ESTABLISHMENT OF THE TWO
14/04/18 09:14
If you've been around church very much you've heard about the Old Testament and New Testament. This means you've likely heard about the Old Covenant and New Covenant. The basic point is that the Old Covenant is the covenant God made with Israel but when Christ came that Old Covenant was done away with and now we are under a New Covenant. This teaching has been so popular that it's caused confusion in statements like "I did not come to do away with the Law and Prophets" - Messiah Y'shua (Matthew 5:17-20). He said He came to fulfill it and many teach that He's saying it ended with Messiah but does it make sense to say "I did not come do away with but end it"?.
Confusing explanations like this come because of preconceived notions. We have this belief and it's so engrained in us that we can't seem to break free from it so we work to explain away any contradictions, even if they don't make sense. This is why you never explain away or ignore a contradiction. If something is not making sense then we need to understand one major thing - my understanding is not correct. The Bible does not contradict itself, only our understanding or belief of a Biblical subject contradicts itself. If something is not working out right, if we see something is off, we need to go back to the text, WITHIN ITS CONTEXT, and see what it's saying. To do this, we have to work to get rid of our preconceived notions which means we need to… gasp… admit we may be wrong.
I want to show you something written by Paul to the Galatians.
Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. 17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise. Galatians 3:15-18
If you slow down and look at this, do you see anything wrong based on what the popular teaching says? It appears Paul is saying we are under the Covenant, the promise, made to Abraham.
I spent two days in a study of Galatians chapter three because the Spirit of Elohim was trying to show me something but I was having problems understanding it because my mind was clouded by the preconceived notions of when the Covenants were established. I knew something was not working with what I believed and what I was reading and no commentary could correct what I was seeing. Finally, late in the evening of the second day, when my brain was too tired and was open to what the Spirit was showing me in Scripture, the light bulb came on.
Before we get started in the study, it’s important to open the mind to knowledge, concerning the term "Law" in Scripture. Because popular teaching throws the term Law straight at the Ten Commandments, people are confused when it comes to what is being talked about in Scripture, when the term “Law” is used.
There are several “Laws” in Scripture. There is the Ten Commandment Laws and the Statute Laws; but these Laws are not laws of works, they are Laws of obedience. The works of the Law were the works required for the salvation of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Messiah Yeshua, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; Romans 3:21-22
In Romans 3:21-22, we see the term “Law” used twice, consecutively; yet, in the manner taught by popular teaching, it seems as if they cancel each other out: it’s contradictory. This contradiction would come because of a lack of understanding of the term “Law” and the many different “laws”.
Since righteousness is gained by obedience (Rom 6:16), and the Ten Commandments, and Statutes, are a Law of obedience, the first Law listed is definitely talking about the Ten Commandments, saying, “aside from obedience to the Ten Commandments, the righteousness of God is witnessed by...”. We then see that God’s righteousness is “witnessed” by a "Law"; and prophets. Here we clearly see a different “law” used, other than the Laws of obedience.
Any time you see “Law and Prophets” this is the term used for the writings of the Bible which encompass most of the Old Testament Scriptures as we know them. Law is the Torah, which is the first five books of the Bible. The term Law, or Torah, in Scripture, refers to the Covenant promises and conditions; but, even though they are within the Torah, they DO NOT refer to the “works of the Law”; which is the ceremonial workings under the Law of Moses. This may sound a bit confusing but will become clearer by the end of the series. If it is not, then kindly email me and I will either try to answer or compile the questions into a new section of the study.
I said the Torah Law does not include the ceremonial Laws, the ceremonials laws are often described as “works of the Law”. In Galatians 3 verse 5 we read:
Galatians 3:5
5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
In Galatians chapter three, Paul is condemning the Galatians for going back to the “works of the Law” (Gal 3:5). When we look at this in context, we understand Paul talking about the ceremonial workings because he’s condemning them for getting circumcised (Gal 5:2) and keeping the ceremonial festivals FOR salvation or, as the Torah puts it, make one ceremonial clean (Gal 4:10). Understand that there is nothing wrong with circumcision or even practicing the ceremonial festivals, as long as one does not do it in thinking they can gain any type of Salvation, or special attention from God, for it.
To get to the meat of this section of the study, I said earlier that the Torah Law was the Covenant Law but DID NOT consist of the ceremonial workings of the Law. We’ve been taught that the Torah Law is the Old Covenant, but Galatians 3 is telling us otherwise.
Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. Galatians 3:15
Paul starts with telling us by an example of a human covenant, once "duly established", it can't be done away with (set aside) or changed (add to); "so it is in this case" - being the Covenant he's talking about.
The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. Galatians 3:16
Paul is talking about the Covenant made to Abraham, and that the promise was made to his seed. Paul then explains that the seed, to which the promise was made, was Messiah Y'shua and not Issac as it sounds in Genesis. Through Abraham, God was establishing a bride for His Son. This is the Great Mystery talked about in Ephesians 5:32.
What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. Galatians 3:17
Understanding the subject of this letter, in condemning the Galatians for returning to the ceremonial system for salvation, Paul gives a very clear timeline of when this "works" of the ceremonial law was established: 430 years AFTER the promise made to Abraham. He then makes a very CLEAR statement, it "does not set aside the covenant previously established by God". Then in Galatians chapter four, Paul then confirms what he is saying:
Galatians 4:22-26
22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman. 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, 24 which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar-- 25 for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children-- 26 but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.
In the imagery of the two woman, the bondwoman represents the bondage of the Old Covenant ceremonial workings. He then explains when this woman of bondage came to the children of Israel: on Mt Sinai. Mt Sinai was 430 years after the covenant with Abraham.
For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise. Galatians 3:18
God gave the inheritance through a promise, not through the law. If it's dependent upon the law then the promise is void, but the inheritance was given to Abraham through a promise; not Moses through a law.
Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. Galatians 3:19
Since Paul is telling us that the Covenant of Christ (which is by faith) was made with Abraham, he is then compelled to explain why the “workings of the law”, that given on Mt Sinai, what was called the ceremonial laws to make one clean, were establish: they were established because of transgression of that time. There had to be something to cover transgression until the Seed of the promise to Abraham came; which is Messiah Y'shua.
So, here’s what we are seeing: The Covenant we are in today, through Christ, is by faith; which is the Covenant that was made to Abraham: by faith (Gal 3:6-7). The “workings of the Law”, that came 430 years later (Gal 4:17), and given on Mt Sinai (Gal 5:25) is not by faith (Gal 3:12). This means, the Covenant, which we call “New” is actually the Covenant that was established with Abraham. Until the seed of that promise came, which is Y’shua, God brought in a “working of the Law” for the transgression of sin.
Understanding the context of Scripture on the Law, the Law given on in the desert was not any different than the one we are in today; as it was given from the pattern in Heaven, and is an example and shadow of Christ (Heb 8:4-5).This is to say, system and works of the Tabernacle is not an example of the works WE must do, in that ceremonial system; it's the work which our Lamb and High Priest does, which is Y’shua.
17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Torah Covenant (Law) or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17
Why wouldn’t God just go ahead and bring the Covenant and promise to Abraham at the point it was made? Abraham was just one man, and God needed a bride for this marriage. Through a pagan named Abram, who followed what God said without question, God made a marriage covenant for a bride and groom to come. You can read more about this in the article on the Great Mystery.