The Laws Of God : Are Some More Important Than Others And Are They Still Relevant Today?
Everyone knows a bit about the laws of God. I don't think I know anyone who has not heard of the Ten Commandments. Most may not be able to recite all ten but they do know that there are ten specific laws that, when followed, keep a person free from sin.
God's laws are written of in many places of the Bible. As a matter of fact, one could say that there is not a part of the Bible where the law is not mentioned. But the bulk of the law, that is the details in the law that God gave to the Israelites, is recorded in the books of Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy.
Among the list of laws there are the well known ones and there are the not so well known ones. There are the loved ones and there are the laws that are not loved. There are even laws that make sense to most and laws that do not make sense to the majority. So, are there laws that are more important than others and are there some laws that we can forget about and others we have to remember?
The Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments is a list of ten commands that the Lord gave the Israelite people to follow. They are ten laws that they were ordered to obey. The Ten Commandments were spoken of in both the Old and the New Testaments and they are probably the best known commandments of God today.
They are found in The Book of Exodus Chapter 20 and among them are the ones that we are all taught not to do : Do not lie, do not steal, do not kill. These three are the ones that most people agree upon.
People generally agree that if these ten commandments are obeyed, then all of the laws of God will be obeyed.
Why is this?
Well, the first command is to have no other gods besides the Lord God. If the Lord God is the only god that people serve, and they serve Him as God, then they will obey Him. If, however, they do not see Him as God, or share worship of Him with other foreign gods, then it will be easy for them to disobey Him. Serving God as God makes it much easier to obey His commands.
The Books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy
Within the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy, we find the list of all the laws that, if broken, cause us to sin. We literally read God's list of things that are wrong. It is an extremely detailed list and God is quite specific about some things and adamant on others. There are words like 'abomination' which is the feeling of extreme disgust and hatred according to Noah Webster. There are chapters on cleanliness and what one should do if he is found unclean. There are passages concerning freedom and slavery, as well as marriage and single life. In short, there are laws for everything.
Some of the laws that people either have a problem with, do not understand, or dismiss entirely are:
- The laws concerning the priests
- The laws concerning what you should eat
- The laws concerning cleanliness
- The laws concerning slavery
Are these laws insignificant? Or do they matter less than others?
The answer is no.
Every law of God is important and when a law is broken, it is a sin.
Do you think the Bible condones slavery?
Does The Bible Condone Slavery?
In The Book of Exodus and in The Book of Deuteronomy, slavery and the laws concerning slavery exists. Many do not like to talk about these laws, and some Christians avoid them entirely because they think that God condones slavery.
The fact of the matter is, once there is sin in the world, slavery will exist. Slavery exists today and it will exist tomorrow too. People like to have charge over others and in some cases, people end up having charge over others through certain circumstances. God made laws concerning slavery because slavery existed and continues to exist. Consider the fact that mankind is slave to sin and the only thing that frees us from that slavery is salvation through Jesus Christ. We are released and free to be about our business. The only thing is, we make our business aligned with the Lord's and we choose to go and serve Him.
Since, according to my reasoning above, the only righteous slavery belongs to the Lord, then I would have to believe that the Lord does not condone slavery and indeed wants all men to be free from that type of life. Hence the jubilee:
"And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family." Leviticus 25:10 K.J.V.
What Do The Priests Have To Do With Me?
The laws concerning the priests have everything to do with us. The priests and the way they dressed and presented themselves in the Holy of Holies was and is desperately important. If the priests did not follow the rules that God gave them and entered the place without His approval, they would suffer the consequences and so would the rest of the people as well. The sacrifice that they presented would not be acceptable to God and everything that they did wrong would be a sin on them and a sin on the people they represented. The priests' actions are what led God to be pleased with the people or displeased.
So What Does That Have To Do With Me Today?
