Do Christians have to obey the Old Testament law"?

Question

The key to understanding this issue is knowing that the Old Testament law was given to the nation of Israel, not to Christians. Some of the laws were to make the Israelites know how to obey and please God (the Ten Commandments for example), some of them were to show them how to worship God (the sacrificial system), some of them were to simply make the Israelite different from other nations (the food and clothing rules). most of the Old Testament laws do no apply to us today.

Answer 1

Shalom Harrison,



Some say yes and some say no. To really know the answer you must know the purpose of the law. There are nuts fruits and flakes that scream the law, the LAW!!! Pat them on the head and go your way.



The purpose of the law is to teach. Teach us to strive to obey it? Teach us that we will go to hell if we can't obey it. NO! Not at all my young friend. The purpose of the Law is to show us that we cannot succeed in not sinning. We must have a sacrifice to atone for our sins!



There can be only one sacrifice that is suitable and that one a blood sacrifice.



Harrison? My blood? No, I'm a sinner! Yours? Oh, you sin to! Is there any who are worthy? No! Who then? G-d Himself is the only one. G-d cannot die or be killed! What can we do then? We just need some of the blood of G-d but how? What vessel is worthy to hold the blood?



Y'shua/Jesus of Nazareth is G-d's only Son and His flesh is the vessel that has carried the blood of His Father to save us all. For us Harrison there is salvation and there is no Law. There is only our Father through the Sacrificial Messiah Y'shua/Jesus the only begotten Son of G-d.



Medically who's blood is it that circulates in a pregnant woman's unborn child? Answer; the father's blood. Harrison, this does not mean that you can sin freely BUT you are under the Law of Love. Repent and be blessed.



Hillel Y'shua ha Mashiach!



Eli

Answer 2

The first misconception you will have to unlearn is that the Law was given to Israel and not to Christians. The plain truth of the matter is that Christians, gentile and otherwise, are grafted in or adopted into Israel. (Romans 11) That means that Christians, gentile and otherwise are now a part of Israel. As such, the Law then applies.



It is plain from the writer of Hebrews that some of the Law has been changed, it does not say "cancelled" it says changed. Different words with different meanings. The only thing "cancelled" in a Christian's life in the entire New Testament, is the debt (death) that we incurr from the Law. The Law itself is not cancelled. Indeed, the Messiah Himself gives the time line for just how long the Law will be in effect in Matthew 5:17-19 and also gives a hint of the reward of those who practice or do not practice the things found in the Law.



In Romans, Paul further explains the importance of the Law in the life of a follower of Messiah Yeshua:



Romans 2:13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.



This and other verses in Romans and the rest of the New Testament prove that the antinomian doctrines of the conventional chruches are un-Biblical and unsound. One answerer above has already quoted a few examples.



You can add:



Romans 7:12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.



Romans 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.



1John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.



Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, a quiet mind, kind acts, well-doing, faith, 23 Gentle behaviour, control over desires: against such there is no law (Think about this!)



There are many, many others. The links below will include some Biblically sound study into this vital subject.



Edit: there is some truth in Eli's answer, but there are a lot of errors too. If we belong to Chist, we will be keeping the Law out of love for Him. The scriptures are there, look up how many times in the NT that the words "commandments" and "love" are found in the same verses.

Answer 3

I believe that the Old Testament laws still apply. We no longer have to sacrifice animals as Christ was the Lamb and sin offering. But the New Testament can ot be understood without the Old. Much of it comes directly from the Old. Jesus, Peter and Paul all taught from the Old. It still applies and we must still obey the law. Not to be saved but rather because we are saved.

Answer 4

The mosaic law was established to help remind the Israelites of their God.

At the coming of Christ, that law was replaced by a higher law, the law of the gospel. The ten commandments were replaced by laws of love (love your neighbor, love God, etc.). The law of sacrifice was replaced by the sacrament, a token and symbol of the great sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Answer 5

People do not have to obey anything, we are given a choice:



Deu 30:19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:





Concerning the "Old Testament law":



Ezek 22:26 "Her priests have done violence to My law and have profaned My holy things; they have made no distinction between the holy and the profane, and they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they hide their eyes from My sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.





The key to understanding the "New Testament" is that it is rooted in the Hebrew "Old" Testament.



The new covenant REMAINS SPECIFICALLY FOR ISRAEL. The divided Kingdom; the "House of Judah" and the "House of Israel":



Jer 31:31 "Behold, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,



Quoted in the New Testament:



Heb 8:8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:





Our Creator declares who He is:



Exo 3:6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.



The Psalms declares who He is for eternity:



Psa 106:48 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting. And let all the people say, "Amen." Praise the LORD!



The New Testament writings declare who He is:



Luke 1:68 "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,



His Law is to be kept "Forever and ever":



Psa 119:44 So I will keep Thy law continually, Forever and ever.





In a parable "Jesus" states one must listen to Moses and the Prophets (Old Testament) in order to repent:



Luke 16:30 "But he said, 'No, Father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!'

Luke 16:31 "But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.'"





If we are outside of the covenant of God with Israel WE HAVE NO HOPE:



Eph 2:12 remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.



The terms of His covenant:



Exo 34:28 And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.



The "stranger" can take hold of the covenant with Israel:



Isa 56:6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;



"Christians" only need to obey the Old Testament Law if they truly believe "Jesus" is the God of Israel.

Answer 6

Can i start by saying our brother Eli has given the most beautiful answer explaining everything.



My answer comes nowhere near Eli's, but this is it for what it's worth.

