mitzvah, meaning "commandment.")

t"Under the law," was the phrase Paul used to mean: legalistic bondage to certain mitzvot, i.e. circumcision, Sabbath laws, etc., or strict adherence to them with the attitude that these or other commandments are an end in themselves. Also, "works of the law" is a phrase used in this context to mean the mitzvot that are followed in a legalistic manner. This was history's first attempt to coin the word "legalism." These phrases have been misinterpreted so as to apply to those who simply fulfill the law out of obedience, simply out of devotion and gratitude, because one believes it is required by God; which is why many Jews today also keep the law. For Joshua, keeping the law was the means to success (Josh. 1:8). It was not a legalistic bondage for him, so he was not "under the law" in the sense Paul was talking about. In this sense, "law" can just as easily mean a commandment of Moses as a commandment of Jesus such as "turn the other cheek," or some statement of Paul such as women wearing a head covering. Even one's vision for ministry (or someone elses's vision) can degenerate into a bondage, and become "works of the law."

mTwo questions that we must ask before looking at how the mitzvot were fulfilled:

tHas the old covenant been done away with?

vGal 3:6-18 -- especially verse 14 should indicate to us (among other things) that the old covenant hasn't been annulled; because if it were, gentiles would have no right to the blessings of Abraham. Jesus didn't annul the Old Covenant, but expanded it to include the gentiles -- and at the same time, canceled the curse of the law. Verse 17 moreover points out that one covenant doesn't annul another. The Covenant of Moses didn't annul the Covenant of Abraham. Neither does the New Covenant annul the old.

vAccording to Matt 5:17, Jesus said, "Do not think I have come to destroy the law (Torah) or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill."

vRom 10:4, "...Christ is the end of the Law..." The word "end" does not mean “finished off" or "terminated." It means "fulfilled", just as Jesus said. It could read, "Christ is the fulfillment, or the ultimate goal of the Torah." The word "end" can be understood in its older English sence, as in "...to this end..."

tAre there two types of righteousness that can lead to salvation -- the "works of the law" and "faith"?

vRom 7:7 One of the functions of the law is to reveal sin. Therefore, apart from providing a guideline of how to live in society, be successful, and commune with God, the mitzvot also were a measure of how far short man has fallen by God's standards.

YThe only way to please God, as King David found was to live in continuous repentance. His Psalms generally reflect this.

YGod's divine attributes being justice and mercy: it is quite clear that we cannot live up to God's standard of justice as reflected in the mitzvot. Therefore, we must continuously plead God's mercy by continuous repentance.

YMatt 22:37-40 Jesus quoted Deut 6:5 and Lev 19:18, saying that on these two commandments hang all the Torah and the Prophets. This is also acknowledged by the rabbis. Hillel is also credited with what we know of as the golden rule: "What you find hateful to yourself, do not do to others. On this hangs the Torah and the Prophets."

YBy violating this mitzvah of love, both under the Old and the New Covenant, we put ourselves "under the law". Jesus stated this when he said, (Matt 7:1-2) "Judge not, that you won't be judged, for the same judgment with which you judged, you will be judged yourself.

YEven under the Old Covenant, the Jews were able to please God, but not by being "under the Law" but rather by pleading God's mercy through repentance, and by emulating God's mercy by Loving others.

vGal 3:11-12 — No one is justified by the law. Therefore, that is not a means of righteousness for salvation. In Paul's comparison of living by the mitzvot and living by faith, Paul's application of "shall live by", from Lev 18:5 and Hab 2:4, is for the benefit of the Galatian believers. For the Jew faithfully following the Old Covenant, obeying the commandments was an exercise of faith, as that is what was expected of him by God. For the New Covenant believer, however, especially gentiles as the Galatians were, going to the mitzvot is a step backwards, and therefore not an act of faith. The Galatians had a better option of walking in the spirit (5:16) and thereby fulfilling the mitzvot without paying attention to the details. It should be noted, also, that "...shall live by..." in both of the original contexts, should be read to mean, "...shall be sustained by..." or "...have life by..." It is not a guiding influence, such as "living by the rules," but rather in the sense of sustenance, as in "man shall not live by bread alone."

vRom 10:3-8 seems to point to a duel righteousness. However, let's look at it more closely:

Y"Law" here should be taken to mean Torah.

YThis is not contrasting righteousness of faith with righteousness of the law. Faith has always been the only way to righteousness. The only contrast here is in verse 3: "their own righteousness" and "The righteousness of God"

YVerse 4, "...Christ is the end of the Law..." as we saw already, should read, "Messiah is the ultimate goal of the Torah"

YVerse 5, "...live by them," again should read, "have life by them." Under the Old Covenant, those who keep the mitzvot by faith will be sustained, just as Joshua had success by them (Josh 1:8), and ultimately arrive at the "end of the law" which is Messiah.

YVerse 6, "But..." In Greek, there are 2 words for "but". The word used here does not imply a strong contrast. It could just as well read as "moreover." The righteousness of the Torah (vs. 5) and the righteousness of faith (vs. 6) are the same thing. They are not being contrasted here. This is obvious, because in verse 6, Paul again quotes the Torah (Deut 30:12-14) when he says, "Moreover, the righteousness of faith says, 'Do not say in your heart, who will ascend...'"

vGod did not have one rule for those under the Old Covenant and a different rule for those under the New. The requirements have always been the same -- minding the mitzvot or guidelines as an act of faith in a spirit of repentance, and loving God and our neighbour -- except that under the New Covenant, a new dimension has been added that fulfills the mitzvot for those who walk in it: that is the dimension of the spirit. We will now look at how this fulfills the four categories of mitzvot. The duality alluded to in Romans and Galatians isn't between Old Covenant and New Covenant, but rather between justice and mercy. For the New Covenant believer that translates to flesh and spirit.

qJesus fulfilled (not destroyed) the law. How did he do so, and which (if any) laws still apply? Let's look at the 4 categories of mitzvot.

