Expert: Anthony - 6/18/2009

Question
Can you tell me where in the bible it says that there exist three sets of laws?

Answer
Dear Rebeca, While going over some past answers I noticed one titled the 2 covenants.  I am sending this to you and hope that when you have some free time you will read through it.  It is very important to understand the old and new covenants because many are under the impression that the 10 commandments belong to the old covenant and that they along with the 4th commandment Sabbath has been done away with.  This is a falsehood inspired by the powers of darkness.  The reality is that the same 10 commandment laws make up both old and new covenants.  The old covenant was done away with for a reason because it was faulty but the fault was not with God or His law but with the people to whom the covenant was made.  As you read on I hope you get a better understanding of what the Bible teaches about these covenants.  The Lord bless you as you seek Him, aa



GOD’S TWO COVENANTS
(What was nailed to the cross?)

    Many people are saying today that the moral law was nailed to the cross; that we now are under a different covenant and it is not necessary to keep the Ten Commandments any longer.  Now if this were true then it would be impossible for anyone to sin, for the Bible say, “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.” (1John 3:4)
  God’s covenant has been misrepresented and distorted and there is confusion about these issues concerning sin, the law and the covenants.  First may I mention the issue of “law.”  The Israelites had three main sets of laws: the Moral Law (10 commandments), the Ceremonial Law (Law of sacrifices and ordinances) and their Civil laws.  I will leave out the Civil laws but mention only the Moral and Ceremonial because these two are the most often misunderstood and confused.  
    First the 10 commandments also known as the Moral law.  These reveal our duty to God and to humankind (Exodus 20:1-7).  The first four speak of our duty to God.  in other words, we reveal our love to God through our obedience to the first four precepts; whereas the last six tells us our duty to our fellow humans (how we are to love one another).     Next the Ceremonial law.  The Ceremonial law is the Law of Ordinances.  For example Leviticus 7:37 tells us “This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat offering, and of the sin offering, and of the trespass offering, and of the consecrations, and of the sacrifice of the peace offerings.”  Hebrews 9:10 explains that this Ceremonial law was just a temporary arrangement up to the beginning of the “new order” (Christian church).  It reads “Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.”  Some ordinances or Ceremonial laws related to the feasts and other requirements for Israel:  These were yearly Sabbaths and are not to be confused with the Seventh-day Sabbath.  Some of these yearly Sabbaths were “…In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation Leviticus 23:24,  Feast of tabernacles… Ye shall dwell in booths seven days Leviticus 23:42,  A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be unto you: Leviticus 25:11,  the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised Leviticus 12:3.  This gives some idea of what the Ceremonial laws were like.  Please notice that these ceremonial laws and rest days (Sabbaths) are not to be confused with the 7th day Sabbath since the Bible makes it clear that there should be no confusion by stating in Leviticus 23:37 “These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:23:38 Beside the Sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the LORD.”  Notice that after listing the ceremonial feasts, Sabbaths and rest days that Scripture states these are “beside the Sabbaths of the Lord.”  Also Moses distinguishes between the ceremonial Sabbaths and the 7th day Sabbath by calling the 7th day Sabbath “the Sabbath of the Lord,” a term never used for ceremonial Sabbaths. Now let us compare further the two laws (Moral & Ceremonial) and notice the dramatic contrast that exists between them.  I’ll abbreviate Moral law with ML and Ceremonial Law with CL.  With the ML-God spoke all the words (Ex. 20:1) With the CL –Moses spoke the words (Lev.7:28).  ML-written with hand of God (Ex.32:18) CL-written with hand of Moses (Deut. 31:24-26).     ML-written on stone (Ex.31:18)  CL-written on paper in book (Chr. 35:12).   ML-placed inside Ark (EX.25:16)  CL-placed outside of Ark (Deut. 31:26).  ML-these Christ came to fulfill (Matt. 4:17)  CL-these Christ abolished (Eph.2:15).  ML-these are eternal and stand forever (Ps. 111:8)  CL- these were temporary (Heb. 9:10, 11).      All the ordinances or laws concerning the entire sacrificial system pointed to the cross and the future ministry of Jesus.  The Apostles understood that they were temporary and Jesus abolished them at His death on Calvary.  On the other hand, the moral law of God is eternal and its unchanging nature is the reason Jesus had to suffer and die.  He died to deliver us from the consequences of His broken law.  His death destroyed our sins not the law that defines the nature of sin.  Okay, I didn’t mention covenants yet but an understanding of the moral and ceremonial is critical to the two covenants.  So here’s what the Bible says about the two covenants.  First off, why two covenants?  According to Scripture the reason for two is that something went wrong with the first.  Therefore God promised to make a new covenant with His people (Jeremiah 31:31-33).  According to the Bible, only those who receive this New Covenant experience will God recognize as His people.  Yes, even the Jews to remain God’s people must receive by faith God’s new covenant for the New Testament says that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34 & Eph. 6:9).  Also because God loves us God has called us to be bound to Him in this sacred covenant.  God is described as the husband and His church the bride.     Now to continue along, a covenant has four component parts- it is an agreement between 2 or more people over one or more things.  As long as there is nothing wrong with any part of the covenant, it is a good covenant, strong and binding.       The Bible tells us that God gave or made two covenants and that one covenant became faulty (Heb. 8:6, 7).   So, let us now examine that first covenant and find out why it was faulty.  God delivered Israel form Egyptian bondage.  