Just because some aspects of the Law cannot be performed today because the conditions are unattainable, is not a valid excuse to randomly nullify God’s Law. For example, believers cannot perform Levitical sacrifices today in their backyards, because they need to be performed in Jerusalem, at the Temple, by a Levitical priest. However, believers can still live sacrificial lives. All of God’s Law still applies, it just needs to implemented Biblically.
Regarding the implementation of God’s Law Biblically, Gordon J. Wenham stated, “Instead of distinguishing between moral and civil laws, it would be better to say that some injunctions are broad and generally applicable to most societies, while others are more specific and directed at the particular social problems of ancient Israel. In this commentary the following position is assumed: the principles underlying the Old Testament are valid and authoritative for the Christian, but the particular applications found in the Old Testament may not be. The moral principles are the same today, but insofar as our situation often differs from the Old Testament setting, the application of the principles in our society may well be different too.” (1)
Believers are not in the position to pick and choose what laws they want to follow. They need to pursue all that they can in order to be wholly obedient to God.
ENDNOTES:
Regarding the implementation of God’s Law Biblically, Gordon J. Wenham stated, “Instead of distinguishing between moral and civil laws, it would be better to say that some injunctions are broad and generally applicable to most societies, while others are more specific and directed at the particular social problems of ancient Israel. In this commentary the following position is assumed: the principles underlying the Old Testament are valid and authoritative for the Christian, but the particular applications found in the Old Testament may not be. The moral principles are the same today, but insofar as our situation often differs from the Old Testament setting, the application of the principles in our society may well be different too.” (1)
Believers are not in the position to pick and choose what laws they want to follow. They need to pursue all that they can in order to be wholly obedient to God.
ENDNOTES:
- Gordon J. Wenham, The New International Commentary of the Old Testament: The Book of Leviticus, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1979), 35.
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