1 Commandments for the Conscience

tThis includes commandments in a moral, civil and agricultural context

tMany civil and agricultural laws are valid only in the land of Israel while the temple is standing and sacrifices are being offered daily. Many rabbis believe this will only happen again when Messiah comes. Instead of observing the civil laws in the Torah, we are told by Paul and others (Rom 13:1) to be subject to governing authority in which ever place we happen to be -- just as the Jews do.

tMany of the civil laws found in the Torah are the basis of modern jurisprudence. The concept of two or three witnesses and of twelve people serving on a Jury are all based on Mosaic law.

vA couple of quotes from the Mishnah:

Whence is it that the small Sanhedrin consisted of twenty-three? As it is said, "The congregation shall judge...the congregation shall deliver: (Num 35:24 f). Since a "congregation" judges (i.e. convicts) and a "congregation" delivers (i.e. acquits), we have a total of twenty judges. But whence is it that the term "congregation" denotes ten persons? As it is said, "How long shall I bear with this evil congregation?" (Num 14:27). Here it refers to the twelve spies with the exclusion of Joshua and Caleb (and therefore indicates a body of ten persons). Whence is it that three more are to be added to the twenty? This is deduced from the text, "To be after a majority for evil" (i.e. a conviction, sic Exod. 23:2). I infer that I may follow a majority for good (i.e. for acquittal); if so, what is the purpose of the words "To be after a majority"? They teach that there is a difference in the majority required for an acquittal and a conviction. For the former a majority of one suffices; for the latter two are necessary (and so twenty-two are required); and to avoid the Court being equally divided one more is added, giving a total of twenty-three. What must the population of a town be to qualify for a Sanhedrin of its own? One hundred and twenty. Rabbi Nehemiah said, Two hundred and thirty, so that each member (of the Sanhedrin) should be "a ruler of ten" (Exod. 18:21) (Mishnah: Sanh. 1:6/ A.Cohen, Everyman's Talmud; p. 302 f.)

Civil cases are decided by a court of three. According to Rabbi Meir, each party selects one judge and they jointly select the third. The Rabbis assert, the two selected judges appoint the third. Each party can reject the nominee of the third, so declares Rabbi Meir; but the Rabbis assert, They can only do so on bringing proof that the nominees are related to the litigants or otherwise disqualified. If, however, they are fit to act as judges or are experts, they cannot be disqualified (Mishnah: Sanh. 3:1/ A.Cohen, p. 304)

YToday, a unanimous decision by a jury of 12 is required to convict. This would be equal to the majority required of a Sanhedrin of 23 judges.

YIt is interesting to note that on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fell initially on 120 believers, which included 12 apostles. Each apostle was thus a "ruler of ten".

YLikewise, Jesus's instructions in Matt 18:15-20 regarding church discipline is based on rabbinical practice. This passage can be understood much more clearly once we understand the role of the "two or three witnesses" or judges, and also the role of the congregation.

tExamples of laws of a moral context are found in Lev 18

vPaul quoted Lev 18:5 as we saw twice above (Rom 10:5 and Gal 3:12): "You shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the Lord."

vPaul alluded to Lev 18:8 when he judged the man having sexual relations with his father's wife (ICor 5:1-8).

vOn one hand, Paul is interpreted by many as using Lev 18:5 to say that we are free from any sort of obligation to the law; whereas here, he turns around and cites a mitzvah which is found 3 verses later in the same context, as the basis to judge the Corinthian man living with his father's wife. Was Paul taking the verse out of context in interpreting it as saying the law doesn't apply to us?

vAs a rabbi and as a Christian teacher, it would have been contrary to Paul's practice to take verses out of context. The two passages can be reconciled if we look at Rom 8:1: "There is therefore no more condemnation to those in Messiah...who walk not according to the flesh but according to the spirit."

YThe mitzvot are necessary because of our flesh. Gal 5:16 says that if we walk in the spirit, we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh.

YRom 6:1&15 shows us that deliberate sinning, or flagrant disregard for the law is not the proper response to the fact that we are not under the law, but under grace. The secret is walking in the spirit.

YWhen we walk in the spirit, we are not under condemnation, even if we do tread unintentionally on some minor details. But neither will we tend to do anything contrary to God's standards.

YIf the man in ICor 5 had been walking in the spirit, he would not have desired to take his father's wife. The very idea would have been revolting to him. He proved that he was definitely out of the spirit by the flagrant violation.

YTherefore, according to Rom 8:1, he was under condemnation, because he was walking according to the flesh while thinking that he could disregard all standards of conduct. The mitzvah in Lev 18:8 therefore became a standard to determine whether or not he was in the spirit or not. Since he was not, he was judged by the law.

YTo ask the question in a modern context, "Shall I marry my blood sister? After all, I'm not under the law, but under grace, and the only place that the Bible forbids it is in the law of Moses, and I love her, and think she's cute and ..." -- The answer is of course, "No." If I were to say further, "But God told me to!" The correct response is, "Obviously, you haven't been hearing from God, because the Bible forbids it."

vTherefore, these laws are valuable to us and are still binding on us if we walk in the flesh. (It should also be added that when we judge (Matt 7:1,2), which is also an act according to the flesh, and not the spirit, we also put ourselves under the law -- although not the mitzvot of the Torah necessarily, but the law by which we judged our brother, even if they're of our own making.) If we are truly following our spiritual desires we won't tend to infringe on any of them seriously anyway.

vOther laws of this nature that we tend to hold as binding (without realizing that they are the law of Moses) are:

Yagainst fornication

Yagainst occult paraphernalia and symbols

Yagainst astrology

Yagainst fortune telling

Ymany others referred to in the New Testament. They are forbidden there because they are forbidden in the Torah (I Cor 5:1-8; Acts 15:22-29; etc.) -- not to imply that those that aren't mentioned in the New Testament are therefore okay. That would simply make the New Testament another law book. To say, "The New Testament says it; therefore it's forbidden -- The Torah says it but the New Testament doesn't; therefore it's okay," is just as much being "under the law" as only following the Torah.

