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QUESTION #6 God told the Israelites that He would conditionally bless them if they kept His commandments and walked in them (e.g., Leviticus 26:3-4; Deuteronomy 4:1, 6:24-25, 8:1). In “keeping His commandments,” is God referring to a general following after Him, knowing that the Israelites would sometimes disobey, but that God would still bless them if their heart was set on Him (dismissing their imperfection)? Or does God mean complete perfection here, even though He knew they couldn’t keep His commandments without spot (making them depend on God’s grace)? I know God requires complete perfection for eternal life with Him (and that’s where the gospel comes in), but these verses are more about material blessings for the Israelites. Was God just looking for their faith in His promises, ready to count their faith as righteousness like He did for Abraham? RESPONSE Acknowledgement — In every dispensation, the truth that our actions do bring consequences (positive and negative) has always been in effect. While God would not punish children for the sins of their parents (cf. Deuteronomy 7:10; 24:16; Ezekiel 18:19-32), the children would indeed be affected by the disobedience of their parents, either in continuing their sin or in facing the repercussions of it (cf. Exodus 20:5-6). Correspondingly, the same was true of an individual’s righteousness and obedience—it brought blessing. The New Testament continues to teach this truth, for example, in its reference to “reaping and sowing” (cf. Galatians 6:7-8). Background — In essence, I think the question being asked here is, “Was the Mosaic Covenant/Law intended to provide salvation?” The easy and clear biblical answer to that is, “No!” Salvation has always been by grace alone through faith alone in God’s person and promises. Before the Mosaic Covenant, God’s relationship with Abraham in the unilateral, unconditional, eternal Abrahamic Covenant provided mankind with a picture of how one is restored to a relationship with God—by grace through faith (cf. Genesis 15:6). Abraham’s “amen” (the Hebrew word for “believed”) echoes throughout the rest of Scripture, testifying to the sufficiency of grace and faith (also cf. Habakkuk 2:4 and its reverberation throughout the NT). The “Hall of Faith” in Hebrews 11 reaffirms the timeless veracity of such classic NT texts as John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, and Titus 3:5. Obedience to the Mosaic Law (Deuteronomy 6:24-25) was supposed to be a manifestation of a heart of faithful love (Deuteronomy 6:5-6, 13-14). So, then, what was the purpose and essence of the Mosaic Covenant?[i] (1) Unlike the Abrahamic Covenant, the prototype of God’s dealing with sinful mankind by grace through faith, the Mosaic Covenant was bilateral in its nature and goal of the Mosaic Covenant—that is, both God and the people had commitments/responsibilities in this covenant relationship. It was also a conditional covenant, meaning that if the Israelites failed to live up to their end of the bargain, then God wasn’t bound to fulfill His (cf. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 27-28). What was the condition of this covenant? God shared it with Moses when Israel first arrived at Mount Sinai, “The Lord called to Him out of the mountain, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant [Exodus 19-31], you shall be My treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel”’” (Exodus 19:3-6). Tracing their spiritual progression, this nation was already a redeemed nation, for the Exodus and Passover was behind them. Now, the Lord desires to enjoy fellowship with them and engage them in mission—but to do so, they had to adhere to the Mosaic Covenant. The commitments and responsibilities of the Mosaic Law were given in order for Israel to become, not “saved” or “justified,” but a special and distinct and “priestly” nation. As we know, Israel drastically failed in this goal, and after hundreds of years of patient warning, God punished them with the curses He had promised during their captivity (and beyond). He also prophesied of a New Covenant (Jeremiah 31) that would replace the old, broken one and would become everlastingly effective. The Mosaic Law itself contained language to describe what would happen if one treated it as a means of salvation. Perfect adherence and complete obedience was required, nothing less (James 2:10; Galatians 3:12 [Leviticus 18:5; Romans 10:5]); otherwise, failure to adhere to this covenant brought a curse (Galatians 3:10; from Deut. 27:26 [Jer. 11:3; Ezekiel 18:4]). (2) In its failure, we actually discover, then, the ultimate purpose of the Mosaic Law (Galatians 3:19-26)—to serve as a guard, proving the sinfulness of every person and imprisoning them in its guilt (cf. Romans 7:5-13), and to serve as a guardian, pointing to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ (cf. “shadow”: Hebrews 8:5; 10:1; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13). And in the New Covenant ratified by Christ’s blood, we are no longer under Law (Romans 7:1-4).[ii] ENDNOTES
[i] “A covenant is a legally binding promise, agreement, or contract. Three times in the NT the word “covenants” is used in the plural (Gal. 4:24; Eph. 2:12). All but one of God’s covenants with man are eternal and unilateral—that is, God promised to accomplish something based on His own character and not on the response or actions of the promised beneficiary. The 6 biblical covenants include: 1) the covenant with Noah (Gen. 9:8-17); 2) the covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3; see note on 4:13); 3) the covenant of law given through Moses at Sinai (Ex. 19-31; cf. Deut. 29, 30); 4) the priestly covenant (Num. 25:10-13); 5) the covenant of an eternal kingdom through David’s greatest Son (2 Sam. 7:8–16); and 6) the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 37:26; cf. Heb. 8:6-13). All but the Mosaic Covenant are eternal and unilateral. It is neither, since Israel’s sin abrogated it and it has been replaced by the New Covenant (cf. Heb. 8:7-13)” (The MacArthur Study Bible, p. 1710). [ii] “Paul uses the two mothers, their two sons, and two locations as a further illustration of two covenants. Hagar, Ishmael, and Mt. Sinai (earthly Jerusalem) represent the covenant of law; Sarah, Isaac and the heavenly Jerusalem the covenant of promise. However, Paul cannot be contrasting these two covenants as different ways of salvation, one way for OT saints, another for NT saints—a premise he has already denied (2:16; 3:10-14, 21, 22). The purpose of the Mosaic Covenant was only to show all who were under its demands and condemnation their desperate need for salvation by grace alone (3:24)—it was never intended to portray the way of salvation. Paul’s point is that those, like the Judaizers, who attempt to earn righteousness by keeping the law receive only bondage and condemnation (3:10, 23). While those who partake of salvation by grace—the only way of salvation since Adam’s sin—are freed from the law’s bondage and condemnation” (The MacArthur Study Bible, p. 1796). |
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