Jesus Christ came to earth to fulfill the law so we wouldn't have to - it was impossible for any human to fulfill all the laws - God had mercy on us and came Himself in the form of Jesus.

We are in the dispensation of *grace* through believing in salvation in Christ.



Praise The Lord for His grace and mercy - Hallelujah!

Answer 7

Yes and Not

If you are a gentile see Acts 15 "The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings. 24Since we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions, 25it has seemed good to us, having come to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, 26 men who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth. 28For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: 29 that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell."

See? we are FREE from the law, more if you seek this commandment 'love each other as yourself' with this one you Christians,Jews,Muslims and anybody fulfill the law. Christ said so.

Answer 8

2 Timothy 3:16-17 gives you the answer. Much of your explanation is spot on. I would say that though the laws may not directly apply, they all hold greater truth from which we can learn.

Answer 9

The 7 Noahide Laws -- given to everyone by Noah after the Flood were for everyone. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noahide_Laws

Answer 10

Jesus IS the God that gave Moses those laws.



1Co 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

1Co 10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

1Co 10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

1Co 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and THAT ROCK WAS CHRIST.



Joh 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

1Jn 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

1Jn 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, AND the faith of Jesus.

Answer 11

No. That was the law of Moses. It requried one to sacrafice in a specific way for the atonement of sins. Jesus took the place of those sacrafices. Jesus was the begininning of Christianity. I have never ever been Jewish. I am a Christian, meaning that I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins. Christ= Christianity.

Answer 12

yes and no

It can be modernized to make sense in our society

Answer 13

i feel the need to because i love the idea of living how my Jesus lived!

Answer 14

Yes. Jesus claimed that he did not come to abolish the law, but to fullfil it.



Unfortunately humans that followed Christ destroyed both his commandments earlier ones.



The teachings of the Church contradict the teachings of Jesus (pbuh) and that is the cause of the confusion.

If a sincere christian who wants to follow Jesus (peace be upon him), asks priests about trinity, the answer that he gets is "It is a Mystery, not explained by Jesus (pbuh) clearly", at that time again those forget that Jesus (pbuh) said,



"I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing" (John 18:20 (NKJ)).



If trinity is confusing enough to be called a mystery, it cannot be from God. Because:

"God is not a God of confusion."—1 Corinthians 14:33, Revised Standard Version (RS).



There was no mystery in the message of Jesus (pbuh), nothing secret. Will you accept the priests' so called "mystery of trinity" and forget clear commandments of Jesus (pbuh)?



Jesus (pbuh) clearly said:



A) Mark 12:29: "the Lord our God, the lord is One".

B) Metthew: 26:39: "He went a little farther and fell on His face and prayed" (Following Jesus (pbuh) way is following what he did). Jesus (pbuh) prayed to one God

C) Matthew 4:10 "You shall worship the Lord, your God, and him only you shall serve"

D) John 5:19: "Most truly I say to you, the son cannot do a single thing of his own initiative but only what he beholds the father doing."

E) John 7:16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me

F) Matthew 27:46: "Eloi (Allah?) , Eloi, lama sabachthani?" -- which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

(G)Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: John 8:54





The trinity is a doctrine from about the year 325 AD, It has its roots in polytheism, It is not in the bible unless you really, really stretch it to fit. Jesus didn't have to hide the concept of trinity if it were the basis of salvation.



The New Catholic Encyclopedia - 1967, VOL. XIV, PAGE 299:

The formulation "one God in three Persons" was not solidly established, certainly not fully assimilated into Christian life and its profession of faith, PRIOR TO THE END OF THE 4TH CENTURY. But it is precisely this formulation that first claimed to title "The Trinitarian Dogma. AMONG THE APOSTOLIC FATHERS, THERE HAD BEEN NOTHING EVEN REMOTELY APPROACHING SUCH A MENTALITY OR PERSPECTIVE.





You should not accept the word “son” literally . Word "son" was used in bible for general human beings and other prophets also. "we all are the children of father in heavens" indicates that word "son" was used in different meaning of love and care. Mathew: 5:9. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.”





Jesus , Moses, Mohammad (peace be upon them), they all worshiped the same God, the God of Ibrahim (pbuh). All prophets taught "surrendering one's will to God" that is the meaning of word "Islam". JAMES 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.





Muslims love Jesus (pbuh), they believe in his miraculous birth with the will of God without a father or sexual act (the way Adam was born without a mother and father), , they believe in miracles that Jesus (pbuh) performed with permission of God, muslims faith demands them to believe Jesus (pbuh) was a great prophet of God and belief in the original message of Jesus (pbuh) the massaya.



There was just not one holy book sent by God on earth through His messengers. The last testiment "Quran" had to be there from the same source, revealed to the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh), an illiterate person who didn't know how to read or write) some 600 years after Jesus (pbuh) corrects the errors that crept (knowingly or unknowingly) into the message that Jesus (pbuh) brought. Unlike Bible that was written after decades after Jesus by people who never met Jesus, this book was not preserved on paper or in one church but in hearts of thousands of muslims who memorised Quran word by word the way it was revealved. Quran should prove to be a very valuable asset to both Muslims and Christians.



Quran: [4:171] O people of the scripture, do not transgress the limits of your religion, and do not say about GOD except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus (pbuh), the son of Mary, was a messenger of GOD, and His word that He had sent to Mary, and a revelation from Him. Therefore, you shall believe in GOD and His messengers. You shall not say, "Trinity." You shall refrain from this for your own good. GOD is only one god. Be He glorified;