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Once Saved, Do We Need to Keep the Law?

     What did Christ mean when during the “Sermon on the Mount”, he made this statement in Matthew 5:17:  Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

    To understand the meaning of a verse, the first thing to do is to determine who it was written  or spoken to. In this case, the verse is found in the Book of Matthew. Matthew is known as the Gospel to the Jews, so we can safely say that this verse was written to the Jews. This is reinforced by when, why, and where Jesus spoke these words. He had just chosen His disciples and was traveling around Galilee preaching and healing. Secondly, we have to look at the context, that is, the verses immediately preceding and following it. What is the context of this verse?

    The preceding verses: Jesus started out by stating what sort of people would be blessed. Following that he talked about being persecuted for being righteous. Then He talked about being salt and light. God had chosen the Jewish people to be His Chosen People, to be salt and light in a dark world. While we can safely apply these things to being Christians, we need to remember that they were spoken and written to the Jews.

    The following verses: Jesus then launched into a discussion of the Law. The Law was what distinguished the Jews from the Gentile nations surrounding them. They put their hope on keeping the Law. While this was early in Jesus' ministry, undoubtedly he knew that soon the Jewish leaders would be accusing Him of breaking the Law, so he made it clear at the start of His ministry that he did not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it. We will come back to what “fulfill the Law” meant later on.
   
    Jesus makes it clear in verses 17 through 19 that ALL of the Law would continue to exist as long as heaven and earth stood, until it was fulfilled. Anyone who taught people to disobey the Law, or any part of it, would be considered least in the Kingdom of Heaven, but those who taught otherwise AND OBEYED IT THEMSELVES would be considered great in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus here begins to launch a pre-emptive attack on the Pharisees, who taught that strict obedience to the Law was necessary while disobeying it themselves! He said that unless people's righteousness exceeded that of the Scribes and Pharisees, they simply would not be allowed into the Kingdom of Heaven.

    He follows this up by a long discourse which extends the Law far beyond what the Pharisees taught. He deals with not just actions, but with heart attitudes. The fact that you hated someone enough to want to kill them, but didn't actually carry it out, is NOT obeying the Law. You already broke it. If you lusted after a woman but didn't actually follow through, is NOT obeying the Law. The same is true with all the other commandments. It is what is in the heart that is of paramount importance.

    There is a growing movement of Judaizers today. They follow quite a range. Some insist only on keeping the Ten Commandments. Others insist on Sabbath-Keeping and that the Sabbath is Saturday, not Sunday. (which it actually is). Some are so extreme they insist that though circumcision is not necessary for salvation, that Christians will certainly become circumcised after they become familiar with the Torah. You will often be able to tell these folks because they love to use Hebrew names for everything – Torah instead of Bible, Y'shua instead of Jesus, etc. Some go so far as to insist the name Jesus is satanic though actually it is just the Greek version of His name. This doesn't mean everyone who uses these names is a Judaizer. Some people just love Jewish history or language but are perfectly sound in doctrine. The one thing the Judaizers have in common is their legalism. They are adamant about the validity of the Law of Moses and the necessity to keep it, or at least the parts they personally deem valid! It is all about external appearances.

     Jesus was concerned about the Spirit of the Law, not the Letter of it. This is shown in His subsequent healings on the Sabbath, where He was criticized by the Pharisees for breaking the letter of the Law. Luke 14: 3 – 5 is an example.

    Keeping in mind that Jesus was Jewish, and sent first of all to the Jews, Matthew 15:24:  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. We can not make a direct application of these things to the church as many do. This was early in Jesus' ministry. He had just endured the temptations of Satan, chosen His disciples, and started His ministry, which was as yet exclusively to the Jews. The church would not come into existence until Pentecost, after His death and Resurrection. Even after that, the Gospel was taken first to the Jews, and only later extended to the Gentiles, Acts 10 and 11.

    Christ Himself had showed beforehand how this was to be: He first forbade His disciples to go to the Samaritans and Gentiles, Mat 10:5, 6  These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

    However, later He Himself went to the Samaritans, (John 4), and made many converts. He also healed the Centurion's servant (a Gentile).

