From the very beginning of the New Testament era, the question
of the proper relationship of the believer to the law of God
outlined in the Hebrew Scriptures has been a subject of heated
debate. Within the Christian community, there are two polarized
extremities of thought concerning the law of God and its effect
upon believers in Jesus Christ. These two diverse viewpoints are
termed by each other as legalism (the strict keeping of the law)
and antinomianism (standing against the law).
The legalists, as they are called, maintain that the entire law of
God remains in force even today. Some of them believe that without
obedience to the laws of the Old Testament, one cannot be
justified, and some are probably guilty of the Galatianism of which
they are accused by the antinomians. They maintain that Gods laws
were not changed or repealed by Jesus and that their observance is
necessary for our justification. In some circles, Remonstrants or
Arminians, who believe that keeping of the law is necessary after
ones rebirth by faith in Jesus Christ, are referred to as
legalists.
On the other hand are the antinomians who maintain that the law,
including the Ten Commandments, were nailed to the cross of Christ.
According to them, works of obedience are totally unnecessary for
our justification. Many of this persuasion feel that the Old
Testament scriptures are useless in the "grace dispensation" and
that Judaism is a worthless exercise in futility, very little
different from heathen religions.
The debate of the legalists and the antinomians has raged for
centuries. The real problem that perpetuates the irreconcilable
differences between these two warring factions of Christianity is
the fact that both sides of the argument have truth, both sides
quote scripture from the same Bible, and both sides stand
unequivocally for their dogma. As is generally the case with
polarized issues such as these, the truth lies somewhere between
the two extremities. A proper restoration of first century
Christianity represents a viable alternative to the two warring
factions, a synthesis between the thesis of legalism and the
antithesis of antinomianism.
The "Thou Shalts" and The "Thou Shalt Nots"
Generally speaking, the question concerning observance of the law
has not involved the "thou shalt nots" but has centered in the
"thou shalts." Few would advocate that one should steal, commit
murder, bear false witness, or commit adultery. On the other hand,
some would recommend that one not remember the Sabbath, observe the
festivals, pay the tithe, and the like.
The fact is that Gods law is composed of positive and negative
commandments. In the Torah there are 613 commandments (mitzvot). Of
these, 365 are negative commandments, the "thou shalt nots" of the
Torah, a number which corresponds to the total days in a year. The
remaining 248 commandments are positive "thou shalts." John tells
us that the transgression of any one of the 613 commandments of the
law constitutes sin (I John 3:4). James confirms to us that failure
to observe the positive commandments is just as much sin as
violating the negative commandments: "Therefore to him that knoweth
to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:17).
The question is, What should we do? How can we be sure that we
fulfill the law in our lives? The answer is simply stated by Jesus,
himself, in Matthew 22:37-40: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like
unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two
commandments hang all the law and the prophets." These are the two
"thou shalts" of the New Testament. All of the requirements of the
New Testament are summed up in one simple word love, love for God
and love for man. The law, then, is based in love, not in
judgment.
The Decalogue was written by the finger of God upon two tablets of
stone. The five commandments on one tablet governed ones conduct
toward God and his parents. The five commandments on the other
tablet governed ones relationship with his fellow man. These ten
commandments became major categories under which all the remaining
commandments of the law functioned.
Love Fulfills The Law
If one truly loved God with all his heart, soul, and mind, he could
never break one of the first five of the ten commandments. The
motivating factor of complete love for God would cause the believer
to make Gods slightest wish his personal command. If one truly
loved his neighbor as himself, he could never break one of the
remaining five of the ten commandments. This truth is brilliantly
set forth by the apostle Paul in Romans 13:8-10: "Owe no man any
thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath
fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou
shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false
witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other
commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely,
Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his
neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." If the law
can be summed up and fulfilled in one word, love, then the law was
a law of love, not of judgment and cursing, as some have
suggested.
Paul repeats this theme in Galatians 5:14: "For all the law is
fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor
as thyself." Perhaps he was taking his cue from his teacher
Gamaliel, a disciple of Hillel the Great, who said concerning the
law of God, "Whatever his hurtful to you, do not unto others. The
rest [of the law] is commentary." When Paul discussed this theme of
love for ones neighbor, he also delivered some sound advice
concerning the nature of the New Testament calling and the
believers responsibility toward it: "For, brethren, ye have been
called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the
flesh, but by love serve one another. . . . walk in the Spirit, and
ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh" (Galatians
5:13,16).
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