Several years ago I began hearing stories of how anti-Christian groups and governments started creating a fuss around the point of courtrooms having the Ten Commandments on their walls. This, of course, caused the Christians around me to speak of how despicable this was and how they thought that the Ten Commandments needed to stay! They were taught and they themselves taught others to obey the Ten Commandments. Interestingly enough, these same Christians are the ones who taught me in Sunday school classes that we are “not under the law, but under grace.” So, which is it? Are we supposed to obey the law, of which the Ten Commandments are a part, or do we not obey the law because we are under grace?

These portions of scripture are some of the most difficult for many of us to read. Some people just skim over the Old Testament and go straight to the New Testament, thinking that the Old Testament law is no longer applicable to us, while others just simply find it difficult to understand the relevance of the law. Though this article will not by any means be an exhaustive study of the Old Testament law, there are a few very practical principles we can apply to our Bible study that will help us to be fed and encouraged as we spend time daily in the Lord’s precious Word

What the Law Is Not

A helpful starting point in this discussion is to first consider what the law is not. We will be able to look at these portions of scripture much more practically and clearly if we can debunk some of the myths and misconceptions about what the law was and to whom it was given.

The Law Was Not a Way for Salvation 

It should be stated here that God never intended for the Mosaic law to be viewed as the Old Testament way of salvation. I can remember thinking as a child, “The children of Israel didn’t know about Jesus dying on the cross yet; so they were saved by keeping the law.” WRONG! Very wrong! I want to be very clear on this point, because it is such an important one. Salvation has ALWAYS been and always will be by God’s grace through faith. If salvation came through the law, then people in the Old Testament would have been saved through their own works. Paul argues in Romans 4:1-3 that if salvation came through works, then people would boast in themselves, thinking that they are awesome enough to earn God’s righteousness. Paul then says, “For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” I also want to note that Ruth and Rahab, neither of which were Jews living by the law, received salvation from the Lord based on their faith in God. Therefore, it can be said that the law was not an Old Testament way to salvation.

The Law Was Not a Moral Code

The Mosaic law was not just simply a moral code to obey. This can be a dangerous thought because it gives the idea that God desires only good behavior from people. God didn’t give the law to the people of Israel just so that His people would be well-behaved. What good does it do for God’s glory for people to be good, well-behaved, and moral? It does nothing! In fact, Satan loves it when people are good and moral! Being a moral, well-behaved person does nothing but boost the selfish ego of mankind. If we are all good people, why do we need saving? Why would we need a Savior? God had a much higher purpose in mind. The law taught people more about the holiness of God and it promoted holiness within the people of Israel. God is much more interested in helping people to be holy than He is helping people to be moral. God making people holy means making them more like Him! God wants us to look just like Jesus! It’s important to consider that morality follows holiness. If we strive for holiness, morality will follow, but if we only strive for morality we will only fall into pride. The law taught people about the holiness of God and how to be set apart from sin and set apart unto Him, which is a much deeper meaning than simple morality.

The Law Was Not a Replacement for Grace

I have often heard people say, “We are no longer under the law, we are under grace.” Though this is true, some may be tempted to think that God did not show grace in the Old Testament, especially during the time of the law. In fact, more often than I would like, people have argued that the God of the Old Testament is a God of judgment and the God of the New Testament is a God of love, mercy, and grace. I argue instead that God is a God of judgment, love, mercy, and grace always and forever! He is the same God in the Old Testament as He is in the New Testament. It is true that He was a God of wrath and judgment in the Old Testament, but He still is in the New Testament. The difference is that Jesus satisfied the wrath of God on the cross! It should also be noted, however, that God did give grace in the Old Testament. In fact, I heard someone say one time that the giving of the law itself was an act of grace.

The Law Was Not Written to Everyone

The Mosaic law was not written to everyone, but it was written specifically to the Jews.[i] It should be noted that the law was only effective for a specific amount of time for a specific people. There were 613 specific commandments from God to Moses for the children of Israel only and this law ended with the death of Jesus Christ.[ii] Often people view Old Testament Israel as just simply Old Testament Christians, but this is not necessarily true. We need to be careful here because if we are going to properly study scripture, we must understand that Israel Is Not the Church! We must recognize that there is a distinction between Israel and the Church. I will not dive any further into this issue here, but for the purposes of this study, just know that Israel is a completely different program that God is going to return to after the Church is raptured home to heaven. So, I can feel people asking, “Ok, so why is this so important?” I’m glad you asked!!! God gave the Mosaic law to Jews from the time of Moses to the death of Jesus Christ only. This means that the law does not apply to the Church. The law is not given to Gentiles or to anyone before the time of Moses or to the Church. In other words, God is not going to hold anyone outside of those parameters responsible for not obeying the law.

