By R. Michel Lankford
Matthew 5:17-20“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. (NKJV)
Jesus Christ's Specific Command:
"DO NOT THINK that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.
According to Jesus Christ (Yeshua the Messiah), the Son of the Living God, we are expressly commanded to make disciples and teach them to obey EVERYTHING that Messiah commanded (Matthew 28:19-20. It's part of the Great Commission).
Christ's fifth public command which we are commanded to teach; we are to teach people NOT even TO THINK, that the Messiah came to destroy the Law and the Prophets. Now, we know that Jesus Christ does not change (Hebrews 13:8).
So, since that is what we are commanded to teach then we should teach that Jesus Christ the Messiah did not come to abolish, destroy or do away with the Law or the Prophets. This is one of the scariest things I see in modern-day Christianity. The modern Christian church religious system routinely violates this Commandment of Jesus Christ on an extremely frequent basis. When it comes to this specific command of Christ, modern Christendom actually teaches people to do the direct opposite of what Christ commanded in this instance. Not only does modern Christendom think that Messiah did away with the Law, they actually teach that this is what He accomplished with His death and resurrection, and they teach it in direct opposition to His direct command. If we are not even allowed to think that Jesus Christ came to do away with or destroy the Law and the Prophets, then how can we possibly be right when we teach that that is what Messiah accomplished with his death and resurrection? If we are not allowed to think such a thing, then it cannot possibly be right to teach such a thing. The reason that I making such an emphatic point about this is because it is extremely dangerous to testify and declare that Jesus Christ is your Lord, your Master, and your Savior, while at the same time, you willfully, habitually and routinely do the exact opposite of what Jesus Christ specifically commanded. As it is written:
"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46 NRSV)
What Modern Christianity Widely Believes Teaches and Practices about God’s Law
(This is the theology of most of modern Protestant Christianity today)The reason That modern-day Christianity chooses not to keep the LORD’s Sabbaths, the reason that they refuse to honor the Feasts of the Lord, the reason that they don't study or even aim to keep hardly any of God's instructions contained in Genesis through Deuteronomy, and the reason that they bring pagan traditions into the church and offer these as worship to God and Jesus Christ in direct defiance of God's commands, in defiance of Jesus Christ and in defiance of the teachings of the apostles is because according to modern Christian theology, trying to keep God's Instructions only leads to condemnation because we cannot keep God's Laws and Instructions perfectly, and they say that since we cannot keep God's Laws and Instructions perfectly well, then they say that we should not aim for or try to keep God's Law at all.
In fact some will go to the extreme of teaching that if a person tries to obey God's Laws and Commandments, then that person is actually committing sin, because they claim that if a person tries to obey God's Laws and Instructions, then this they say is the equivalent of denying that what Jesus Christ did on the cross was sufficient. So essentially they claim that someone who tries to obey God's Laws, Commandments, and Instructions is actually guilty of denying Jesus Christ. Modern theology has labeled this idea as, "legalism."
Modern-day Christianity offers a unique solution to this self-imposed problem that their own theology has created. According to what they teach and practice, the way to avoid what they call legalism in many cases is to now teach, and to do the direct OPPOSITE of what God's Laws Commandments and Instructions requires the believer to do. What many end up teaching and doing is the direct OPPOSITE of what God's Law and Instructions teach, ostensibly to prove that they are not trying to be justified by their works, so they will often do the exact opposite of the works that God requires us to do, supposedly to demonstrate that they believe that we are saved by grace and Not by our works of the Law; (although, the logic of how one demonstrates and proves that they truly Love and believe God by doing the exact opposite of what He says He likes, escapes me at the moment, but that's a whole other discussion).
