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Some have asserted that the Old Law, meaning the Law of the Old Testament, is obsolete. I guess the inference is that either the New testament reflects a new Law, or the Law of the Old Testament is disregarded by Lord Jesus. They infer that the Old Law can be ignored. But is that what Lord Jesus really expects us to do? And is that what a passage in the Bible such as Hebrews 6:1 which says “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God...” means? As 2 Timothy 3:16 says “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness...,” it behooves me to address passages such as Hebrews 6:1 in answering these questions.
The short answer is that, to the extent Jesus refers to the Old Law, it is not obsolete. There are many passages in the Old Law that Jesus refers to in his teachings. A notable one concerns the issue of divorce. In Matthew 19:3, the Pharisees go up to Jesus and ask him if it’s lawful to divorce one’s wife. Jesus in verses 4-6 responds, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘THEREFORE A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND HIS MOTHER AND HOLD FAST TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
Where can we find the passage that Jesus is quoting? It is in Genesis 2:24, of the Old Testament or Old Law if you will, which says, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” It appears then that Jesus did not discard at least some passages in the Old Law as being obsolete.
To be sure, Jesus in Matthew 5:17-18 says “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law...”
So where does that leave us? Some may say to look at Hebrews 6:1 stated above. In deference to 2 Timothy 3:16 saying at ALL Scripture is breathed out by God, we must consider what this passage means in our being taught by the Scriptures. We must also consider 1 Timothy 6:3-4 which says, “If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing...” Is there a contradiction between the two passages?
We must consider what is meant by “the elementary doctrine of Christ” in Hebrews 6:1. Commentators wrote that the doctrine referred to here is the one Jesus first reflects in what he says to the Jews. At that point, Jesus is not ready to say to the Jews to ignore any part of the Old Law, including the Laws regarded as ceremonial. Commentators wrote that “leaving the elementary doctrine of Christ” involves leaving the ceremonial part of the Old Law, which is parts of the Law that require that certain acts be performed in fulfillment of the Law. Arguably, one such ceremonial Law involves keeping kosher. In that regard, there is support in Matthew 15:10-11 in which Jesus says, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” This opened the door to eating things from a pig as well as things that crawl on the floor of the ocean such as lobsters, crabs, oysters and shrimp, does it not? So, the “elementary doctrine of Christ” is the part of the Old Law namely, the ceremonial Laws, which Jesus does not at first tell the Jews they can ignore.
In the context of the whole Bible, though, Hebrews 6:1 is not necessarily a command. The Book of James leaves it up to Christians to choose whether they are to abide by the whole Law of the Old Testament, or abide by Lord Jesus’ summation of the Law and the prophets, but he give us a caveat if we strive to abide strictly by the Old Law. In James 2:8-10 he says, “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For WHOEVER KEEPS THE WHOLE LAW BUT FAILS IN ONE POINT has become guilty of all of it.” Much easier to abide by Lord Jesus’ summation which consists of two Commandments: That we love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and that we love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
In fairness, James may have been addressing Jews in the above passages. But if Jews abide by the teachings of Jesus, and many of them, including Jesus followers did, are they not as much Christians as all other Christians? Paul was Jewish before he became a Christian, was he not?
So, is the Old Law obsolete? I tell you, by no means.
The short answer is that, to the extent Jesus refers to the Old Law, it is not obsolete. There are many passages in the Old Law that Jesus refers to in his teachings. A notable one concerns the issue of divorce. In Matthew 19:3, the Pharisees go up to Jesus and ask him if it’s lawful to divorce one’s wife. Jesus in verses 4-6 responds, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘THEREFORE A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND HIS MOTHER AND HOLD FAST TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
Where can we find the passage that Jesus is quoting? It is in Genesis 2:24, of the Old Testament or Old Law if you will, which says, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” It appears then that Jesus did not discard at least some passages in the Old Law as being obsolete.
To be sure, Jesus in Matthew 5:17-18 says “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law...”
So where does that leave us? Some may say to look at Hebrews 6:1 stated above. In deference to 2 Timothy 3:16 saying at ALL Scripture is breathed out by God, we must consider what this passage means in our being taught by the Scriptures. We must also consider 1 Timothy 6:3-4 which says, “If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing...” Is there a contradiction between the two passages?
We must consider what is meant by “the elementary doctrine of Christ” in Hebrews 6:1. Commentators wrote that the doctrine referred to here is the one Jesus first reflects in what he says to the Jews. At that point, Jesus is not ready to say to the Jews to ignore any part of the Old Law, including the Laws regarded as ceremonial. Commentators wrote that “leaving the elementary doctrine of Christ” involves leaving the ceremonial part of the Old Law, which is parts of the Law that require that certain acts be performed in fulfillment of the Law. Arguably, one such ceremonial Law involves keeping kosher. In that regard, there is support in Matthew 15:10-11 in which Jesus says, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” This opened the door to eating things from a pig as well as things that crawl on the floor of the ocean such as lobsters, crabs, oysters and shrimp, does it not? So, the “elementary doctrine of Christ” is the part of the Old Law namely, the ceremonial Laws, which Jesus does not at first tell the Jews they can ignore.
In the context of the whole Bible, though, Hebrews 6:1 is not necessarily a command. The Book of James leaves it up to Christians to choose whether they are to abide by the whole Law of the Old Testament, or abide by Lord Jesus’ summation of the Law and the prophets, but he give us a caveat if we strive to abide strictly by the Old Law. In James 2:8-10 he says, “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For WHOEVER KEEPS THE WHOLE LAW BUT FAILS IN ONE POINT has become guilty of all of it.” Much easier to abide by Lord Jesus’ summation which consists of two Commandments: That we love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and that we love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
In fairness, James may have been addressing Jews in the above passages. But if Jews abide by the teachings of Jesus, and many of them, including Jesus followers did, are they not as much Christians as all other Christians? Paul was Jewish before he became a Christian, was he not?
So, is the Old Law obsolete? I tell you, by no means.
