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March 2009
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Grace Establishes the Law
by Maria Merola
Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Elohiym forbid: yea, we establish the law.
The Apostle Paul illustrates here that through faith in Messiah, Yahu'shua, the Law/Torah/Instructions (5 books of Moses) is all the more ESTABLISHED! He admonishes us that we do not make void the law because of our faith in Messiah, contrary to what many in today's Christian Church have done.
There are many people in today’s Christian Church who are misinterpreting Paul's writings. Paul warned about the last days when many would “fall away” and they would give heed to the man of sin and his “Mystery Religion” which would promote lawlessness. In 2nd Thessalonians 2, he calls this the MYSTERY OF INIQUITY, and in Paul's day this religion of lawlessness was already "at work." So what is this "Mystery of Iniquity"?
In the Strong's Greek Concordance, the word Iniquity is defined as follows:
#458. anomia an-om-ee'-ah from 459; illegality, i.e. violation of law or (genitive case) wickedness:--iniquity, X transgress(-ion of) the law, unrighteousness.
#459. anomos an'-om-os from 1 (as a negative particle) and 3551; lawless, i.e. (negatively) not subject to (the Jewish) law; (by implication, a Gentile), or (positively) wicked:--without law, lawless, transgressor, unlawful, wicked.
Did you get that?
INIQUITY = NOT SUBJECT TO JEWISH LAW!
*Note: the term "Jewish Law" here does not apply to man made laws, but the "oracles" of Elohiym that were handed down to us from the tribe of Yahudah (Judah).
In all of Paul’s Epistles, he was not preaching lawlessness, contrary to what most people in today’s church have come to believe. He was actually making a distinction between the "doctrines and commandments of men", versus the LAWS OF YaHuWaH, which are now written in our hearts and minds under the Renewed Covenant!
In the book of Galatians, Paul addressed this problem with the Jews in his day trying to force outward circumcision upon Gentiles in order to accept them into their fellowship. In the Torah, it is written that if a stranger wants to sojourn with Israel and he wants to keep the Passover Feast with an Israelite, he must first become circumcised. And so this is where the contention started in the book of Galatians.
The Rabbi's were making circumcision the pre-requisite to salvation when it is not. No place in the Torah (5 books of Moses) does it say that one must be circumcised in order to be saved! YHWH always intended outward circumcision to be a sign of circumcision of the heart:
Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.
Deuteronomy 30:6 And YHWH thy Elohiym will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love YHWH thy Elohiym with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
Jeremiah 4:4 Circumcise yourselves to YHWH, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
And so under the Renewed Covenant, we have circumcision of the heart as the "sign" that we have been become "Jewish" (belonging to the tribe of Judah) through Yahu'shua's blood covenant:
Romans 2:
25 For circumcision is indeed profitable if you keep the law; but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.
26 Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision?
27 And will not the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, judge you who, even with your written code and circumcision, are a transgressor of the law?
28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh;
29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from Elohiym.
Paul was telling those who were circumcised outwardly that it does not profit them if they are outwardly circumcised if they fail to keep Yah's laws. Likewise he said that if an uncircumcised Gentile does obey Yah's laws, his "uncircumcision" is then counted as "circumcision" because he obeys Yah's commandments. And so in this way, Paul was teaching that we are truly "Jewish" if we are circumcised inwardly by the Holy Spirit, who removes the foreskin of our hearts and then writes the Law/Torah in our hearts and in our minds.
Hebrews 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith YHWH; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a Elohiym, and they shall be to me a people:
Hebrews 10:16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith YHWH, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
We are justified by Grace through Faith, but then Grace does not only JUSTIFY us, but Grace also SANCTIFIES us and writes the law in our hearts and minds. This is the sign of the New Covenant, that we have his laws in our hearts and minds. Many believers today are making the classic mistake of confusing JUSTIFICATION with SANCTIFICATION. But they are quite different.
When YHWH brought the Israelites out of Egypt, this is a picture of salvation. But when he took them into the wilderness and taught them his statutes and precepts (Torah/Instructions) this is a picture of sanctification (being set apart and called to holiness). But many are doing the classic thing that most Christians do, of confusing these two works of Grace and treating them as the same thing.
YHWH did not deliver Israel out of Egypt and then leave them in the wilderness without his instructions on how to live. He taught them his laws. But they came to us in Stone Tablets (which were corruptible or breakable). But now under the Renewed Covenant on Pentecost (Shavuot), he presented those same laws to us, only now in "fleshy tables of the heart" (2nd Corinthians 3:3). The Holy Spirit gave us the very same law but now in an incorruptible form which is a new nature. We now possess the nature of Messiah himself which is the LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE, these are the same laws only now in an incorruptible form. Messiah is the Living Law (Living Word) and the corruptible form of the word/law was crucified but now the same word/law has been resurrected into an incorruptible form, which is called the "law of the spirit of life."
