Day 56, or February the 25th. The law is all
for our benefit. Our thoughts today are rooted
in Deuteronomy chapter 17, verse 10. Be careful
to do everything they instruct you to do. Now
the big picture surrounding this verse. The regulations
of Deuteronomy are very extensive and dominate
the book. Throughout the centuries, rabbis and
other Jewish spiritual leaders have debated these
laws and decrees and have produced a substantial
amount of comment and explanation called the
Talmud. This ancient writing complements the
Jewish Torah, which is what Christians call the
Pentateuch, or Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers,
and Deuteronomy. The Talmud is highly respected
amongst Jews, and is second only to the Torah.
A lovely thought to bear in mind is that Jesus
came to fulfil the law, and we read in Luke 24
verse 27 what happened on the road to Emmaus
after Jesus was raised from the dead. It reads,
Then Jesus took them through the writings of
Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all
the scriptures the things concerning himself.
Not just the first five books of Moses, but all
the prophets as well. What a wonderful Bible
study to have experienced. Now our action step
for today. Jesus was very familiar with all these
laws. When he was confronted by a woman who had
been caught in the act of adultery in John chapter
8, he bases his response on Deuteronomy chapter
17, verse 7. The witness must throw the first
stones, and then all the people may join in.
Jesus adds, Let the one who has never sinned
throw the first stone. Did you ever notice that
whenever Jesus quotes the Old Testament law,
it's only to urge repentance, never just to condemn?
There's a great principle here. The Bible was
never meant to condemn anyone to hell, but to
warn them and plead with them to repent and avoid
condemnation. Our God does not want us to perish.
He pleads with us to repent. In truth, the God
of the Old Testament is really the same forgiving,
loving God we see in the person of Jesus in the
New Testament.