What convinced me to rethink how I had previously viewed the Scriptures was realizing how people are basically lawless and rebellious inside and I had to face that fact about myself. In looking at the Scriptural commentary, I saw that God is loving and just and put His laws into place so that we would know what righteousness looked like, since He called us to be like He is, and He is righteous. Quite honestly, we couldn't figure it out on our own. We needed His mind and He provided His words (commandments, statutes, judgements, law, testimonies - however you find it explained as you work your way through the written Word), then to make it perfectly clear, He gave us His Word made flesh who challenged the complications of the Jewish system that had developed over the years of people extorting the power of having authority without having the character of God. The indictments Jesus makes against the authorities who misused, misinterpreted, and tied up the people are spot on and well earned. But with the Bible in hand, each of us has the resources to find out what it was that God was intending. So when I looked, I realized that the contrast is between God's way (the unquestionably right way as God sees it) and the world's way (which included the gentile/pagan ways and the distorted Jewish ways). In the old testament, the people were encouraged to walk in the way of JWHW and not in the ways of the nations with their other deities. Later the warnings were to avoid the corruptions of their religious system and come back to the instructions that JWHW had given. Jesus fleshed this out. The disciples/apostles and Paul continued that comparison.
In light of that, I see the verses in Galatians and in Colossians to be Paul reminding them that other philosophies are vain, regardless of how the people around judge you - the laws as God gave them are the only safe place for instruction on how to live a righteous life. That we all missed the mark, and some of us to awful degrees missed the mark, is evident, and Jesus is that final once for all sacrifice, doing in reality what the former sacrificial system illustrated. We are SAVED by the precious death and resurrection of our Savior/Messiah. We never could be saved through trying to observe the laws, but that didn't set aside the validity of the laws God gave. He didn't waste His time telling us how to live. As a good parent, He taught His own, and as we parents can understand, the children miss the mark at times, and those consequences teach us that staying close to living as God said is the better idea.
So whether it's murder, adultery, disrespect, Sabbath keeping, of deciding what's most important in my life (what will I worship, what will I trade), or what ever the topic is, the words in Scripture that we have from God to show us how to make life work are there and they do exactly that - give us wisdom to make the right choice. It's always up to us to choose, but all that we need for life and godliness are given to us in our knowledge of Him. Jesus and JWHW spoke the same words. Jesus said, I and my Father are one. And the Holy Spirit will remind us of those sensible words - not other words.
I came to realize that I've shot myself in the foot by trying to divide out the covenants, so I quit looking at it that way. God cut many deals with His people, but He Himself doesn't change. If we want to know Him and pursue Him, we need to look beyond any "contractual checklists" that we put up between the old testament and the new, because those can cause us to stumble. Rather, look at what Jesus said - this is the new deal through my blood - now you have access and a bold entrance to find mercy in a time of need. It never was something we could earn, but if we want to choose the choices that God recommends, we will find those examples in the words (laws, testimonies, statutes, judgements) of God that bring a light to our paths and obey Him with appropriate reverence and that fear that is the beginning of wisdom.