So, what about the Ten Commandments? Does this mean that the Ten Commandments are not written to us today? That is correct because the Ten Commandments were part of the law given to Moses specifically for the people of Israel. However, before you write me nasty emails and call me a heretic, let me further explain a couple more things. Remember I said before that God gave the law as a means of teaching people about Himself and His holiness. The character of God does not change. There are principles from the law that we can draw from that we can apply to our lives today. Though we do not obey the Mosaic law command “do not murder,” we do follow principles all throughout the New Testament that also teach that it is sin to murder. In Leviticus 18:22, God gives the law against homosexuality. Though we are no longer under the law, God’s character and holiness has not changed. He thus gives the same principles to the Church and teaches homosexuality to be sin in Romans 1:24-27 and in I Timothy 1:8-10. To anyone who may disagree with the idea that we do not hold specifically to the Ten Commandments, note that nine out of ten of the commandments are repeated in the New Testament. Keeping the Sabbath day is the only command not repeated in the New Testament and we worship on Sunday, not Saturday (which is the Sabbath day).

Let me illustrate the point this way. When I was growing up, my parents had there own house rules (laws). I was not allowed to eat whipped cream right out of the can. Can you believe that?! Parents, right? Anyway, I was under this house rule or law from the time I was born until the time I left home to be out on my own. Now, this may or may not have been a rule at your house, but in any case, unless you are one of my siblings, you were/are not under the laws of the Kidd house. After I grew up and left home, that law ended for me! One night after I finished buying my groceries (before I was married), I popped the top on a can of whipped cream and enjoyed it all the way home! That must have been how Peter and Paul felt when they got to enjoy that first sausage biscuit! It was fantastic. This house rule was for a specific people (the Kidd family) and it was for a specific time frame (from birth until I was no longer under their roof). But also consider this parallel; though you were not under the Kidd law to not eat whipped cream straight out of the can (Mosaic law), you probably have a similar code in your own house (New Testament commands).

How Does This Apply to Our Bible Study?

In conclusion to this first part of our discussion on the law, I would like to consider a few points of application of how these points can help us as we spend time in God’s Word every day. One of the most important principles in Bible study is to compare scripture with scripture. As we just discussed, we know that because we are the Church and not Old Testament Israel, the law does not directly apply to us. However, because God’s character never changes, God of the Old Testament is the God of the New Testament, we can compare passages from the law with the passages in the New Testament to know what principles do apply to us.

Furthermore, I pray that these points help to show that all scripture truly is profitable! Knowing that the law was not a way for salvation points to how God receives glory for the salvation of every soul, in both the Old Testament and New Testament. Salvation never came from man’s ability to be obedient to laws, but has always been because we have an all loving, merciful, and gracious God! Knowing that the law is more than a moral code is helpful because God receives glory in helping people to be holy. God loves it when people are conformed to the image of His Son. Knowing that the law does not replace grace helps us to see God’s grace through the passages of scripture detailing the law. Finally, knowing who the law was given to helps us to best understand the plans of God. God is so AWESOME!!! May He receive glory as we try to accurately study His absolute truth!

[i]. Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, Israelology: The Missing Link in Systematic Theology (Tustin: Ariel Ministries, 2001), 374.

[ii]. Ibid; 590; Charles C. Ryrie, Basic Theology (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 348-9; Roy B. Zuck, A Biblical Theology of the New Testament, electronic ed, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1994), 401-3.

We have spent much time in previous messages going over several key principles of Bible study. We have discussed points regarding the importance of context, reading the Bible literally or normally (God’s not trying to hide truth or trick us by saying one thing and meaning something else), and comparing Scripture with other Scriptures. Then at the end of January, we began looking at different genres of Scripture. We are doing this because each genre should be read and understood a little differently. For example, we read a newspaper differently than we read love letters from our spouses. We read comic books differently than novels, and poetry differently than this sermon article. Therefore, we started with Narrative and now we are ready to move on to Law. How exciting!!! I can already feel your enthusiasm as you think, “There’s nothing like reading the Mosaic Law books to get your mind juices going!”

I have spent time teaching and preaching this series once a month from the pulpit, but we will continue this message series through a series of articles in an attempt to be less interruptive to the preaching schedule and to be more consistent in this series. It will also provide a great platform to be able to lay down some practical principles in a written format so that they will be easier for everyone to study, remember, and apply.