2 Commandments of Cleanliness -- separating the clean from the unclean

tThis includes most dietary laws; laws regarding unclean diseases; transferal of uncleanness; rituals for cleansing, including ritual immersions and anointing with oil, etc.

tThe underlying principal is, in Adam's disobedience, man became an "unkosher animal" or inherently unclean (Lev 16:16). Therefore, to be God's special possession, Israel had to "separate the clean from the unclean" (Lev 20:24-26). He had to have a clean substitute -- a kosher animal without spot or blemish for a sacrifice; surround himself with a clean environment; eat clean food; and be ritually clean when approaching God at the altar in the temple.

tThe general rule that covers all of these laws (cleanliness laws) is that we have been made clean through Jesus's blood (Heb 9:13-14). Therefore, we are released from the obligation to separate clean animals and objects from unclean.

vActs 10:9-23 -- Peter's vision of the animals refers not only to the animals themselves, but also to the gentiles, on whom the Holy Spirit was about to fall.

vMatt 15:10-20; I Tim 4:3-5

tEven though these laws are not obligatory to us, certain aspects deserve special mention -- both for practical reasons and teaching value.

vKosher dietary laws

YMany medical experts have pointed out that most of those animals listed as unkosher in Lev 11 are also unhealthy for medical reasons. Some therefore hold that the kosher laws were given solely for health reasons.

lIt is indeed a miracle that modern medical science has confirmed the ancient distinctions of clean and unclean, not only in this but also the matter of washing of hands, and quarantining the leper (which helped bring an end to the black plague of medieval Europe) etc.

lHowever, health was not the sole reason for these laws. Some unkosher animals aren't so obviously unhealthy -- the rabbit for instance. While bathing is hygienic, the New Testament practice that is derived from ritual immersion, baptism, is only practiced once in a lifetime. Doctors would suggest something more like once every day. Some of the medical sources also cite blood as being full of germs drawn from the rest of the body, and therefore unclean. However, the Torah never classifies blood as being unclean. In fact, it is sacred, as the "life of the flesh is in the blood," and for that reason, it's forbidden for food. If it were classified as ritually unclean, it couldn't be offered on the altar.

lTherefore, the real reason for these laws is not only for reasons of hygiene, but because God said, "Be holy for I am holy." (Lev 11:44,45) -- not, "Eat healthy for I am a health food nut." If health were the only reason, these foods would still be forbidden to New Covenant believers, just as marriage to one's blood sibling.

YSome, for the reason that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, also abstain from unkosher food for health reasons, and reasons of conscience. This is fine, so long as these aren't made to be binding on all believers -- or that others aren't made to feel in any way "less spiritual." (I Tim 4:1-5)

YSome Jewish believers in Messiah Yeshuah also keep a kosher diet so as to identify with their Jewish heritage. As the "gifts and callings are without repentance," They feel that as Jews, they are peculiar people set apart for a purpose, and ought therefore to continue to keep the mitzvot. This is fine, and laudable. Paul himself, for a season, observed the vow of a Nazarite, letting his hair grow long, and abstaining from wine, alcohol, or any by-product of the grape, and not touching anything ritually unclean (Acts 18:18; 21:22-27 -- based on the mitzvah in Num. 6). If Paul observed the vow of a Nazarite as a believer in Messiah (which even for a Jew was going beyond the normal binding obligations), how much more is it permissible for Jewish believers to simply keep an all around kosher diet -- so long as they remember Paul's guideline in Gal 2:11-14 and Peter's in Acts 10:9-23, and not allow this to come in the way of fellowship with gentile believers. The New Testament nowhere commands a Jew to eat pork, but Peter and Paul here insinuate that it may be a good idea at times to observe fellowship by eating what the host serves up. Diet is not obligatory, but fellowship is, and eating together is an important part of fellowship. On the other hand, gentiles should also keep in mind that it is no more a bondage for many Jew to keep a kosher diet than for an Englishman to abstain from horse meat. If you don't want to eat horse meat, then keep some kosher food on hand for when you entertain your Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ.

vRitual immersion -- This is one mitzvah that has found its way into Christian practice.

YLev 15:5,16; 17:15; 11:24-28; 14:8 -- Most of these references contain the phrase, "He (or she) shall wash his clothes, and bathe in water and be unclean until evening, then he shall be clean."

lThe rabbinical rule of immersion (Mishnah: Mikvaot -- the whole tractate discusses immersion) is that one must fully immerse oneself in a pool or stream of naturally flowing water. A mikvah, used in most synagogues simulates a natural flow that satisfies rabbinical requirements even though it is an artificial pool. According to the Dedache, the early believers had similar requirements for baptism.

lJohn the Baptist immersed people in the river Jordan for repentance. The Essenes also immersed people to initiate them into their sects. Conversion to Judaism, to this day, also includes immersion.

lJohn's reason was that it's not so much the touching of a carcass or a hemorrhage that makes one unclean, but sin in the heart, or as Jesus said (Mat 15:10ff), it's that which comes out of the mouth that defiles a man. Outward washing became symbolic of inward repentance.

lJesus therefore commanded to baptize (Matt 28:19) as the fulfillment of the mitzvah. This is explained by Peter (IPet 3:21) as not so much the removing outward uncleanness, but inward -- cleansing the conscience.

YOther applications of the mitzvah of washing in the New Testament:

lJust as a person under the Old Covenant had till sundown to be immersed, the New Covenant believer has till sundown to apoligise and forgive those with whom he is angry (Eph 4:26) Bitterness and unforgivness are what makes one unclean and disqualified to enter God's presence (Matt 5:23,24), just as ritual uncleanness disqualified one to approach the altar to present an offering.

lJust as a Jewish bride would immerse herself so as to be ritually clean for her bridegroom, even so, the church, the bride of Christ is being cleansed with the washing of the water by the Word (Eph 5:25-27). Bitterness, unforgivness, old ways of thinking, bad habits must be purged through the cleansing action of God's Word by the Holy Spirit.