Well, although it may seem so, God's law does not have an expiry date and so it is in effect today. These rules were and are very specific and according to the law of God a priest must fulfill these specifications so that his sacrifice can and will be accepted. Jesus fulfills these specifications and not only that, He is the sacrifice. That is what these laws have to do with you. every law concerning the priests and the sacrifice is a law that Jesus obeyed and fulfilled making His sacrifice acceptable to God for all eternity.
Are All The Laws Of God Relevant Today And Does He Still Hate That Which He Calls Abomination?
Yes, yes and yes. The Lord still hates sin and those who break the law are still under sin and slaves to sin if they have not repented and attained salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. What was an abomination to Him then, is an abomination to Him now. What He says we should not eat, we should not eat.
Do We Have To Obey Every Law?
We should. But we can't. This body is a fleshly one, prone to sin and there is no escaping it. Through grace, the Holy Spirit does prevent us from sinning often. We will slip because we are not Jesus Christ. He is the only human who never sinned. The laws of God are relevant and should be respected. What God says is wrong is wrong and there is no getting away from it. He does not bargain and He does not need your opinion on it. It is so and it is great because we have an advocate, sent by the Father, a Brother who has obeyed all and fulfilled all and it is on His ticket that we are able to have eternal glory.
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Comments
AUTHORHi Laurie,
Thanks for reading. I appreciate your contribution and agree that idolatry is a form of slavery. There is much slavery rampant in the world. People are literally stolen from their homes and there is a world-wide problem with Human trafficking. People slave away day and night to make money. People are slaves to their looks. Slaves to their careers. Who can deny that slavery does not exist today?
As for Brian - I believe his posts were deleted by a moderator. I myself denied some but the rest were probably taken off.
HI Northwind
I absolutely loved your post. The way you spoke on slavery makes so much sense. The way you worded it makes it much easier to understand.
I for one voted that God did not condone slavery. I think a lot of people misunderstand what Jesus meant. A lot of the scriptures are misunderstood by some. We have to remember, it is like codes to us.
Jesus spoke in parables and had a reason for it. I would love to have been able to read the very original words written by the apostles. Man that would be so cool.
To some it may seem like Jesus does condone it (slavery) however like you said it was the way of the world then and now. I never looked at the way you explained it. It does exist today and that is a sin to God.
The idolatry and worshiping other Gods is what I guess you can call a form of slavery for sure.
Like you state, Jesus and God do not need anyone's ok for what they believe is right or wrong. God created not only the world but he breathed life into us to allow us to live. He needs no justification for what he does or does not approve of. He also needs no justification for his punishments. He is the Almighty Creator and highest of high.
You bring up a lot of good points. The priests is another good point.
Look at the way some of the priests have handled themselves. Not in a very good manner.
I believe the bible/Gods words are the only words that predict the future. A lot of those scriptures are now in existence.
Like you said , we are humans and have sin set into us past, present and future. However God will always forgive us if that is what we wish.
Jesus is the only man that ever lived without sin and justification to all he does, however he does not need to be justified about a single thing.
As for the comment (Brian, Canada) I was a bit curious to how rude he was, as I probably would have left a remark to him also. In a good way.
I am from Canada so I guess I was curious in that way.
Anyway thanks for the good read
Laurie
- AUTHOR
Thank you for your comment, shofarcall. We can learn a lot from the Old Testament and should not neglect it.
The Lord bless you as well.
Hi North Wind,
Thank you for being brave enough to write on this subject. So many today take no notice of the Old Testament whereas it is the root of the New and we can learn much from our study of this precious Book. When we have the eyes to see, Jesus is everywhere in the Old Testament.
God Bless.
- AUTHOR
Hello David Campeau Jr, thank you for that point. There are some Jewish traditions that were made up by them and not given to them by God. I had forgotten that fact. I appreciate your comment!