He brought them to Mt. Sinai and there He –God- (as the first party) made a proposition to Israel (second party of the agreement).  What is the proposition God made with Israel?  God asked the people to keep His commandments that He had just spoken from the mount (Deut. 4:13).  Their response was recorded:  EX. 19:8 “And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.”  Thus we have all four parts to the covenant or agreement:  (1) God-the first party, (2) Ten commandments-the object of the agreement, (3) Israel-the second party, (4) the agreement itself.  Now we must notice what is wrong with this covenant.  Is it God or any fault in Him? No because Matthew 5:48 states Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.  There is nothing wrong with God because God is perfect.  What about the second part of this covenant, the ten commandments?  Is there anything wrong with the ten commandment law?  No, since the Bible also says that they too are perfect (Ps. 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul).  Now, what about the agreement itself, was there anything wrong with God propositioning Israel?  Also, was it not perfectly all right for Israel to agree?  Certainly, so there was really nothing wrong with the agreement.  Both parties had the right to make an agreement so the agreement itself was perfectly okay.  We see that so far all parts of the agreement were perfect.  Now finally, what about Israel, were they perfect?  Unfortunately, no.  Just after this experience and Moses being forty days on the mount with the Lord, the children of Israel made themselves a golden calf and bowed down and worshiped it.  They broke the covenant – their promise to God.  Deut 9:21  reads, “And I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, and ground it very small, even until it was as small as dust: and I cast the dust thereof into the brook that descended out of the mount.”   From this examination we see that God was not the one at fault and neither was His law.  Their agreement was legal but they (Israel) broke their promise to obey when they made that golden calf to worship and adore.  Thus the Bible says: 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:  8:9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord (Hebrews 8:8, 9).  The passage states that the fault was not with God or His law, but it was with Israel.  Israel failed to be obedient – they broke the covenant, they failed to regard the covenant and made it of none effect.  Because of this, God made a new covenant.  Hebrews 8:10 states “ For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.”  
    Now we can examine the elements that make up this new covenant.  There are (1) God who is still the first party making the proposition ( “I am the Lord, I change not” Malachi 3:6).  (2) the ten commandments are still the object of the agreement.  These cannot change because the Bible says that they are perfect, holy, just and good.  They are righteous, they are truth, they stand forever and that Jesus did not come to destroy them (Ps. 19:7, Rom. 7:12, Ps. 119:172, Ps. 119:142, Ps. 111:8, Matt. 5:17),  In fact, under the New Covenant they are going to be written on the heart and mind: “ For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts” Heb. 8:10.  
    As far as the agreement is concerned, it is still for us to agree to the New Covenant relationship.  That has not changed.  If we enter into this agreement with God, the agreement itself is perfect.  Well, then what has changed?  It is the promises to God.  Israel had promised “all that you ask us to do we will do” Ex. 19:8.  Nevertheless, Israel broke their promise to God.  their promises were faulty – they couldn’t keep god’s law and neither can you or I should we promise and try in ourselves.  So how is the New Covenant better?  It is better because it is established on better promises. “But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises (Heb. 8:6).  Jesus is the one who makes and fulfills these better promises (Ps. 40:7, 8).  What’s more is that the Bible reveals that Jesus kept His promises and He was obedient to all God’s commandments (Heb. 5:8, John 15:10).  So, what Israel could not do, what you and I could not do, Jesus came to do for us.  In the New Covenant relationship we now find these four elements:
                   NEW COVENANT (Jeremiah 31:31-33 & Hebrews 8:10)
(1) God – first party initiator                                      Perfect
(2) Ten commandments      object of the agreement    Perfect
(3) Jesus             representing second party                Perfect
(4) Agreement         yes                                             Perfect
The New Covenant is established on better promises.  It is not what I or you promise to do but on what I agree to let Jesus do in me.  The way we agree to this covenant is by letting Jesus come into our hearts and write His law, not on tables of stone but on the fleshy tables of our hearts.  Jesus kept the commandments and when we accept Jesus the commandment keeping Christ enters our hearts and places there the desire to obey God’ commandments (Gal. 2:20, John 14:15, 1John 2:4, Rom. 13:10, 31 & 1John 5:3).  Any man or woman, preacher or teacher who walks contrary or is disobedient to God’s word is under the Old Covenant with the Jews.  The Jews were disobedient that’s why they were under the Old Covenant.  That’s what made the first covenant of none effect; it was their disobedience to God (“…because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.” Heb 8:9).  If God regarded not the Jew for disobeying, can He regard us if we do the same?  The Bible says that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34, Eph. 6:9).  Under the New Covenant we must agree to let God through Jesus Christ write His commandments in our hearts and that includes the 4th, the keeping of God’s Sabbath.  If we are willfully, presumptuously disobeying even in one point, whether it be the 1st, the 4th or the 10th, and God has dealt with us on this matter yet we have refused to surrender to Him, then we do not have that New Covenant experience.  We need to surrender our will to the will of God.  By so doing we come out from under that Old Covenant, the covenant of disobedience and walk in the New Covenant.  If we believe that the commandment keeping Jesus has fulfilled (by obeying) His law for you, we become able to walk in His footsteps by obeying His commandments.