Jesus fulfilled the law that is why His free gift of righteousness matters.
Staring at the law does not promote love.
Staring at the law only shows you in point form what the real problem is.
A complete lack of love for others.
We are all self-possessed.
Jesus fulfilled the law and the prophets because Jesus was the epitome of love,
that perfect agape love.
Love itself is the eternal commandment and is God's nature to the core.
Love cannot harm anyone, cannot steal, cannot lie, cannot boast, cannot take sides.
If you love others you are way beyond the realm of Hagar.
Inquisitor, I explain a bit further the new covenant and what Jesus meant when he said he fulfilled the law, people use this word to abolish the ten commandments but this is wrong.
From the beginning, God taught His people that life is in the blood, and that blood is required to cover sin.
God said:
“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.”
Leviticus 17:11 (NKJV)
This means sin brings death, and blood was required so the sinner would not die.Leviticus 17:11 (NKJV)
The Covenant Was Always Sealed With Blood
When God made the covenant with Israel, it was not sealed with words alone.
Moses took the blood and said:
“This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these words.”
Exodus 24:8 (NKJV)
The covenant had Ten Commandments, and it was confirmed or sealed by blood.Exodus 24:8 (NKJV)
Later, God commanded that once a year, on the Day of Atonement, blood had to be brought before the Ark of the Covenant.
The Ark of the Covenant contained:
– the ten Commandments written By God Himself on 2 tables of stone, also called the Covenant by God.
God said:
“He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat.”
Leviticus 16:14 (NKJV)
The blood was sprinkled over the Ark, not to erase the commandments, but to cover the people’s sin who broke these Commandments.Leviticus 16:14 (NKJV)
The law remained.The blood provided mercy. This happened every year, because animal blood could never fully remove sin.
The Prophets Promised a New Covenant
God later promised that a new covenant would come.
He said:
Jer 31:31 Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.
Jer 31:32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt— a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD.
Jer 31:33 “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
Jer 31:34 No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.”
This did not mean God changed His holiness.Jer 31:32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt— a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD.
Jer 31:33 “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people.
Jer 31:34 No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.”
It meant He would provide a better solution for sin.
Jesus Brings the Fulfillment
When Jesus came, He did not deny the Law. He explained His purpose clearly. Jesus said:
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.”
Matthew 5:17 (NKJV)
To fulfill does not mean cancel. It means to complete what it pointed to.Matthew 5:17 (NKJV)
Everything about the sacrifices, the altar, the mercy seat Covering the Ark of the Covenant, and the blood sprinkling on tha Ark was pointing forward, at the Last Supper, Jesus explained this openly.
Jesus said:
“This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
Matthew 26:28 (NKJV)
And again:Matthew 26:28 (NKJV)
“This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.”
Luke 22:20 (NKJV)
Jesus is saying:Luke 22:20 (NKJV)
– The covenant still requires blood
– The blood is now My own
– The sacrifice is now complete
Just as blood was once sprinkled before the Ark once a year, Jesus offered His blood once, fully and truly.
What Exactly Did Jesus Fulfill?
Jesus fulfilled:
– the sacrificial system
– the blood requirement
– the role of the high priest
– the yearly atonement
He did not say God’s Commandments will was erased. In Fact He was teaching it and Magnified the Commandments he then sent the Disciples to preach all he did and said to all the world.
Jesus Himself affirmed obedience when He said:
“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
John 14:15 (NKJV)
And:John 14:15 (NKJV)
“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
Luke 11:28 (NKJV)
The commandments were never the problem. Sin was.Luke 11:28 (NKJV)
The sacrifices were never the solution. They were a shadow pointing forward.
Jesus became what the sacrifices pointed to.The Heart Was Always the Goal
Even in the Old Testament, God said the real issue was the heart.
“Circumcise the foreskin of your heart.”
Deuteronomy 10:16 (NKJV)
Jesus taught the same truth:Deuteronomy 10:16 (NKJV)
“Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.”
Matthew 15:18 (NKJV)
The New Covenant does not remove obedience. It makes forgiveness possible when obedience fails.Matthew 15:18 (NKJV)
The Simple Truth
The New Covenant means:
– the blood changed
– the sacrifice changed
– the mediator changed
But:
– God’s holiness did not change as God does NOT change.
– sin is still sin
– obedience still matters
Jesus fulfilled the Law by finishing what the sacrifices could never finish.
That is why He said on the cross:
“It is finished.”
John 19:30 (NKJV)
Not God’s commandments.John 19:30 (NKJV)
Not righteousness.
But the work of sacrifice.
The ultimate proof of his Love for us, he Gave His life for us so we could enter into Life.