Part 2

“I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.”

“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33)

We find similar wording in Ezekiel.

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” (Ezekiel 11:19-20)

“I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,” then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”” (Hebrews 10:16-17)

The law given to Moses was often called “my law”, “my statutes” and “my rules”. Thus, the law referred to in the New Covenant was the Torah given to Moses. It was the law Israel had broken that led to exile and it is an integral part of their regathering.

Did God ever waver from requiring obedience to his law?

To get the best sense of God’s position concerning his law, I’ve listed passages where he commanded his people to keep it or where there was punishment for disobedience. It takes a few minutes but I encourage you to read every word. It’s a powerful way to immerse in the Father’s heart and confront possible false assumptions.

The Father commanded and rewarded obedience to his law. He also punished disobedience. Tribes of Israel remain in exile to this day because Israel broke the Covenant. The Father never wavered once from requiring obedience to his commands, statutes and rules. Does it seem reasonable that God would get to the New Testament and suddenly change his posture to, “Nevermind”?

In fact, what we will see is that He remained – and remains – perfectly consistent.

Did Jesus ever deviate from his Father’s will?

Additional Context to Guide Interpretation

With that background…

We’ve looked at over 50 pages of texts that show God’s will is to obey his law. In the following sections, I will make the case that all Biblical writers are unified in their teaching to obey God’s instructions given to Moses for Israel.

Obedience to God’s law was never put forth as a means to be saved. Salvation has always been only by grace through faith. Obedience to God’s commandments is instead presented as a tangible expression and indicator of faith in God’s promises. Keeping His commandments is inseparable from true faith and loving God.

Verses to reexamine

I chose to list the most misunderstood texts in the order they appear in the Bible.

  • Matthew 5:17

    “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

  • Matthew 11:13-15

    “For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

  • Matthew 12:1-2

    “At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”

  • Matthew 15:11

    “…it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.”

  • Mark 7:15

    “There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”

  • Mark 7:19

    “…(Thus he declared all foods clean.)”

  • Luke 16:16

    “The Law and the Prophets were until John…”

  • John 1:17

    “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (KJV)

  • John 13:34-35

    “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.“

  • Acts 10:15

    “And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has made clean, do not call common.”

  • Acts 15:1

    “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.“

  • Acts 15:19-20

    “Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood.”

  • Acts 20:7

    “On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.”

  • James 2:10-11

    “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.”

Then there’s Paul

Paul in context

Let’s reexamine the most misunderstood statements of the Apostle Paul.

  • Romans 3:20

    “For by works of the law no human being will be justified…”

  • Romans 6:14

    “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”

  • Romans 7:6

    “But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.”

  • Romans 8:2

    “For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”

  • Romans 10:4

    “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

  • Romans 14:5

    “One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.”

  • 1 Corinthians 7:18b-19a

    “Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision…”

  • 2 Corinthians 3:11

    “For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.

  • Galatians 2:3

    “But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek.”

  • Galatians 3:2

    “…Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?”

  • Galatians 3:10

    “For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.”

  • Galatians 3:23

    “Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law…”

  • Galatians 3:24-25

    “So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,”

  • Galatians 4:10

    “You observe days and months and seasons and years!”

  • Galatians 5:1

    “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”

  • Galatians 5:4

    “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.”

  • Galatians 5:18

    “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

  • Ephesians 2:14

    “…by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances…”

  • Colossians 2:14

    “…by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”

  • Colossians 2:16

    “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.”

The Old Testament did not teach a different way of salvation

More to come in the future!