Genesis 2:
16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
Genesis 3:
3 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
Much of the misunderstanding concerning the ongoing validity and requirements of the moral law revealed to Moses, is some continue to believe it means needing to obey the law in order to be saved or regenerated. Even that has been refuted an unknown number of times, it continues to be thrown in the discussion on the matter.
Here we'll look at some scriptures dealing with the subject, starting with what the major nature of the of sin when it came into the world after the temptation concerning the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
What believers need to know about that is it was the temptation for Eve to autonomously determine what was good or evil. That of course meant whether or not God revealed it or not, or if it was outside of God's assessment, nature or laws.
After the fall, over time God eventually gave the details of the law through Moses, although it was revealed at different levels to some men before that, including Abraham.
Most of us understand this, so I want to go forward to the New Testament, post-resurrection scriptures to talk about the fact some of the laws were rescinded after Jesus Christ was resurrected, while others remain in place to this day, and will forever, as they're a reflection of the very nature of God, which can never change.
Here is the scripture most used that I have come across, which many believe reveals as having completely gotten rid of the law of God in its entirety.
Colossians 2:13-15
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
Where people get this wrong is in regard to the idea that all the law was nailed to the cross, which is interpreted as also including the moral law. The mistake is made in not taking it into the context of what Paul was writing about.
This was an obvious reference to the law that was written against us, but in particular with the sacrificial part of the law. This is what was nailed to the cross. We would no longer have to sacrifice animals to temporarily have our sins forgiven, because the lamb of God, in His death, had taken away sin forever from those being drawn to and putting their faith in Him.
With that of course is the fact we have had our sins forgiven as a result of our faith in Jesus Christ. The ordinances or laws no longer were taken into account, and forgiven and forgotten forever by God. That is of course Christianity.
What I've heard many suggest is this is a reference to the law as a whole being nailed to the cross. This makes no sense though in light of the numerous scriptures contradicting that assumption, which point to various laws and commandments we're not only to adhere to, but if we aren't adhering to them, are considered to be not in the faith; it's part of having discernment concerning who is or isn't a true believer.
So to conclude the moral law has been nailed to the cross and have the writers of the New Testament, under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, say we're still required to obey those laws, would make them to be utterly ridiculous and schizophrenic.
To press the issue, it would mean a person could murder, steal, rape or pillage the property, wife, children, among other heinous sins, and not be held accountable for it because the law has been nailed to the cross. That's nonsensical. Again, what was nailed to the cross was the law as a means of salvation, not as a means of living out our lives in our interactions with others.
Law referred to here is law of priesthood, not moral law (Hebrews 7:11-28)
Hebrews 7:
11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?
12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.
13 For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar.
14 For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.
15 And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,
16 Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.
17 For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof.
19 For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.
20 And inasmuch as not without an oath he was made priest:
21 (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:)
22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.
23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:
24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.
25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.
28 For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.
Where most make the assertion it confirms the law is no longer in effect is with verse 12, where it says since the priesthood has is "being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law."
This has nothing to do with obeying the moral law of God, but is in regard to the law concerning the priesthood, which had been supplanted by Jesus Christ as our high priest, and by all true believers now being priests unto our God.
The law concerning the priesthood and all its ordinances, including what they were to where, the sacrifice of animals, and all the rest, had been annulled and had been ended. Jesus Christ fulfilled all of that, and was of a totally different order than that of Aaron. The law of how we are to behave toward others, remained the same.
After all, how could God ever get rid of going good to our fellow human beings? It would cheapen the cross and change nothing. Also, the law was said to have been written in our hearts, which means they remain in place.
Implications of the law and the fall
37 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:
39 And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them ; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:
40 That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.
41 I am the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God.
An interesting an instructive thing to contemplate is tying in the fall and what Eve saw when being tempted, with the reason behind Numbers 15:37-41 and 1 John 2:15,16. All of them tie into what our eyes are seeing, meaning not in only what we are physically viewing, but in the accompanying lust associated with it.
For example, in Gen. 3:6, it says this about Eve and how she viewed the tree, "that it was pleasant to the eyes."
Also in Numbers 15, we should consider this: "that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:" - this goes back to temptation in garden.
Finally in 1 Jn. 2:15,16, John communicates this strong message:
Finally in 1 Jn. 2:15,16, John communicates this strong message:
15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
The reason we are to continue to read and remind one another of the requirements of the moral law as revealed to Moses, and confirmed numerous times in the New Testament, is because we're prone to be tempted by our lusts for various things in this world. As a matter of fact, that is the definition of world from the point of view of God. This is what came in with the fall, and a major reason the law still is in force, in order to keep us anchored in the commandments of God from an objective point of view.
It's also why there is so much sin and false Christianity in the world. If we throw out what God commands us, we become gods unto ourselves and do whatever our lusts and emotions drive us to do.
After all, if there is no law and it's been nailed to the cross, God supposedly had removed all restraint from us. The truth is many are literally casting off all restraint in order to live their lives in accordance with their own lusts.
There's a lot more to say about this, but just from these scriptures and comments you can see that God's moral law as revealed in the Bible is still the standard we are to live by, and the cross of Jesus didn't take that away, but reinforced it.
By giving the Holy Spirit to help us, we are able to live an obedient and godly live in this world. There will be times when we sin, but if we're His, we won't be able to live a life of sin.
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