Jesus Fulfills the Law
Jesus Fulfills the Law
Matthew 5:17-20
In a Newsweek article entitled A Rabbi Argues with Jesus, Rabbi Jacob Neusner writes about how he would have responded to Jesus if he had met him on the dusty roads of Israel 2000 years ago. Rabbi Neusner writes…I can see myself not only meeting and arguing with Jesus, challenging him on the basis of our shared Torah, the Scriptures Christians would later adopt as the "Old Testament." I can also imagine myself saying, "Friend, you go your way, I'll go mine, I wish you well—without me. Yours is not the Torah of Moses, and all I have from God, and all I ever need from God, is that one Torah of Moses."
He continues… I think Christianity, beginning with Jesus, took a wrong turn in abandoning the Torah. By the truth of the Torah, much that Jesus said is wrong. By the criterion of the Torah, Israel's religion in the time of Jesus was authentic and faithful, not requiring reform or renewal, demanding only faith and loyalty to God and the sanctification of life through carrying out God's will. Jesus and his disciples took one path, and we another. I do not believe God would want it any other way.
Did Jesus abandon the Torah? Did he repudiate the Word of God given through Moses and the prophets? Rabbi Neusner certainly seems to think so. If he had indeed been around during the life of Jesus, Rabbi Neusner would not have been alone in his disagreement with Jesus. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day certainly took issue with both the words and actions of Jesus in relation to the law of Moses.
But let’s allow Jesus to speak for Himself. Here in Matthew 5:17-20, we learn some essential things about Jesus and the Old Testament. Here are some of the issues addressed in this brief statement.
- Jesus’ view of the authority of the Old Testament
- How Jesus viewed Himself in relationship to the Old Testament
- How Jesus viewed the relationship of His followers to the Old Testament
- How Jesus viewed the relationship of the scribes and Pharisees to the Old Testament
Let’s begin with what is arguably the most important of these issues. Let’s notice how Jesus viewed Himself in relationship to the Old Testament.
I. The Old Testament finds its fulfillment in Jesus.
A. Jesus did not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets.
1. The terminology of “Law or Prophets” encompasses the
entire revelation of God we call the Old Testament. It
includes the Pentateuch, the historical books, the poetic
books, and the prophetic books. It was shorthand for the
whole Old Testament.
2. Jesus states emphatically that he did not come to abolish
the Old Testament.
a. The Greek word katalusai in this context means to
invalidate or set aside.
b. Jesus tells us that He did not come to invalidate or
nullify or set aside the Old Testament.
B. Jesus came to fulfill the Old Testament.
1. The words “I did not come” have the force of Jesus’ mission.
2. Jesus’ mission was not to abolish the law but to fulfill it.
a. Matthew uses the word “fulfill” 16 times. 13 of those
references are used in direct connection to the OT.
Matthew uses the expression, “this was done to fulfill
what was spoken by the prophet…”
b. The term fulfill (pleroo) means to fill up or bring to
completion.
c. The idea is that Jesus Himself is the fulfillment of the
OT. The OT finds its fullest expression in the life and
Teaching of Jesus Christ.
3. Jesus fulfills the Old Testament in three ways.
a. Jesus perfectly obeyed the laws and precepts laid
down by God in the OT.
b. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the direct prophecies and the
foreshadowing types of the OT.
c. Jesus perfectly interpreted the meaning of the OT.
Robert Banks put it like this: “The prophetic teachings point forward (principally) to the actions of Christ and have been realized in them in an incomparably greater way. The Mosaic laws point forward (principally) to the teachings of Christ and have also been realized in them in a more profound manner.”[1]
Far from coming to set aside or abandon the OT, Jesus came to fulfill it.
APP: Beloved, this has important implications for us in relationship to our Bible. What Jesus said here reminds us that the Bible, in its entirety, is about Him. The Bible is a Christ-centered book. Sometimes I fear that we have neglected the Old Testament as if it has no value to us today. The actual canon of Scripture has 66 books. But some people have a functional canon of only 27 books because they neglect the OT.
J.C. Ryle reminds us that we need all of Scripture. He said, “The Old Testament is the Gospel in the bud. The New Testament is the Gospel in full flower. The Old Testament is the Gospel in the blade. The New Testament is the Gospel in full ear.”
Friends, all of Scripture is about Jesus Christ. When you read it, you will find Him prophesied and foreshadowed in the OT. You will then find Him coming to fulfill those prophecies and types in the NT.
II. The Old Testament retains its authority as God’s Word.
A. Jesus taught the ongoing authority of the OT.
1. Truly I say to you…This was a favorite expression of Jesus
when He was making an authoritative statement.
2. Until heaven and earth pass away…this refers to the end of
the present age, the end of earthly history.
3. Not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until
all is accomplished.
a. Smallest letter refers to the Hebrew letter yod. The
stroke literally means a little horn. It refers to the
small stroke of the pen that distinguishes one letter
from another.
b. This was Jesus’ way of saying that not the smallest
detail of the Old Testament would fail to be accom-
plished. The purpose of God’s Word will stand down
to the minute details.
APPLICATION: This is an astounding statement from Christ. I want us to think carefully about one of the implications of this for a moment.
- Jesus had a very high view of the inspiration of Scripture. Jesus believed in what we call verbal inspiration. This is the view that the Bible is inspired by God down to the very words chosen by the various authors.