3 Covenant Commandments

tThese are commandments regarding the bringing of sacrifices and offerings of various kinds; laws regarding Levitical priesthood; laws regarding the temple; rites of passage such as circumcision, redemption of first born, and bar mitzvah. Included with much of the above are rites such as anointing with oil and laying on of hands.

tThe covenant is necessary in order to provide the means for man to approach God.

tThese commandments are for the maintenance of the Old Covenant which required blood sacrifice. The key verse is Lev 17:11, "The life of the flesh is in the blood."

vLev 17:10-14 therefore forbids the eating or drinking of blood. This does not fall under the category of unclean food since it is not uncleanness that is the reason cited, but rather that the life is in the blood. If it were ritually unclean, it couldn't be offered as a sacrifice. It's the sacredness of life rather than the uncleanness of the blood that is the issue here.

vThe rule of thumb in Lev 3:17 is that those parts that are specially removed from the animal sacrifice to be offered on the alter is forbidden for consumption -- namely the blood and the fat surrounding the inner organs.

vThe consumption of blood is part of the pagan practice of blood covenant. Jews under the Old Covenant and believers under the New already have a covenant in blood, and are therefore forbidden to participate in blood covenants in which blood is consumed.

vThe New Testament confirms the prohibition against consuming blood (Acts 15:23-29)

tCircumcision was the first requirement to be instituted (Gen 17).

vIt involved the drawing of blood in a covenant context. The new born male child of 8 days is thus brought into the covenant. Where one's circumcision was either neglected, or put off for health reasons, or where a gentile male enters into the covenant of Israel, circumcision can be performed as an adult.

vRabbinical tradition states that a gentile who desires to worship The God of Israel may simply accept immersion and commit himself to follow the "seven commandments of the sons of Noah," or the "Noachide Law" without entering fully into the covenant of Israel and thus forego circumcision. How early this was generally practiced is hard to say. According to tradition, the 7 laws were:

1 The practice of equity

2 Against blaspheming the Name of God

3 Against idolatry

4 Against immorality

5 Against bloodshed without just cause

6 Against robbery

7 Against devouring a limb torn from a life animal

(Babylonian Talmud: Sanh 56A)

vAfter Jesus's resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, it was assumed that, being a Jewish faith, all non-Jewish convert s would need to be circumcised. However, when the Holy Spirit began to fall on the gentiles, it was shown to Peter (Acts 10:9-28) that the gentiles were not to be treated as unclean. The Holy Spirit came on them and they were immersed.

vLater, when Paul and Barnabas began to make headway in reaching the gentiles, controversy arose regarding the requirement of circumcision and the other laws. The council of apostles and elders met in Jerusalem (Acts 15) and made the binding decision that circumcision wasn't necessary. Moreover, the gentile believers would only be required to follow the guidelines listed in Acts 15:23-29

vIt's possible that Acts 15:23-29 is an earlier version of the seven Noachide laws to that listed in the Talmud. However, unlike the rabbinical viewpoint, these gentile believers following only seven rules would not be treated as "second class citizens" of God's kingdom, but as full recipients of God's grace and co-heirs with the Jewish believers (Gal 2:1-21; Eph 2:11-3:7)

vThe reality of being co-heirs in Christ was so real to Paul that he rebuked the Galatian believers for thinking that taking the extra step of circumcision would bring them closer (Gal 5:1-15).

vThe general rule is, under the New Covenant, anything we attempt in the flesh to improve our standing in Christ is really a step backwards into legalism. That is an act of unbelief, and therefore takes us out of the umbrella of God's grace. Walking according to the flesh rather than the spirit (Rom 8:1), we are once again under condemnation, and judged according to the law. The remedy to this situation is simply to repent, and get back into the spirit and stand totally on faith in Christ.

vThis doesn't necessarily make circumcision wrong -- just so long as it isn['t seen as a prerequisite to God's favour.

YTimothy, who by rabbinical standards was Jewish because his mother was Jewish, was circumcized by Paul (Acts 16:1-3) so that he could better identify with the Jewish community in bringing them the news of Messiah.

YSome would therefore argue that believing Jews should circumcize their children (or themselves) as a sign of their calling -- not as an attempt to gain acceptance in Christ. For that matter, bar mitzvah, etc. should also be practeced. This should not be frowned on. This doesn't make them more holy or more accepted by God any more than an apostle or prophet is greater than a foot-washer.

YPaul (Acts 21:15-26) went to the temple shortly before his arrest to make a sacrifice on behalf of fellow Jewish believers who had completed a vow. Scripture doesn't censure him for this act. There is no evidence that New Covenant Jewish believers are discouraged from participating in Jewish ritual in the New Testament. Paul's declaration in the sanhedrin of being a Pharisee (Acts 23:6) is further evidence of this.

tAnimal sacrifice has been performed since the time of Abel. Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Job and Balaam are all mentioned as having offered sacrifices to God outside the context of the guidelines laid down on Mt. Sinai. In many cases, it was the instrument through which God established His covenant. The blood of the animal substituted for the life of the sinful man offering the sacrifice, and (in some cases) entering into the covenant. With the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai, came the requirement that all sacrifices had to be made by means of the Levitical priesthood in the temple.

vLev 1-6 describes the five kinds of offerings

YThe Burnt Offering -- was fully burnt on the altar (except for the hide)

YThe Meal Offering -- was any combination of grain meal, fruit, oil, or baked bread, either leaven or unleavened

YThe Peace Offering -- was usually an animal sacrifice for the purpose of communing with God. Only the inner fat and the blood was offered on the altar. Part of it was given to the priest to eat, and the remainder to the one offering the sacrifice to enjoy a covenant meal.

YThe Sin Offering -- was made to atone for general sins. Except for part that was given to the priest, it was mostly burnt on the altar.