    After His resurrection, He commanded the church to Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, to teach all nations. Mark 16:15 and Matt. 28:19. With the rejection of Christ by the Jews and His crucifixion, the way had been opened to the Gentiles. It was still open to Jews who put their faith in Christ, also, and still is, but collectively the Jews rejected Christ and began to persecute Christians.

    Act 13:46:  Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

    Having said this,  How does Matthew 5:17 apply to us?

    The purpose of the Law is spelled out in Gal 3:24, 25:  So that the law hath been our tutor to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith is come, we are no longer under a tutor. (RV) The Law was given to bring people to Christ. How does it do this? By illustrating what is necessary for righteousness, and our inability to achieve righteousness by keeping the Law, it shows our need for a Savior. No one has ever kept the Law, apart from Christ Himself. James wrote in Jas 2:10, 11:  For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is become guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou dost not commit adultery, but killest, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

    Legalists always pick and choose what they will obey. One told me it was necessary to keep the Sabbath on Saturday, but that the seventh year Sabbaths were irrelevant. Some pick the Ten Commandments and set aside the rest. This is not valid. And if we examine our hearts, we know that even if we sincerely set out to keep the Law, we will soon fall short. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”. No one can be saved by keeping the Law: Rom_3:20  Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

    The Law shows us that we are lost sinners, that we cannot save ourselves, and that we need Christ.

 Once Saved, must we keep the Law?

    So now we come to the important point of this message. Many Judaizers and Legalists concede that Salvation is through faith alone, through the blood of Christ alone, but then they go on to insist that once saved we must keep the Law. They use the words of Jesus that he did not come to abolish the Law, and that not one jot or tittle would pass away, to insist the Law is still binding on us. Let's consider this, for it is vitally important that we properly understand it.

     Remember that Jesus spoke these words to the Jews, before His death and resurrection, and before the Church came into existence. The Law had not yet been fulfilled. However, it IS true that the Law has not passed away. It still serves its intended purposes: to impart the knowledge of sin, and to show unbelievers that they can't achieve righteousness by keeping it and need a savior, and by so doing leading them to Christ. Rom_7:7  What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. Gal_3:21:  Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

     The Law cannot impart righteousness, either to unbelievers or to the saved. Just as you cannot achieve salvation by keeping the Law, neither can you achieve righteousness or holiness by keeping the Law. You will always come up short. Gal 5:4:  Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. We are not only saved by grace, not by law, we are kept by grace, not by the Law.

     Christians have one vital thing that Old Testament believers did not have. That is the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit came upon people before, to fulfill God's purposes, but He neither remained with them, nor dwelt within them. WE have the Spirit dwelling within us if we are saved: Rom 8:9:  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. Of course, we can choose to either quench the Spirit or be filled with the Spirit. Unfortunately, being filled with the Spirit has come to be identified with speaking in tongues. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The evidence of the filling of the Spirit is the producing of the Fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22 and Eph. 5:9). Those who bear the fruit of the Spirit don't need law – the law is for the ungodly: 1Ti 1:9:  Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, etc.


    We have a new nature. It is impossible with the old nature to keep the law and achieve righteousness. The Law served a purpose in keeping the old nature in check, but we are dead to that now: Rom 7:6:  But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. If we are filled with the Holy Spirit, we don't need to worry about whether we are keeping every letter of the law. We will have the mind of Christ: 1Co 2:16:  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

     As it is written in Gal 4:9, 10:  But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?  Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
    And in Gal 3:2,3:  This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

     Don't let anyone persuade you that you need to go back to following the Law. If you do, you make Christ's death of no effect (Gal 5:4 : Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.)  We don't need to become Jews to become Christians, nor do we need to live as Jews to be Christians. Jews can become Christians, but Christians can NOT become Jews. The Law was given to the Jews, not the Gentiles. Christians are not under the Law. We are to be filled with the Holy Spirit, to yield to His control, to produce the fruit of the Spirit and exercise the gifts of the Spirit that He has chosen to give to us – different gifts to each one to carry out God's purpose in our lives and in His work on earth. Be alert. People will give you all sorts of fine sounding arguments as to why you should keep this law or that, observe this Jewish custom or event or that. Remember, we are saved and kept by Grace, not Law. Read Galatians and Romans. Be ready to give an answer (1 Peter 3:15). Help them to see the need of God's Grace and the filling of the Holy Spirit, rather than legalism and rule keeping.