- Jesus had a very high view of the authority of Scripture. The Scriptures are authoritative because they are inspired by God. When Scripture speaks, God speaks. The reason Jesus insists that He did not come to abolish the OT is that the OT has ongoing authority. It is God’s Word. It will be accomplished.
Dear friend, you cannot have reverence for Jesus Christ if you have no reverence for the Scriptures He revered. The Son of God said that He did not come to abolish the Old Testament because it was impossible for any of it, even the smallest details, to be left unaccomplished. To doubt the validity and truthfulness of the OT, including all its stories of supernatural wonders, it to put yourself at odds with Jesus Christ.
We need to adopt the attitude of Jesus toward the Scriptures. The Bible is inspired by God down to the very words. Therefore, it is authoritative and enduring. The Bible can be trusted. It is God’s Word down to the details. Read it, study it, meditate on it, trust it. As Christian Johnson said, “A Bible that is falling apart probably belongs to someone who isn’t.”
III. Reverence for Scripture determines kingdom rewards.
A. Those who take Scripture lightly will be least in the kingdom.
1. They have an irreverent attitude toward the Bible.
a. They nullify it. John Stott defines this as “loosening
its hold on our conscience or its authority in our life.”
b. Jesus said that such an attitude toward even the least
of God’s commands is irreverent.
2. They teach others to adopt the same attitude.
a. Jesus castigated the Pharisees and scribes for this
very thing. They nullified the commands of God with
their human traditions and distortions of the law.
B. Those who embrace the authority of Scripture will be great in the
Kingdom.
1. They keep the commands. Literally, they do them. In other
words, they have such high regard for God and His word that
they seek to live in accordance with His commands.
2. They teach others God’s commands. This does not refer only
to ministers or formal teachers. Everyone teaches others by
word and by example. Those who by word and example
teach others to embrace and obey God’s commands are great
in the kingdom.
APP: Why is reward in God’s kingdom connected to our reverence for His Word? It is because our response to His Word demonstrates our love and reverence for Him. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” If a child disobeys the repeated directions of his or her parents, we say they are disrespectful. It isn’t just the violation of the instruction that is the point. It is the fact that their rejecting the instruction of the parent is a demonstration of their lack of regard for the person – the mother or father.
In the same way, when we take God’s Word lightly and disregard it, we are demonstrating that we take God lightly and we disregard Him. We reject His authority over our lives. If we take God seriously, we will take His Word seriously.
IV. Kingdom righteousness requires an obedience rooted in the saving
Grace of God in Christ..
A. The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.
1. Jesus is preparing to launch into a series of contrasts be-
tween the Pharasiac righteousness and His teaching of
righteousness (vv. 21-48).
2. The righteousness of the Pharisees and scribes was an
external, rigid adherence to the letter of the law. They
had already identified 613 commands in the law – 248
positive and 365 negative. They made it their aim to be
as outwardly conformed to those commands as possible.
3. They believed that this outward conformity to God’s law
made them acceptable to God and righteous. An ancient
saying stated, “If only two men enter heaven, one will
certainly be a teacher of the law and the other a Pharisee.”
B. Jesus taught a different kind of righteousness.
1. Jesus said that the scribes and Pharisees would not enter
the kingdom of heaven because their righteousness was
not sufficient.
2. A sufficient righteousness which properly understands and
practices the law of God is required. This kind of righteous-
ness is described by Jesus in vv. 21-48. It is the proper in-
terpretation and application of the law. It penetrates to the
motives and heart, not just the outward conformity. This is
the kind of righteousness necessary to enter the kingdom.
3. Here is where we need to make a careful distinction.
a. Jesus is not teaching salvation by works. That was
what the Pharisees taught.
b. Jesus is saying that those who enter the kingdom will
live truly righteous and obedient lives in the true
sense of obeying the law from the heart.
c. Here is the distinction. The obedience to the true
understanding of the law required by Jesus flows
from the saving work of Christ in the heart.
1) God said that through the New Covenant
work of the Holy Spirit, He would write
His laws on our hearts (Jer. 31:33).
2) God said He would put His Spirit within us
and cause us to walk in His statutes (Ezek.
36:27).
The point is that the righteous life required of those who enter the kingdom is enabled by the grace of salvation by faith in Christ. This is very similar to what James was teaching. James said that works are the evidence of saving faith. Jesus is saying that righteous obedience to the law is characteristic of the kingdom citizen. But that righteous obedience is not one of external legalism. It is one produced by a changed heart through faith in Jesus Christ.
CONCLUSION:
With all due respect to Rabbi Neusner, Jesus Christ did not abandon the law of God. He fulfilled it. He did not nullify the law of God, He perfectly obeyed it.
To look at Jesus Christ and say, “you go your way and I’ll go mine” is to walk away from the only Person who can save your eternal soul. It is to be condemned to an eternity in hell, separated from God. Jesus Christ fully obeyed the law so that all who trust in Him by faith could have the law of God written on their hearts. The law cannot save us. Only Jesus can save us. But once Jesus does save us, He gives us a love for the law of God and helps us to live in obedience to God.
Do you really want to live a life of obedience to God? Do you really want to please God in your words and actions? Then you must trust in Jesus Christ to save you, change your heart, and give you both the desire and the ability to truly love and obey God.
----
[1]Morris, Leon: The Gospel According to Matthew. Grand Rapids, Mich.; Leicester, England : W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992, S. 108