“Think NOT that I am come to destroy…”
[DESTROY-kataluō- From G2596 and G3089; to loosen down (disintegrate), that is, (by implication) to demolish (literally or figuratively); specifically (compare G2646) to halt for the night]
“…the law, or the prophets…”
Jesus did NOT come to ‘loosen’ God’s law, but to make it possible to obey it in completen...ess. Many people in the church actually believe the Law of God is not applicable to life today or else unnecessary for study in the life of a ‘christian’ today. I have talked to them myself! They even encourage others NOT to read the Old Testament, i.e. the Scriptures, the Law and the Prophets, to which Jesus was referring when HE spoke of the Scriptures. It cuts me like a knife to hear advice like that. But Jesus’ coming DID NOT bring about a ‘loosening’ or ‘demolishing’ or ‘halting’ of God’s law!!! Jesus DID NOT replace God’s commands with the command to love. ‘Love’ was a new, additional, and completing command. Only by sincerely obeying God’s new, and yet not so new command, to LOVE, may one truly fulfill and be able to obey God’s other laws, rules, and ordinances for life and relationships. It is ONLY by love, His love in us, that His law can be truly obeyed in the way God intended for it to be obeyed. Without God’s love in us, our ‘right’ doing is like filthy rags in His sight (I challenge you to look up what those filthy rags really were…that’s what God thinks of good things coming from a natural man who yet lives according to his own fleshly passions and way of thinking). But Satan has mixed his lies with God’s truth in the guise of misquoted verses taken out of the entire context of Scripture... just as he twisted Scripture with Jesus when tempting Him in the desert.
“…I am NOT come to destroy, but to fulfill…”
[fulfill- plēroō- From G4134; to make replete (abundantly supplied or provided), that is, (literally) to cram (a net), level up (a hollow)… accomplish…), fully preach, perfect]
Jesus came, then, to ‘abundantly supply’ and ‘provide’ for a WAY to obey God’s law AND to forgive our sins AND to give us a new nature AND to take away our guilt for past failures so that we may forget the past and always look forward to what lies ahead after we confess when we fail and turn from that sin, as defined by the schoolmaster of God’s written law. In other words, WE MUST REPENT! Repenting IS the first step after all. John preached a baptism of repentance to prepare the way for the Lord, Who would baptize with the Spirit. John would not even allow someone to go through the motions of baptism UNTIL he had proven his repentance by the things which he did! Only after a true turning away from sin can there be a way for a person to receive the indwelling Spirit of God, Who IS LOVE. Yet we baptize those who have NOT proven anything, except that they know the right words to say. We tell them that they are a new creation in Christ even though their life looks very much like it did the day before. We tell them Christ IS in them because they made a profession, when, in fact, the only thing IN them is what they themselves have filled themselves with…which is any number of various delights. We tell them to ‘only believe’ which makes them no better than the demons themselves. Believe what? That is the question. The demons believed Jesus was who He said He was, they recognized Him, and begged Him not to condemn them to their impending fate. It is not enough to ‘recognize’ who Jesus is. The kind of belief that Jesus requires is that which is described in Hebrews 11:6,
“Now without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who diligently search for Him.”
The demons do not search for God…they run from Him. So if your life is filled with running from the things of God rather that diligently pursuing Him how is your belief any better than that of a demon. It isn’t! The blind are leading the blind and they are both falling headlong into the ditch. FOOLISHNESS!
“…For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled…”
This word ‘fulfilled’ is a different Greek word than the one previously used. It is [fulfilled-ginomai- A prolonged and middle form of a primary verb; to cause to be (“gen” -erate), that is, (reflexively) to become (come into being)… follow, be found… be performed] .” (Mat 5:17-18)
So, not one piece of God’s law was to be disregarded. It was all to be ‘fulfilled’. In other words, God’s law was to come to be able to be followed and performed, as God had intended it be when He first gave His laws to man, before man corrupted it with his own explanations and interpretations and exceptions and additional church rule books.
That explains why Jesus said, in Matthew 5:19,
“Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
As I shared in another post,
“For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto sanctification. Therefore, he that despiseth these things, despiseth not man, but God... but as touching the love of brotherhood, we have no need to write to you: for you yourselves have learned of God to love one another." (1 Thes. 4:8, 9)
WOW! Paul just said he had NO NEED TO WRITE TO THIS CHURCH ABOUT LOVE!!!
The church today is despising God Himself all in the name of LOVE. There is NO need to focus on that topic ahead of sanctification, yet that is the prevailing theme today. When the need for sanctification falls from importance in a person's heart, the domino effect begins and more follows... neglect of God's word, redefining of terms and principles, misinterpretation of Scripture, and liberality and law-LESS-ness in the living out of one's own personal life. My despite for the devil's tricks in this day and age knows no bounds. There doesn't seem to be enough lifeguards out there to rescue those who are perishing. Bitterness against authority and rebellion against law are the seeds that begin the weed of irreligion and law-LESS-ness (LESS law and much ‘freedom’ to do whatever is right in one’s own eyes).
“For the mystery of lawlessness (that hidden principle of rebellion against constituted authority) is already at work in the world, [but it is] restrained only until he who restrains is taken out of the way.
And then the lawless one (the antichrist) will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of His mouth and bring him to an end by His appearing at His coming.
The coming [of the lawless one, the antichrist] is through the activity and working of Satan and will be attended by great power and with all sorts of [pretended] miracles and signs and delusive marvels—[all of them] lying wonders—
And by unlimited seduction to evil and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing (going to perdition) because they did not welcome the Truth but refused to love it that they might be saved.
Therefore God sends upon them a misleading influence, a working of error and a strong delusion to make them believe what is false, In order that all may be judged and condemned who did not believe in [who refused to adhere to, trust in, and rely on] the Truth, but [instead] took pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:7-12 Amplified Bible)
I want to amplify a couple important points here…
There IS a mystery of lawlessness! A mystery! It IS currently at work in the world. Does anyone know or care what this mystery is?
The activity and working of Satan IS accompanied by miracles and lying wonders! Yet that is what people crave and are flocking to. They think a miracle is what they need, when it is freedom from bondage to the world and its ways that they need. They need to be filled with the Spirit of the living God!
God Himself sends people a misleading and deceptive influence. WHY!!!? Because they refuse the truth when it is shown to them and love their own way of doing things…they love their passions and pleasure and definition of love and freedom from God’s law. THAT is the mystery of law-less-ness! And this mystery is at work in the church in a big way.
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