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NASB | Matthew 5:17 ¶ "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 5:17 ¶ "Do not think that I came to do away with or undo the Law [of Moses] or the [writings of the] Prophets; I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. |
Bible Question: What is the difference between the New Testament and the Old? Which are we to follow? I have noticed and heard that the Old Testament contains more extreme rules or guidance whereas the New is more up to date and suits our time at a better degree. |
Bible Answer: Kalos' advice is quite sound except for the following Col 2:13 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him. 16 Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-- 17 things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. You see in accordance with Matt 28, God has now given ALL authority to His Son and thus ushered in a new era or dispensation called Christianity, where instead of being given the option of an easy divorce, a spouse must have actual evidence of adultery before divorcing. Instead of merely avoiding murder as per the Ten Commandments, we now must love our enemies and forgive them instead of seeking retribution as "eye for an eye, or tooth for tooth." Now instead of offering animals for sacrifice and clear us of our sins, we must worship the Perfect High Priest who once and for all was sacrified for ALL people everywhere instead of just the nation of Israel. The covenant of Christianity has better promises with a clear picture of Heaven when there no such provision in the Old Law. In Christianity, we ALL have immediate access instead of our going through another human being to intercede for us. There are a few other differences between these two eras, Judiasm and Christianity but I think these are sufficient. Now I need to emphasize I'm not saying we can dismiss the OT entirely. As Kalos has stated so eloquently, the OT is quoted extensively throughout the NT as Jesus was the fulfillment of the prophecies contained in the OT. What I am saying is that the OT has no place in our lives to speak with AUTHORITY about religious issues, especially with regard to the differences we see between the OT and the NT. Jesus and Jesus alone is the Authority as His Words AND the Words spoken and written by His official representatives, the Apostles were blessed as being authoritative by Jesus Himself and the Holy Spirit. Thus the OT is a wonderful and majestic document, compelling in its teaching and history, showing us how God dealt with His children then and giving us a glimpse of how He'll deal with us in our future. The OT helps us understand the NT for that's where most of the NT writers originated. Thus their background and their secondary motivation is better understood. BUT their primary focus and motivation was the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Just as in the transfiguration, we MUST give our sole attention for authoritative matters to Jesus and Jesus alone. So we can learn a great deal from the OT but we must see ourselves as men and women of God and for God, and learn to graduate to the NT. For it is that portion of God's Word, where we find out the current requirements to become a christian and save our souls from Hell. Hope this helps and God bless. --Rowdy |