YThe Trespass Offering -- was made to atone for a failed vow, a mistake made in offerings that were supposed to have been made, infraction in violating rules regarding cleanliness, taking God's Name in vain, or accidentally going beyond the limits regarding privileges reserved for Levites and Priests.

vMany occasions called for more than one of the above -- i.e. a man fulfilling the vow of a Nazarite brings a burnt offering, a sin offering, a peace offering and a meal offering.

vIn every case, the one offering the sacrifice laid hands on the animal, or else "waved" or "heaved" the grain offering so as to establish identification with the offering. By this means, guilt was transferred and substitution activated. Laying on of hands is also a New Testament doctrine (Heb 6:1,2). Here, we see the principal of transfer by physical contact.

vDepending on the type of sacrifice and how it was administered, parts of the sacrifice was eaten as food by the priest, and, in the case of the peace offering, by the one offering the sacrifice.

YThe priest, being the mediator, ate his portion in the sanctuary.

YThe one offering the sacrifice ate his portion with his family in the holy city within a day of his offering.

YHere, we have the concept of the covenant meal, and the principal of participating in fellowship by eating together.

vOfferings, especially grain offerings, are to be seasoned with salt (Lev 2:13; Num 18:19). Salt is a cleansing agent, and a preservative.

tAlso, there are instructions regarding the priesthood.

vMoses was commanded to appoint Aaron and his children to be priests.

vThe priest is to represent the people to God and represent God to the people. Therefore, he was set apart so as to maintain ritual purity at all times.

YMan, even in his ritually pure state, couldn't come directly to God. He could come only through a mediator. The closest he could come was between the gate of the temple, and the altar.

YThe priest, even though he was set apart, still required a sacrifice for his own sin. Even then, only the high priest could come before God once a year.

vThe temple (or tabernacle) was set up for various degrees of approach to God.

YThe outer court between the door and the altar was for ritually pure Israelites to bring their sacrifice

YBetween the altar and the door of the tabernacle was the laver, containing water for the priests to wash themselves before entering the holy place.

YOnly the priests could enter this holy place. There was special bread for the priests, the menorah that was light at all times, and the altar of incense which was against the veil separating the holy place and the holy of holies.

YThe Holy of Holies was where the presence of God rested. In it was the ark of the covenant, which was in effect a large box containing the 10 commandments, and a large lid called the mercy seat. All was overlaid with gold.

YThe high priest, only, was allowed to go into the holy of holies once a year on Yom Kippur, so as to offer the blood of the annual atonement sacrifice, sprinkling it on the mercy seat.

vEx 40 -- On setting up the tabernacle and installing the priests:

YMoses anointed the pieces of furniture and the tabernacle

YMoses then took Aaron and his sons and administered ritual immersion (vs 12)

YThen, he put the holy garments on them

YHe then anointed them with oil.

YWashing for purification signifies what baptism means to us under the New Covenant.

YThe clothing represents being accepted, or our righteous standing before God.

YOil is significant of the Holy Spirit. Anointing is a major for imparting the duties of an office on an individual. Kings such as Saul and David were likewise anointed.

YThis is fulfilled in the New Covenant when the believer is baptized in water, is accepted by being clothed in righteousness, and receives the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Yvs 34-38 -- The results of all this -- the cloud of God's glory covered the temple so that Moses couldn't enter the tabernacle.

vIn the New Covenant, the duties of priests, and the function of the sanctuary and the required blood of the covenant sacrifices has been fulfilled by Jesus (Heb 9)

YThe blood of animals could only cover sin temporarily, but the blood of Jesus cleanses sin once and for all.

YUnder the New Covenant, by faith in the blood of Jesus, one is made both ritually pure, accepted, given the privilege of priesthood, and anointed with the Holy Spirit, and is encouraged to enter straight into the holy of holies through Jesus (Heb 10:19-23)

4 Commandments regarding Sabbaths and Feasts

tIn order to keep man in remembrance of the covenant, and to thus keep the door open to fulfill His plan on the earth, God instituted feasts and Sabbaths.

tUnder the New Covenant, the feasts don't play as significant a role, because the indwelling Holy Spirit keeps the expectation of the glory of God alive in us.

vIn the early church period, the gentiles in some cases, were made to feel obligated to observe the feasts, new moons and Sabbaths (Col 2:16,17). Paul wrote to them to remind them that their hope is in Christ, and the Holy Spirit within them is what maintains their consciousness of being sons of God (Gal 4:1-11).

vOn the strength of their understanding of Paul's comments, the 2nd and 3rd century church went to the other extreme and forgot the Jewish feasts altogether, even looking down on, and later forbidding Jewish believers from observing any Jewish tradition. No where is this type of attitude sanctioned in the New Testament. Paul's instructions in Rom 14:1-13 were to allow for one another's convictions in these matters. This goes for all the laws we've discussed so far, which some may chose to keep voluntarily.

tSabbaths is an especially touchy subject for many New Covenant believers because it is based on one of the ten commandments -- which for some, puts it into an altogether different category of mitzvah.

vGod, after creating the world, rested on the seventh day (Gen 2:1-3). This seems to be a pattern established from the beginning -- cycles of seven days, seven weeks (as between Passover and Shavuot), seven years, and seven sevens of years in a jubilee. It is evident that Paul measured of the passage of time in multiples of seven years (II Cor 12:2; Gal 2:1) rather than in fives and tens, as we would do today.

YOur body seems to run at its best on a seven day week cycle. Experiments have been made with an eight day cycle, and it was found that the body wears out much faster. Even the ancient Romans and Greeks had a seven day week.

YExodus 20:8-11 -- God cited the seventh day of creation as the basis for keeping the Sabbath. On the Sabbath, no work was to be done. Num 15:32-36 indicates that the penalty for breaking Sabbath was death. Other scriptures: Ex 31:12-17; Lev 23:3; Deut 5:12-15

YEvery seven years, farmland in the land of Israel was to be allowed to lie fallow (Ex 23:10,11; Lev 25:1-7). After every seventh Sabbath year (or every 50 years) all slaves in the land of Israel were to be released and land returned to the original owner or his living heir. All land in Israel is uniquely considered as belonging ultimately to God. Therefore, there was no such thing as outright selling of land, but rather, a form of leasing; the expiry of the lease being the year of jubilee.

vThe rabbis divided all forms of work forbidden on the Sabbath day into categories based on the work of building Solomon's temple (Babylonian Talmud: Shabbat)

YSabbath was and still is almost like a weekly feast day. Even poor Jewish families save up special items of food for Sabbath. Everyone -- especially guests -- are expected to eat their fill ("C'mon! Have some more! It's shabbat!"). It's the day for forgetting one's troubles and enjoying relationships among family and friends.