Notice 3 types of law below:
1.) Law of the Spirit of Life
2.) Law of Sin & Death
3.) Law of YHWH written in Stone
Romans 8
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Messiah Yahu'shua hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
3 For what the law (in stone) could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, Elohiym sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Many Christians love to quote Romans 8:1 but they only quote half of the verse and leave the latter part of the verse out:
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Messiah Yahu'shua, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Notice that there is a condition to those who are not under condemnation. The condition is this: They walk in the power of the Holy Spirit! And what does the Holy Spirit do? He frees us from our inability to keep the law! The law of the Spirit of Life (the Holy Spirit's power in us to keep the law) has freed us from our inability to keep the law (the law of sin and death). Because Yah's laws (in stone tablets) were only weak because of the fact that they were INCOMPATIBLE with our corrupted human nature.
But now that the Holy Spirit gives us the Law (Torah) in an INCORRUPTIBLE FORM, which is a NEW NATURE, (the nature of Messiah himself), we are now able to fulfill the righteousness of the Law (Torah) just as Messiah completely fulfilled the law! This means we have been given power from the Holy Spirit to live exactly as Yahu'shua Messiah lived!
You will see that what Paul is saying is that the law in stone was weak because of our sinful nature, but the law of the spirit of life (the law of Yah written in our hearts) has now freed us from this other law that works in our members that makes us want to break Yah's laws. So now the "righteousness of Yah's laws are able to be fulfilled in us" by the power of the Holy Spirit. In other words we are now able to FULFILL THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE LAW by the Holy Spirit's power in us!
This is a common mistake that many in the Chrisitan Church make because they are viewing Paul's writings with a Western-Greco, Roman mindset instead of a Hebraic mindset.
When I ask most Christians how they would define sin, they don't have a well defined answer. They usually say "well, ummm, uhh, it means disobeying God...."
But they don't know exactly how to define what it means to "disobey" our Heavenly Father. But scripture gives us a well defined answer as to what sin really is:
1st John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
And what is the penalty for breaking the laws of our Creator?
Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of Elohiym is eternal life through Yahu'shua Messiah our Master.
When Paul spoke of "another gospel" he was rebuking those who would follow the doctrines and commandments of men, not the laws of Yah!
Galatians 1:6-7 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Messiah unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Messiah.
There was a sect of the Essenes in Galatia who were making outward circumcision the PRE-REQUISITE to salvation, but it never was the pre-requisite to salvation even under the First Covenant!
But now many Christians want to misinterpret Paul's rebuke to the Galatians as if he was telling them not to keep the law of Moses any longer, but this is completely false!
Some of the Jews were falsely accusing the Apostle Paul of teaching the Jews to no longer keep the laws of Moses and to stop circumcising their baby boys.
Acts 21:21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
But Paul was not teaching Jews to stop circumcising their baby boys. Paul merely preached that adult male Gentiles did not need to get circumcised in order to enter into covenant with YHWH.
But that did not mean that it was a sin for Jews or Gentiles to circumcise their baby boys. As a matter of fact, it is still recommended to circumcise baby boys on the 8th day because of health reasons. But in order to show the Jews that these rumors about him were false and that he was still very much a Torah observant Jew keeping the Law of Moses, he shaved his head and did a purification ritual according to the Law of Moses. The Jews wanted him to make an open demonstration that these rumors about him were false so he did as they asked him to do:
Acts 21:
23 Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.
Acts 21 proves that the Apostle Paul was still very much a Torah-observant Jew and that he was not teaching people to break the Law of Moses at all. The Apostle Paul did not contradict the Law of Moses ever once! Paul was fully a Torah observant Jew. Paul was always making a distinction between Yah’s laws and the man-made laws of the Rabbi’s. What most Gentiles don’t understand is that the Rabbi’s made up 613 of their own man made interpretations of the Torah (Laws of YHWH), and they called their own traditions “The Torah.”
And so there is “Yah’s Torah” and then there is the “Mock Torah” of the Pharisees. So when the Apostle Paul speaks of the “law” in the scriptures, you must look up the original Greek word to determine if the word is “dogma” (man made traditions) or if it is “Pentateuch” (the 5 books of Moses).
Yahu'shua clearly teaches us that until "heaven and earth pass way" (have they passed away?) not one punctuation mark of the law will be done away with until ALL IS FULFILLED! Not all is fulfilled yet, because we have only received "the first fruits of our redemption until we receive the redemption of the body." (Romans 8:23)
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.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Many have inaccurately stated that the Laws of YHWH put us into bondage, but that is not what puts us into bondage! What puts us in Bondage is "the Law of Sin and Death"! But Messiah has redeemed us from the "curse" of not being able to keep the Torah (Law)!