So to avoid what they have called legalism, Babylonian Christianity has now created a dysfunctional religious belief system in which what God has defined in Scripture as being good; (obeying and doing God's Laws Commandments and Instructions), is now being looked upon as though it were wicked, evil, or as though it were denying God. Conversely, Babylonian Christianity in practical terms also now identifies what God has defined as evil or sin (the violating God Laws Commandments and Instructions), as though it were now good, because they say that this proves that you are trusting God and Jesus Christ, and not trusting your own works of the law to save you. So according to them, the way to prove that I am not trying to justify myself by observing God's Holy Sabbaths is to purposely violate and dishonor God's Sabbaths. According to them, the way to prove that I'm not trying to get saved by avoiding what God calls idolatrous practices is to commit acts which Scripture clearly identifies as idolatrous behavior, but we now must do those same idolatrous behaviors, “In the name of Jesus.” That doctrinal approach to Scripture, to faith, and to grace sounds good and logical because we have heard it all our lives, but it's not Scriptural at all (See Isaiah 5:20-24).
The most frightening part is how strong the Babylonian religious spirit actually is. When you point out from Scripture, using the very words and teachings of Jesus Christ to clearly demonstrate the glaring inaccuracy of the Babylonian belief system when compared to Scripture, these Babylonian Christians; these people who claim to love God, who claim to love and claim to believe Jesus Christ, who claim to possess the same Holy Spirit which caused the Scriptures to be written and raised Christ from the dead, these very same people who claim to be full of God's love and grace are the most decidedly ungracious, whenever they encounter a fellow believer in Christ, who seeks to demonstrate their love for God and Jesus Christ by obeying what He commanded, instead of disobeying Him, to keep the Babylonian religious traditions of men. When you take a stand for God, for Jesus Christ, and for the Scriptures, the same people who claim to love God often get the angriest and take on the very same characteristics and behaviors of Jezebel and the prophets of baal of old. Jesus was entirely correct when He said that we would recognize the difference between true and false prophets, by their fruit (Matthew 7:15-20; cf. John 13:35).
The Truth: What God says was detestable to Him 5000 years ago, is still an equally detestable stench to Him today. Putting lipstick on a fresh pile of poop does not make poop pretty. It only defiles the lipstick and makes it unusable for its intended purpose.
It is absolutely true that I cannot obey God's Law perfectly well. It is also true that IF I depend solely on my own obedience to God's Law to either grant or guarantee my salvation, then I would be lost because I cannot keep God's law perfectly well and I would be condemned. That was the sound biblical teaching of rightly divided Old Testament, as well as New Testament teaching. The solution to that however IS NOT to break God's Law. The solution IS NOT to disobey and NOT to do the opposite of what God's Instructions say on purpose.
THE TRULY BIBLICAL SOLUTION IS TO LOVE GOD, TO ENTRUST ONESELF TO JESUS, AND TO OBEY GOD'S LAWS AND INSTRUCTIONS WITH GRACE, THROUGH THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Obeying God's Laws Commandments and Instructions is a matter of biblical discipleship AFTER being saved through Christ Jesus. Obeying God's Law is not for salvation, but it is required for true biblical discipleship after salvation. The only people who have any hope of obeying God are those who are born-again through God's Spirit in Jesus Christ. The unregenerate sinner whose mind and desires are controlled by his sinful nature both REFUSES and CANNOT subject himself to the Laws of Almighty God (Romans 8:5-8). So the only people on earth who can successfully obey God's laws and Commandments are the born-again and regenerated people (Ezekiel 36:25-27; Philippians 2:13; Matthew 12:48-50).
Please review Romans 8:5-8, and consider this:
Babylonian Christianity claims that they believe the Scriptures. So using their own logic with the Scriptures, that would have to mean that the sinner has no hope of subjecting himself and obeying God’s Commandments because they're carnal minded, and the born-again Christian does not subject himself to the laws of God because he is supposedly under grace. So by necessity, Babylonian Christian theology teaches that the mindset of the unregenerate sinner and the mindset of the born-again Christian produce essentially the same fruit or result?! Neither one is subject to God's Laws and Commandments?! If that were true, who is left to glorify God by their lifestyle in the world (Matthew 5:13-16)? So that would mean that the only difference between the sinner and saint is that one claims to believe Jesus Christ, and the other one does not? But then, how do I judge and evaluate what I truly believe if I do not measure what I claim to believe with what I do and how I choose to live?! (See 2 Corinthians 13:5; James 2:18).