YWhen a situation occurred on Sabbath that required immediate attention, it made it awkward for one who was trying to keep Sabbath. Some provision were made for such situations, such as life and death situations. A lot of rabbinical discussion were about what could be done on Sabbath, and what couldn't be done. At the time of Jesus, there apparently wasn't yet a consensus as to whether miracles of healing were okay on the Sabbath. Jesus defended it by citing the rabbinical rule that life must be saved on Sabbath, even if it means breaking Sabbath, and that Sabbath is a time of loosing bonds. His discussions are typical of the discussions that took place among the rabbis.

vHeb 3:7-4:10 -- By citing a word occurring both in Psalm 95 and in Ex 20:8-11, "rest," the writer of Hebrews establishes that it was God's ultimate intention that Sabbath rest become a daily 24 hour state of being. We can therefore say that one who is walking in the spirit according to Rom 8 is in his or her Sabbath rest, and is therefore fulfilling that commandment.

vAs for the actual one day a week, the New Testament leaves it up to the individual's conscience (Rom 14:1-13). However, from about the 2nd century onward, as Jews became the minority in the church, observing the 7th day Sabbath began to become discouraged. It began to be emphasized that Christians rather observed the "Lord's day" on Sunday instead of Sabbath on Saturday.

YThere is no commandment anywhere in the New Testament to observe Sunday as being anything special. It a couple of instances it is evident that believers met on Sunday, but that probably became the custom because Saturday was spent at the temple or the synagogue. At that time, believers were still very much a part of the Jewish community. Only later did Sunday meeting day become identified with the day Jesus rose from the dead, and thus "the Lord's day." This was possibly encouraged by John's brief reference to "Lord's day" in Rev 1:10. It's possible that this had become a tradition by this time (probably between year 86 - 91). However, there is no strong enough statement in the New Testament to suggest that it is a requirement.

YTradition, in many cases, is sufficient authority to continue a practice. Tradition is not necessarily a bad thing -- except where it brings people into bondage, and violates scriptural authority. On the other hand, forcing people to discontinue a tradition can also be a bondage. One can be "under the law" in either direction. Since it is evident that "Lord's day" was a very early tradition, there is no reason to insist that it be discontinued, or that people who observe it out of conscience are doing wrong, or out of the spirit.

YOne should, even if just for health's sake, rest at least one day a week. Even if one walks in the spirit 24 hours a day while ministering in the work of the Lord seven days a week, the body can become quite exhausted and prone to breakdown the moment one, out of sheer exhaustion, steps "out of the spirit."

YIn some Muslim countries, churches meet on Friday, just as in Israel, many churches meet on Saturday, because Sunday is a work day just like Monday. Some missionaries and pastors who are responsible for numerous churches, have them meeting on various days of the week so that they can get around to all of them.

YEveryone should follow their own conscience. Some believers, even apart from Seventh Day Adventists, are guided by their conscience to rest on Saturday, and do no work. They even feel that they've been blessed physically, spiritually and materially since beginning to do so. Others believe they must observe Sunday as a kind of Sabbath. Yet others, just so long as they fellowship sometime with other believers, and rest at least one day a week (on their day off from work), still feel at peace with their conscience. As long as we all observe Rom 14, there is room for all of these in the body of Christ -- even in the same local church. The more, the merrier!

tIn each feast is the seed of expectation for a new installment of God's plan fulfilled on the earth. Some of the feasts have been fulfilled already, but others, especially those falling during the autumn harvest season, still contain elements yet to be fulfilled. Therefore, it is good to at least study their significance, if not celebrate them from time to time so as to both remember the elements fulfilled, as well as heighten our expectation of those yet to come. -- After all, there is no command what-so-ever regarding the celebration of Christmas and Easter. Yet, we celebrate them faithfully. Why not the Jewish feasts that are commanded in the Torah, even if they aren't obligatory for us?

tThe feasts fit basically into two times in the year -- the spring planting season and barley harvest: Passover, First fruits and Shavuot (Pentecost); and the autumn harvest feasts: Rosh Hashannah, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simcha Torah. The spring feasts were fulfilled with Messiah's first coming, his death being on Passover, his resurrection on First fruits and the Holy Spirit being poured out on Shavuot. The autumn feasts have their fulfillment with Messiah's second coming.

YPassover -- 14-21 Abib -- Ex 12:1-20; 13:3-10; Lev 23:5-8; Num 9:1-14; 28:16-25; Deut 16:1-8

lA quote form the Passover Haggadah:

Rabban Gamliel used to say: Whosoever doth not make mention of the three things used on the Passover, hath not done his duty; and these are they: the paschal lamb, the unleavened cake, and bitter herb.

The paschal lamb, which our ancestors ate during the existence of the holy temple, what did it denote? It denoted that the Most Holy, blessed be he, passed over our fathers' houses in Egypt; as is said: And ye shall say, it is the Lord's sacrifice of the Passover, because he passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed their heads and worshipped.

These unleavened cakes, wherefore do we eat them? Because there was not sufficient time for the dough of our ancestors to leaven, before the Supreme King of kings, blessed be he, appeared unto them, and redeemed them; as is said: And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough, which they brought forth out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry; neither had they made any provision for themselves.

This bitter herb, wherefore do we eat it? Because the Egyptians embittered the lives of our ancestors in Egypt; as it is said: and they embittered their lives with cruel bondage, in mortar and brick, and in all manner of labour in the field; all their service, wherein they made them labour with rigor.

