Paul's Passing Thoughts

I have a friend who was Baptist and now is a Messianic Hebrew. She is being taught that we are to keep the feasts, etc. If the law now informs our sanctification how should I respond to her? Just today she put a post on Facebook that Jesus came not to do away with the law but to fulfill the law.

Weak teachings concerning the law, actually, sum zero teaching concerning the law, typical among Baptists, will leave many vulnerable to these kinds of deception. How do you answer her? What’s the specific purpose of keeping the feasts? For love? Or maintaining salvation?

Also, as a parenthesis, we must stop looking at the law, a broad term for all Scripture, as: what it was back then and should we do that now? The law, or Scripture, is not only instruction, but a full-orbed statement on life and being. God may want us to learn certain intent and principles regarding Old Testament events, but that doesn’t mean the application isn’t different at a later time.

And, break for qualification: If she is involved in the Messianic movement that is the most popular in our day, they believe that the whole law is fulfilled through these rituals, or feasts. Hang on, this is super important to understand.

There is no such thing as a “legalism” that attempts to obey the law according to sound interpretation and truthful life application via every jot and tittle. That’s why there is no such thing as “legalism,” but ONLY anti-law, or antinomianism. The serpent was an antinomian, the Pharisees were antinomians, the Antichrist will be literally, “the man of anomia” (a[anti] nomia[law]), and the religion of the last days will be antinomianism: “Because of anomia, the love of many will wax cold” (Matt 24:12).

The false teaching that dominated the day during the time of Christ, and always has, and always will, is a justification through the law. But, said religion knows that it is impossible to keep the law perfectly, so the law is fulfilled through some kind of initial ritual and other rituals following.

Please don’t miss this: when Christ and the apostles spoke of attempts to be justified by the law, they were really referring to a fulfillment of the law via some sort of tradition or ritual. Hence, because any real attempt to keep the law was replaced with ritual for purposes of justification, the finer points of love were/are neglected. For example, the Judaizers believed that circumcision fulfilled the whole law. Paul said, “no,” if you want to be justified by the law, you must keep it perfectly:

Galatians 5:2 – Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.

See it? Their attempt to be justified by the law only involved circumcision. Paul said, “no,” if you want to be justified by the law, you have to keep the whole enchilado.

What does the Bible say the problem is with this? Answer: anti-love. You can’t be in some kind of endeavor to stay justified and love at the same time. Justification has to be off your plate, and the focus must be love. The law must be ended for your justification so you can be free to fulfill the law for purposes of love. You aggressively love with pure motives because you know it is absolutely impossible to finish a finished work and earn points with a law that has no part or parcel with justification. Hence, what Jesus said to the Pharisees:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others” (Matt 23:23).

And…

Matthew 5:19 – Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

And why didn’t they have any righteousness? Because they were not born again and still under law. There is no law in justification–law is only good for love in sanctification: “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Jesus, in essence, also stated it this way: look, focus on love; in the same way one violation of the law violates the whole law in regard to justification, one act of love in sanctification fulfills the whole law–focus on love.

Let me summarize with what Jesus said to the Pharisees as well:

“thus making void the word [law] of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.” (Mk 7:13)

And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!(Mk 7:9)

he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word [law] of God.(Matt 15:6)

The Pharisees were antinomian outwardly and inwardly:

Matthew 23:27 – “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness [“anomia”].

I will conclude with the rest of the Galatians passage that I almost forgot to include. I think it summarizes all of the points here:

Galatians 5:5 – For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.

7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

You are in a pickle with your friend because you must undo years of Protestant orthodoxy, spiritual bumper stickers, and doctrinal illiteracy. Until she has a fundamental understanding of justification and sanctification, this will be very difficult. Her mindset reminds me of what Paul said to the Galatians:

Galatians 4:10 – You observe days and months and seasons and years! 11 I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.