The Torah (Laws of YHWH) are now transferred from STONE INTO FLESHY TABLES OF THE HEART, and his laws bring LIBERTY!
James 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
James 2:12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
Paul never once taught lawlessness (as many have erroneously believed). Shaul (Paul) taught the we all the more ESTABLISH the Laws of YHWH through faith!
Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Elohiym forbid: yea, we establish the law.
We must not make the common mistake that the Protestant Church has learned from Rome which teaches that we no longer have to keep the law because of Faith. This is APOSTASY!
Matthew 19:17 ".....but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."
Keeping the Torah (Laws of YHWH) are not the pre-requisite to salvation, but obeying his laws are established all the more once we have faith!
Paul's Epistles are pointing to the man made laws of the Rabbi's which they used to REPLACE the Torah (Laws of YHWH). Yahu'shua rebuked the Pharisees because they rejected the Torah (Laws) of our Creator, and instead brought in their own traditions:
Mark 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of Elohiym, that ye may keep your own tradition.
The Apostle Peter warned that many men would twist Paul's words to their own DESTRUCTION:
2nd Peter 3:15-16
15 And account that the longsuffering of YHWH is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
The Torah (Laws of YHWH) are all the more established now under the Renewed Covenant because of Faith in Messiah. They are not abolished or "nailed to the cross" as many misunderstand Paul's letter to the Colossians:
Colossians 2:
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
Okay so what was actually NAILED TO THE CROSS? The HANDWRITING CONTAINED IN ORDINANCES! But what does the word "ordinance" mean? In the Strong's Concordance we find that it is a civil decree, in other words a MAN MADE LAW:
#378. dogma dog'-mah from the base of 1380; a law (civil, ceremonial or ecclesiastical):--decree, ordinance.
So you see Paul was not telling us that Yah's Laws were nailed to the cross, he was telling us that the man made religious systems WERE AGAINST US, and so it was the DOCTRINES OF MEN that have been NAILED TO THE CROSS!
If Paul was teaching us that Yah nailed his own commandments to the cross, he would be in direct contradiction to Yahu'shua in Matthew 5:17-19 and this would make Paul a false prophet! And even if Paul was preaching lawlessness (which he is not) then why do Christians want to listen to Paul instead of our Messiah?
The Rabbi's made 613 brand new laws of their own and called it "The Torah" and this is what Paul was addressing when he taught that we are no longer "under the law."
He was addressing the problem with people being "under rabbinic law" instead of the Holy Spirit who now teaches us to keep Yah's laws under the New Covenant. If we are UNDER THE SPIRIT we are not under RABBINIC LAW. That is what Paul was talking about. He was telling us that the Holy Spirit will teach us to obey Yah's laws not rabbinic or man made ordinances.
Yahu'shua has given us the resources whereby we are able to be PERFECT AS OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN IS PERFECT:
Matthew 5:48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
But some will say "but nobody is perfect...." Yes, this is true when we are walking in the flesh, but through the power of the Holy Spirit we are able to be PERFECT. Messiah would not command something of us that he would not have given us the resources to accomplish it.
What is Grace?
The word "Grace" in the Greek Concordance is "charis" which means "the divine influence upon the heart." So what does this divine influence do to the heart?
Titus 2:
11 For the grace of Elohiym that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Grace not only brings us salvation, but grace is our TEACHER! Grace teaches us to DENY UNGODLINESS and LAWLESSNESS, and teaches us to live RIGHTEOUSLY!
The Renewed Covenant More Strict than the Old Covenant?
The First Covenant gave us only the "bare minimum" requirements to follow, but under the Renewed Covenant, we are required to give 100% of our lives to Yahu'shua by offering up ourselves as a LIVING SACRIFICE! Why is the New Covenant more strict? Because Yahu'shua has given us all of the resources we need by offering up his life for us. We now have two things that enables us to keep the marriage covenant:
1.) The Blood Atonement of Messiah which cleanses us when we slip and fall.
2.) The Gift of the Holy Spirit who deposits the Law into our hearts and minds, thereby enabling us to obey the commandments.
Now with the resources that we have been given, we are without excuse. Under the Old Covenant, if someone broke the Law of Moses, they died at the testimony of two or three witnesses. But under the New Covenant of Grace, Hebrews 10:29 says: HOW MUCH GREATER PUNISHMENT SHALL WE RECEIVE IF WE DO DESPITE TO THE SPIRIT OF GRACE?
Hebrews 10:
26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
28 He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of Elohiym, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
And so this begs the question: If you claim that you are "under grace" yet you are still breaking the commanments of YaHuWaH, can it be that what you thought was "grace" is actually LICENTIOUSNESS & LASCIVIOUSNESS?