It therefore is incumbent on every Israelite, in every generation, to look upon himself, as if he had actually gone forth from Egypt; as is said: And thou shalt declare unto thy son, on that day, saying, This is done because of that, which the Lord did for me, when I came forth from Egypt. It was not our ancestors only that the Most Holy, blessed be he, redeemed from Egypt, but us also did he redeem with them as is said: And he brought us from thence, that he might bring us to the land which he swore to give unto our fathers.

lJesus celebrated the Passover on the evening before his death

w Before Passover, all leaven (bread with yeast) must be removed from the home. Bread without leaven, called matzah (plural: matzot) is eaten for the Passover ceremony and used in place of bread throughout the whole seven days of Passover.

w On the first two nights the Passover meal is eaten

s The meal consists of four glasses of wine, three matzot, bitter herbs (parsley or onion can be used), and instead of the lamb, an egg and a shoulder bone of a lamb (this is because the actual lamb can only be sacrificed when the temple is standing in Jerusalem).

s The three matzot are placed together under a cloth. The middle matzah is broken in two. The smaller half is wrapped in a napkin and hidden. This is called the afikomen, or "afters."

s The first glass of wine is received as a kiddush, or a dedication. Then, the liturgy is read which includes the traditional question by the youngest son, and the quotation of Gamliel that we saw earlier. Part of the Hallel is sung at this point (Psalm 113 & 114). Later in the ceremony, the second glass (refilling the same glass), just before the matzah and the bitter herbs. Then the meal is eaten. After the meal is over, the third cup is blessed and drunk.

s Then the children are sent to look for the afikomen. That is then blessed, broken and eaten by all. The rest of the Hallel is sung (Psalm 115 - 118).

s Then the final cup is blessed and drunk.

w Luke 22:14-20; I Cor 11:23-26 record the blessing of the afikomen, and the last cup of wine. Luke also mentions one of the earlier cups of wine as well).

s The three matzot represent Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

s The second matzah, "the Son," is broken and the afikomen is wrapped up and hidden until the third glass of wine, just as the Son of God was broken on the cross, wrapped up and buried until it resurrected on the third day.

s Jesus said, "This is my body," and of the final cup of wine, "This is my blood of the New Covenant."

s Paul said that as we partake of this, we are proclaiming the death of Jesus until He comes (ICor 11:26)

lJesus fulfilled both the Passover, by dying as the Passover lamb, and also the feast of first fruits, by rising up three days later as the "first fruits of those who have fallen asleep." (ICor 15:20)

lPassover has been carried on in the church as Easter and Communion. In many cases, communion is celebrated on Easter, and some also have it once a month, and some, once a week etc.

w Easter doesn't always coincide with Passover, because Pope Gregory I put all church holidays on the solar calendar, whereas all Jewish holidays are according to the lunar calendar.

w The early tradition of "breaking bread from house to house" may be based both on Jesus's interpretation of Passover, but applied to the Jewish custom of Shabbat kiddush, where wine and bread (with the yeast) is taken. In this case, regular bread would have been used, and unleavened bread on Passover.

w Many believers celebrate the Passover Jewish style, observing the Messianic fulfillment of the afikomen and the wine.

YShavuot (Pentecost) -- 6 Sivan -- Ex 23:16;34:22; Lev 23:15-21; Num 28:26-31; Deut 16:9-21

lThe children of Israel were to count seven weeks from the feast of first fruits during Passover week, and the following day, the 50th, was the feast of Shavuot. (Shavuot (Hebrew) = "weeks" & Pentecost (Greek) = "50")

lAccording to Jewish calculations, that was the day the Ten Commandments were given from Mt. Sinai -- thus it is the birthday of Judaism.

lIn fulfillment, the same day the Ten Commandments were received, and the children of Israel committed themselves to abide by them; the Holy Spirit was also poured out and 3000 people committed themselves to follow Messiah in Jerusalem (Acts 2). Thus, Shavuot is also the birthday of Christianity.

lBarley was harvested at that time, as the other crops were being planted. The first fruit offering, therefore, consisted to two loaves of barley bread baked with the leaven. Jesus once described the Kingdom of God as being leaven that leavens the whole lump.

YRosh Hashanah -- 1 Tishri -- Lev 23:23-25; Num 29:1-6

lThis is the first of the autumn harvest feasts which have their fulfillment in the period leading up to and including Messiah's return.

lEven though Passover is the religious new year, Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the civil or agricultural year for the Jews. The month of Tishri, in which all the Autumn feasts fall, being the seventh month of the religious year, can be seen as a Sabbath month.

lTraditionally it is believed that God completed the creation of the world on Rosh Hashanah. This aspect will be fulfilled when God sums up the history of the world at Messiah's coming, fulfilling the reason for creating the world in the first place.

lThe shofar (ram's horn blown as a trumpet) is traditionally blown every day in every synagogue beginning with Rosh Hashanah, until the completion of Yom Kippur on 10 Tishri.

w From this, we get a fuller understanding of the seven angels with the seven trumpets of Revelation 8-11.

w Traditionally, the blowing of the shofar signifies 3 things:

1 Call to repentance

s The whole period from Rosh Hashanah, climaxing with Yom Kippur is a time of repentance for the Jewish community. During this period, Jews all over -- even secular non-religious Jews -- go around asking each other forgiveness and making up for old arguments of the past year ("Hey -- if I've done anything to offend you this year, forgive me, okay?"). During this time, congregations will make a trip to a body of water to cast in pebbles -- representing their sins -- into the water.

s In the period leading into the return of Messiah should be a time of repentance for the church for our backslidings, our sectarianism, factions, unforgivness, and how we've treated the Jews. In the end, it will be a time of repentance for Israel, and the nations as the last days harvest is gathered in. When we repent, our sins are buried like pebbles beneath the deepest sea.