Babylonian Christian theology encounters a serious problem when they encounter Matthew 5:17-20, because Babylonian Christian religious doctrine runs in direct contradiction to the exact words and teachings of Jesus Christ Himself, and they get very annoyed when people notice. That's because they claim to believe that all the Scriptures are true, so when they encounter Christ's fifth command in the New Testament, they have to shift and tinker with it because the plain text is perfectly clear, but it runs in direct contradiction to Babylonian Christian doctrine, so they are in a great dilemma.
“Jesus fulfilled it, so I do not have to obey it”
When one points out this clear statement from Jesus the Messiah in the New Testament, modern Christian theologians and apologists get incredibly hung up on the word, "FULFILL.” Here is the typical modern Christian theological response:"Well, since Jesus Christ FULFILLed the Law, then Christians who believe Jesus Christ, and have received Him as their Lord and Savior, are not obligated to keep God's Law or Commandments any longer.
Some theologians will even go so far as to suggest that if we try to follow Christ's example (1 John 2:6), and we try to obey God's Standards, Laws, and Commandments just as Jesus Christ did, then some theologians will openly state that to do this is the equivalent of denying Jesus Christ, because they say that when you try to obey God's laws as Jesus did, then this is the same as claiming that what Jesus accomplished on our behalf was not sufficient.
That argument sounds very logical and convincing, until you realize that such an argument forces you to violate an enormous amount of the New Testament, as well as forcing you to ignore the standards of the Old Testament. There is a plethora of New Testament Scripture telling us to obey the Commandments (James 1:19-27; Romans 8:5-8; Matthew 5:17-19; Matthew 15:3 John 12:49-50; Matthew 7:21; John 14:15; John 14:21; John 15:10; 15:14; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:22-24; 1 John 5:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 14:12; that's not an exhaustive list, but you get the idea anyway). In order to do away with God's Laws and Commandments, you must necessarily do away with a lot of the teachings that were written by the apostles after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That should be enough to convince anyone, but if for some reason all those passages are not enough to convince you, then the modern theological point of view creates another incredible dilemma.
How Babylonian Christianity Turns Baptism into Sin
If for some reason the fact that Christ “Fulfilled” the Law actually means that believers no longer have to obey God's Standards, Laws, Commandments, and His Instructions anymore; moreover, if modern theologians are correct, and if the believer in Christ who tries to obey God's Laws Commandments and Standards is in fact guilty of denying Christ, because doing such things supposedly denies that what Jesus Christ did was enough, if the modern theology is correct, then all of modern traditional churches claiming Christianity are in fact guilty of heresy and stand condemned for denying Christ, if modern theologians are correct (which they aren't, but if they were, almost every traditional Christian would stand condemned using their own standards).Why? The reason I say that if modern theology were correct we would all stand condemned is because every single Catholic and Protestant church still religiously practices baptism. If modern theology is correct every single church that practices baptism is guilty of heresy, and using their own standard, they would also by virtue of their continuing to baptize, they would be guilty of denying that what Jesus Christ fulfilled was sufficient. Here's why I say that.
In Matthew 3:15, Messiah required John the baptizer, to baptize Him, "In order to FULFILL ALL righteousness.” Here's the key point. The word fulfill in Matthew 3:15, is the EXACT same Greek word (Strong’s Greek #4137) fulfill in Matthew 5:17.
The only difference is how modern theology and culture applies the exact same word. When it comes to baptism, we never look at new converts and say to them that you should never be baptized because Jesus Christ fulfilled baptism for you, so if you do get baptized, then you would be guilty of denying that what Jesus Christ did to fulfill it for you was enough. On the contrary when it comes to honoring Matthew 3:15, we use the fact that Jesus fulfilled all righteousness through baptism as an example of how we should walk.
However, when we encounter the same exact Greek word fulfill in Matthew 5:17, we now tell the same Christian that if he tries to copy what Christ fulfilled in trying to obey God’s Law as Christ did, then suddenly he is supposedly guilty of denying that what Jesus Christ did was enough. How does that work?!
I say again as I've said before, absolute truth cannot contradict absolute truth, by definition. If the word fulfill means that we honor Him when you copy His example in baptism in Matthew 3:15, then how can we possibly be dishonoring Christ when we seek to copy obeying the Father's Commandments, even though Jesus fulfills that as well?
