Yeshua Explored
8th May 2023
Jesus and The Law
What does it mean to have the Torah in your heart?
Jesus is, in essence, saying; if you truly loved me with all your heart, soul and mind then you would keep the first five commandments without question, if you loved your neighbour then you would do the same for the rest of the ten commandments. No question! He also addressed the situation specifically.
- “You shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)
Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” (Matthew 4:10)
- “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:4-6)
God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
- “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name”. (Exodus 20:7)
“This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name …’” (Matthew 6:9)
- “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exodus 20:8-11)
“For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” (Matthew 12:8)
- “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you”. (Exodus 20:12)
“Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.” (Matthew 15:3-6)
- You shall not murder (Exodus 20:13)
“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sisterwill be subject to judgment.” (Matthew 5:21-22)
- You shall not commit adultery (Exodus 20:14)
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28)
- You shall not steal (Exodus 20:15)
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.” (Mark 10:18-19)
- You shall not give false testimony against your neighbour. (Exodus 20:16)
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them bythe truth; your word is truth (John 17:16-17)
- “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17)
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” (Luke 12:15)
So let’s not be under any illusion that Jesus has ushered in an age of “sanctified lawlessness”, under whatever name you would use for it. The Torah still exists. Jesus may have fulfilled the conditions within it for righteousness before God (Matthew 5:17-18), but we now have a Torah within our heart:
“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” (Hebrews 10:16)
This is the work of the Holy Spirit within us, encouraging us to obey God’s laws out of love for Him and His plan for us rather than ignoring them out of some mis-taught nonsense about ‘living under grace’ being a metaphor for ‘you’re saved now, so do whatever you want to do!’
This is an extract from the book, Sinner’s Charter: Are the ten commandments for today?, available for £10 at https://www.sppublishing.com/the-sinners-charter-260-p.asp