2 To remind God of His covenant -- to appeal to God to deal with His people according to His promise to Abraham.

Both the first and second coming of Messiah are fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham. Israel, Abraham's seed after the flesh, still has a part to play. As we appeal to God to fulfill His covenant to Abraham in bringing Israel to repentance, God's plan for the ages can be fulfilled. The book of seven seals in Revelation which only Jesus as the Lamb slain, could open, can be seen as the summing up of God's covenant with Adam when he made him ruler over the earth.

3 To confuse Satan, who accuses Israel before God on New Years day. While this may sound like a quaint medieval tradition, we never the less see a parallel in Rev 11&12: After the last of the seven trumpets (11:15), we are told in 12:10 that the Devil, the "accuser of the brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down." This seems to be the result of much travail and intercession (12:1,2), spiritual warfare (12:7-9), and personal victory on the part of the believers, who overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony (12:11), and loved not their lives even to death.

w The last trumpet of Rosh Hashanah is actually blown on the completion of Yom Kippur. We will see in a moment why Yom Kippur is significant in all this, but the last trumpet in Rev 11:15-19 and 10:5-7 seems to signify the completion of God's plan on earth. ICor 15:50-58 signifies that the last trumpet ushers in the resurrection.

YYom Kippur (day of atonement) -- 10 Tishri -- Lev 16; 23:26-32; Num 29:7-11

lThis is the annual day of solemn fasting and of humbling oneself before God.

lDuring the time the temple was standing it was the day of the annual atonement sacrifice, with the sacrifice of the bullock for the high priest, and two goats for Israel. That was the only time of the year that the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies.

lIt is also believed to be the day of judgment on all Israelites whose repentance isn't genuine -- a day of reckoning. The credit limit has been used up and Israel humbly comes before God to beg for mercy.

lThe application to the end times is the final day of reckoning for the world.

w Israel will finally realize the identity of messiah and "look on him whom they pierced," and "mourn for him as one mourns for his only son and grieve for him as one grieves for a firstborn" (Zech 12:10-14). It will indeed be a time of solemn assembly and fasting and repentance on the part of Israel.

w For those in the world that don't repent, it will be a time of final judgment -- possibly with the seven last bowls of God's wrath.

w Then the final trumpet -- the shofar that signals the end of the day of atonement -- and the dead in Christ shall rise ... etc.

YSuccot (Tabernacles) -- 15-22 Tishri -- Ex 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:33-36,39-43; Num 29:12-38; Deut 16:13-15

lWhereas Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur were solemn holidays marked by repentance and humbling of oneself, Succot and Simcha Torah are joyful feasts.

lThis is the holiday celebrating harvest. The thithes and offerings are brought to the temple during this feast.

lIt commemorates God's presence and protection with Israel in the wilderness until they entered the promised land. To do this, they reside in make shift shelters (succot) during this holiday. They also collect branches of the palm, myrtle and willow to make a lulav or branch, and with that and an ethrog (a citrus fruit) they make a special blessing according to Lev 23:40.

lDuring this holiday period, a total of 70 bullocks were offered on behalf of the 70 gentile nations, or 70 general people groups that are believed to compose the gentile world.

lA special ritual was performed in the temple that was to solicit God's favour in granting rain for the following year. A priest was sent to the pool of Siloam with a golden pitcher to fetch water, which was poured, along with another pitcher of wine, at the foot of the altar where it flowed through underground pipes into the brook of Kiddron. While this was being done, the Hallel was sung (Psalm 113 - 118).

lThis again fits into the scenario of Revelation, if we consider Rev 14:14 ff. where the Son of man thrusts in His sickle to reap the harvest of souls from the earth. This seems to be the resurrection, or the rapture -- the harvest that this holiday is ultimately commemorating.

lMessiah is often referred in the Old Testament prophets as "the Branch." Isaiah 4:2-6 follows a Succot motif, referring to Messiah, "the Branch" as the lulaf and going on to describe God's presence with Israel in the wilderness.

lThe 70 nations are significant in the feast of Succot. Zech 14:16,17 says that in Messiah's kingdom, the nations that are left will come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. Succot seems to have special significance in the millennium, which Revelation describes in chapter 20. One Jewish tradition states that Succot will be the only feast celebrated during Messiah's reign.

lZech 14:17 further says that those nations that don't participate in the feast of Succot will receive no rain for their crops.

lRain is also significant of the pouring out of God's Spirit on all flesh, as we see in Joel. This will indeed happen both in the kingdom, and in the period leading into the kingdom, as Israel speaks the words of the Hallel, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord (Ps 118:26" in recognition of who Messiah is, in fulfillment of Jesus's prophecy in Matt 23:39.

YSimcha Torah is the day of holy convocation on the eighth day of Succot (Lev23:36).

lOn that day, the schedule of Sabbath Torah readings has completed its annual cycle, Jewish congregations having read through the whole five books of Moses. The giving of the Torah from Mt. Sinai is celebrated.

lWhereas Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are days of dwelling on our deficit before God, and therefore a time of repentance, this is a day of dwelling on "credit" that has been extended to us, or grace (in the Calvinistic sense of "unmerited favour"). The believer, of course, lives by grace and God's imputed righteousness, but walking in that according to Rom 8:1 involves walking in the spirit, which is also a state of continuous repentance and sensitivity towards others in the body of Christ. Confessing our sins, and acknowledging our deficit (I John 1:6-10) -- that by ourselves we are nothing -- should be a daily experience, just as dwelling on our credit -- understanding our righteousness in Christ, and relying on His strength and not our own, and participating in continuous Sabbath rest. Thus, both Yom Kippur and Simcha Torah are daily experiences for the New Covenant believer.

lOn this day, Jewish congregations celebrate by taking the Torah scrolls out of the ark (the place where they are kept in the synagogue), and dancing with them around the bema (podium). After this, the annual reading cycle begins once more with Genesis. Likewise, New Covenant believers receive a deeper foundation to their faith once they understand the Torah, and the purpose of the commandments -- how they have been fulfilled in Messiah, how the Torah serves as the foundation to our New Covenant experience, and which of the mitzvot serve as guidelines for our everyday lives under the New Covenant.

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