The problem is not with the Scripture. The problem is that with baptism we have been traditionally conditioned to accept that copying what Christ fulfilled in that instance is good and praiseworthy. Conversely, we have been equally trained and conditioned to believe that copying Christ's example in obeying what Christ fulfilled when it comes to honoring God's Laws and Commandments as in Matthew 5:17-20, has been given the exact opposite meaning and connotation by the religious traditions of men.
We Must Learn to Face the Facts
FACT: Messiah specifically said that He did not speak or act on His own initiative. On The contrary, He only spoke and only did what Almighty God the Father told Him to do (John 5:30; John 7:28; John 8:28; John 8:42; John 10:18; John 12:49; John 14:10). So, by necessity, that means that when Jesus Christ the Messiah spoke what He did in Matthew 5:17-20, then Messiah was speaking ONLY what God Almighty directly told Him to say, and nothing else.
Questions: Was Yeshua (Jesus) Who is the Messiah sent by the One True Almighty God, was He successful in doing what Almighty God sent Him to do? Was Yeshua, (Jesus) Who is the Messiah sent by the One True Almighty God, was He also successful in avoiding what Almighty God told Him NOT to do? Since the answer to both of those questions is YES, then the end result of what Jesus Christ accomplished, through His perfect obedience to God's Laws, what He accomplished through His atoning death on our behalf, and what He accomplished through His glorious resurrection from the dead, by Messiah's Own Words, His fulfilling of His God-given mission, COULD NOT have brought about the abolishing, destroying, or the doing away with God's Standards, Laws, and Commandments, or the teachings of the Prophets, because Messiah Himself specifically said that successfully fulfilling the mission that God sent Him on, would not accomplish or bring about that kind of result. Those are Christ's words and teachings, not my own.
FACT: God openly declares that He will not do anything without revealing it to the prophets first (Amos 3:7). God's word contains literally hundreds of prophecies concerning the Messiah and what He would accomplish. There are even two prophets that predict his death for our sake (Daniel 9:26; Isaiah 53). If we understand the prophetic meaning of the Feast of First Fruits, then we could clearly see that even Christ's resurrection was in fact prophesied as well. The fact is that in all of the prophetic teachings of Scripture, there is not a single prophecy of Scripture from Genesis to Malachi that even indicates that after Messiah dies on our behalf, believers will no longer be obligated to honor and obey God's Commandments, Laws and Instructions. The only major difference is that when the New Covenant is completely accomplished, then God's Law will be written on our hearts and minds (Jeremiah 31:31-34), but there is absolutely no indication that the Law will change or be abolished after Christ's death.
FACT: There are 46 parables of Jesus Christ. There are 13 of them describing how the Kingdom of Heaven functions. There are 245 direct imperative Commandments of Jesus Christ in the New Testament. There are countless other pieces of advice, instructions and teachings which are not direct commands and imperatives. Throughout the hundreds of statements that Jesus made in the New Testament, there is not a single statement or teaching of Jesus Christ that even hints at the idea that after His death, believers will no longer be obligated to learn, or that we will no longer be obligated to respect God's Commandments Laws and Instructions after the Son of Man has finished His sufferings. Jesus didn't teach it in the entire New Testament, not even once.
In point of fact, the reverse is actually true. There are dozens of places where Messiah specifically teaches people to respect and obey what God Commanded in the Law, but there is not a single teaching of Christ that says after I die on your behalf, you will not be obligated to respect and honor those things anymore. Now, let's use our God-given brains.
If Almighty God was going to change or redefine His fundamental definitions of sin and righteousness, if He was going to change the fundamental definitions of what pleases Him and what doesn't, or if He was going to change the fundamental practices between what He honored, and what He does not, then I guarantee you that the prophets would have prophesied it, the Messiah would have openly stated it, and the apostles would have all taught and practiced it, because that is a huge paradigm shift. That would be a huge reversal for God to make, and God would not have merely hinted at such a huge change in His divine will, He would've stated it outright, and He would've stated it out of the mouth of multiple witnesses in prophecy before He accomplished it so that the truth of it could be well-established, but that is not what He did.
