The Ten Commandments: Why the Law?

By Jeffrey Stivason Posted at The Place for Truth:

According to the Westminster Confession of Faith, “The moral law doth for ever bind all, as well justified persons as others, to the obedience thereof….neither doth Christ, in the Gospel, any way dissolve, but much strengthen this obligation” (WCF, 19.5) Obviously, the Westminster Divines were not claiming that one’s obedience merits anything before God. They knew their Bible. The Jews had sought to establish their own righteousness on the basis of their law keeping and failed. The Jew’s failure was unbelief. They did not receive the teaching that “everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.” Of course, “believes” in that verse is a reference to belief in Christ. Yet, freedom in Christ means freedom from the bondage of sin that we might offer obedience to Christ. That obedience is described for us in the Ten Commandments. So, this article is an attempt to give some perspective on those commandments.

Perhaps the first and most basic question needing addressed is, why the law? After all, this question is raised in both Galatians and Romans. However, it is preceded by another question. Paul asked the Galatians, does the law given to Moses nullify the promise given to Abraham? Let me illustrate what Paul is asking. If I promise to give my car to a friend next week, then I have made him a promise. However, when the week arrives for me to give my friend my care and I say, “You can now have my car if you do these three things,” what have I done? I have introduced a law that nullified my promise. So, has the law given to Moses nullified the promise given to Abraham? The answer is clear. No, the law does not make void the promise (Gal. 3:17-18).

Comments

Wokeism: When the Cure is Worse Than the Disease

Posted at Churches Without Chests : Africa receives some American errors that are quite beneficial. For example, before the NBA finals, the Super Bowl or the World Series, sports merchandisers produce memorabilia of both finalists winning, so as to be able to immediately sell when the final is over. Unfortunately, half of that merchandise represents an alternate universe: where the team that lost actually won. What happens to the champions-that-never-were T-shirts and caps? Much of it is donated to third-world countries, where needy folks wear shirts displaying an event that never happened. Hey, we’re not complaining. Another shirt on a poor man’s back is a good thing, even if it celebrates what never occurred. Error is sometimes beneficial. Some imported errors are profoundly destructive, though. The worst of them are theological errors, for what touches Scripture touches ultimate realities. Two such errors that originated in America are particularly devastating for a country like m

MAGA's Morality Problem

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert speaking with attendees at the 2021 AmericaFest at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo by Gage Skidmore (Source: MAGA's Morality Problem | Shane Vander Hart ) By Shane Vander Hart When a voting base dismisses the importance of private virtue, we shouldn't be surprised when their leaders lack it. Elected officials having affairs and the like is not new, we've seen Republicans and Democrats caught in scandals. What is new, however, are those being dismissive or defensive of the behavior. Does personal morality and character matter when considering political candidates and elected officials? For me, for me that is an unequivocal yes. The MAGA movement disagreed excusing and elevating a serial adulterer to the White House. We are seeing the fruit of this position today. Continue here.

God, History and the Nations

By Bill Muehlenberg - Posted at CultureWatch: Published September 12, 2023 Good news about rogue rulers and evil tyrants: A major problem we have as mere fallen and finite creatures is that we lack perspective. We do not see the big picture and we do not consider the long term. Christians can be just as guilty of this as non-Christians. We can too easily become overwhelmed by events going on around us. This can especially be true regarding wicked rulers and evil nations. I have been around for a while now, and I recall worrying greatly about things like the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc. Communism seemed to be the wave of the future back then. But of course the wall came down in 1989, and over seven decades of godless Communist rule came to an end – at least in that part of the world. And many empires have come and gone over the centuries, be they the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Romans, and so on. Yet when we see powerful and evil nations today, it still can seem like they are

Christian Heritage News

Search This Blog