FACT: Almighty God anointed 40 biblical writers with the same Holy Spirit over thousands of years. He caused them to write the Scriptures, all the Scriptures they wrote is anointed and appointed by God. All of it is profitable and beneficial for us to define our doctrine. All of it (not just some of it, but all of it) is profitable to reprove, to correct, and to train us in God's righteousness. All of it is intended to work together to make is completely furnished and well equipped for how God intended us to live and serve Him (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Those are Paul's own words, referring to the Scriptures, and specifically to the Old Testament Scriptures because the New Testament had not been compiled when Paul wrote those words. Nonetheless, taking the Whole Testament of Scripture together there are 40 Biblical writers.
Out of those 40 biblical writers:
· Only one (1) does not mention God or the Commandments in any context whatsoever (that is the book of Esther).
· One (1) biblical writer APPEARS to teach that believers are no longer obligated to keep the Law and the Commandments, because we are saved by Grace. That is how many people choose to interpret Paul and his writings. There is however a BIG problem with drawing that conclusion from Paul's writings, in that on multiple occasions, Paul Himself specifically says that he did not teach against keeping the Law or the Commandments God gave to Moses. (Acts 24:14-16; Acts 25:7-8; Acts 28:16-18). So based on Paul's own specific statements about his beliefs and teachings, we could easily be misinterpreting Paul, and drawing the wrong conclusions from his teachings. I based that on Paul's own words, not my own ideas.
· All of the remaining 38 biblical writers throughout the Old and New Testament specifically state either by direct statements or by example that the whole duty of man is to love God and to keep God's Commandments.
Now, taking all of these facts into consideration, I challenge and exhort you before Almighty God and the Messiah, to simply do the math. What are the odds that it is good, that it is right, that it is pleasing to God, what are the odds that it is safe and sound doctrine to continue teaching that because Jesus Christ the Messiah fulfilled the Law of God, that believers today are no longer obligated to learn and obey it?
If you are wise, then you do not want Almighty God calling you a liar on the Day of Judgment (Revelation 21:7-8; cf. 1 John 2:1-6). Beloved, it hardly gets more dangerous than to claim that we love God, to claim that we have Jesus as our Lord and Savior at the very same time that we teach and do the direct opposite of what both He and Almighty God the Father speaking as One has commanded us. It is a dangerous, heretical, destructive, self-delusion (James 1:21-22 cf. 1 John 1:5-7), and we must repent from teaching and walking in such heresy, because if we don't many will be deceived, many will perish, and it will be our fault, because we were sent to be salt and light. We were sent to teach people how to do and obey everything that Jesus Christ commanded. We were told not to think that Jesus Christ came to abolish the Law and the Prophets, and yet that is exactly what modern-day Christianity ends up teaching by tradition and practice. IT'S HERESY AND FALSE TEACHING. Beloved, I am not teaching that because I've gotten “carried away” in the Old Testament, as some might glibly accuse. I am teaching it BECAUSE I BELIEVE JESUS CHRIST, and I take what HE said very seriously. It is written:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.If you honestly believe that you can successfully DO the Will of Almighty God the Father in Heaven, by doing the exact opposite of what He says He desires and requires in His Laws, Commandments, and Instructions, then you are seriously mistaken if not delusional Since God cannot deny or contradict Himself (2 Timothy 3:12; Psalm 119:142; Psalm 19:7-14). God's Truth and His will, is revealed in His Laws, Commandments, and Instructions (Romans 15:4), as well as being more clearly revealed and understood through His Son Yeshua (Jesus, John 14:6).
"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
"And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
"And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.
"Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
"The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall." (Matthew 7:21-27 (NASB bold and underlining added for emphasis)
If we go on teaching people that Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law and the prophets, and that because Jesus fulfilled them, then this means that He did away with them, we are then preventing people from learning, let alone successfully doing the will of God. Not only is teaching the abolition of God's Law false teaching according to Jesus, but we are also putting people's eternal salvation at risk by teaching the opposite of what Jesus said He did and came to do. We must repent!
Brother R. Michel Lankford
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