That is awesome David. John and I have talked about how much is God's law, and how much Jewish law. We see the same thing with all the different Christian denominations splitting off and making man law until the Body Of Christ is in fragments all over the place. When America was young there were basic faiths, but no so many as to divide up the Republic in tiny pieces. My daddy use to tell me that if you could remember nothing else about the good stuff in life - everything in moderation, so it doesn't become your life. :)
TexasLadyJuanita, Many of the Kosher laws that the Jews follow are not found in the Bible. For instance, there is no law that says you have to have a separate sink for meat and vegetables There is also no law against eating meat and drinking milk. The law as written was that you cannot seethe a kid in its mother's milk which is totally different from eating meat and drinking milk. You must remember the Pharisees and Scribes made the law a burden for the people by adding all kinds of man made regulations to it, which Yeshua rebuked. I think what is most important regarding food is that we eat foods that are clean. In my 3 years of doing so, I haven't been sick once (not even a mild cold). Before that, I got sick 3-4 times per year. Blessed be the Most High God YHWH!
Thanks North Wind.
- AUTHOR
Well it seems that everyone is praying for Brian In Canada. Thanks k12rswow, for joining in.
@TexasLadyJuanita - do not feel bad when you feel you have to deny a comment. It is your right to do so. Distasteful banter back and forth really should happen on the forums and not on a hub (my opinion). As a matter of fact, I do not even think it should happen there.
Brian,
You are a privileged soul. Your name has been brought forth to the most high for consideration. I prayed for you also. Brian, ask the Father to reveal himself to you without audience. Just you and him.
Peace
Hey NorthWind, I so agree. I prayed for Brian yesterday and did a special comment to him in a different hub, trying to reach him with my personal Christian experience. We never know when we may communicate well or not, but we must pray for those who are in need of it, and truly try to communicate. Having said all of that, I still felt that I needed to delete the nasty insult that he had typed on that hub.
- AUTHOR
Hi teacherjoe52,
Thank you for your words of wisdom and for your caring for someone else. Thank you for reminding me to pray and thank you for being a Canadian :)
God bless you and keep you!
- AUTHOR
k1rswow - Thanks
Hi TexasLadyJuanita,
Thanks so much for reading and for your input. I agree with you when you say how hard it is for us to live kosher. I know the cost of things and it is not pretty.
I do believe that asking what Jesus would do in every situation is a good guide. I also believe that consulting the Scripture is a guide as well. The Old and the New Testament, I believe are one. Everything about Jesus is prophesied in the Old and everything that was prophesied in the Old is fulfilled in the New. In the book of Isaiah it says that we are grafted into the same tree. He is the vine and we are the branches. God's laws are laws that are eternal and I cannot say that what is a sin for one group of people is not a sin for another group. Sin is sin but redemption is available for all.
Thank you for your comment, I appreciate it.
Hi NorthWind,
Being a naturalpathic practiononer I speak from experiance when I say the dietary laws, clean and unclean,sex during menstration and after childbirth or amongst family members, eating animals blood, raw or semi-cooked foods, and the Sabbath Year rest are still very important
today.
Yes it is only in Jesus that we are justified.
As for Brians comment, please do not believe that pitiful soul represents all Canadians. I am proof of it as I am a Canadian. Brian, may I suggest you seek councilling as you have very serious problems. I do not say that as an insult. You have some serious anger managment problems that if not resolved are going to destroy you. I have seen a lot of you Brians in this world. They are the most miserable and pitiful people I have met.
Brothers and sisters, I ask you all to pray for Brian every morning that he get help for his anger. It is our duty as Christians.
God bless you northwind.
Brian, I am praying for you.
The food laws were very necessary for God's chosen people. If they had not followed those laws, they might not still be around today. Food storage being what it was, I can only imagine that many would have died due to inadequate food storage. My husband and I tried to adapt a Kosher diet. We went to Houston's only grocery store that claimed to be Kosher. There were a few items that were truly Kosher, but the majority of the store did not have Kosher items. Since we are not equipped to butcher our own animals, for example, it would be hard to have only Kosher meat - unless I could actually purchase it. A Kosher kitchen needs to be much different than our kitchens in American homes and apartments. You cannot use the same sinks for meat and vegetables. I know these sound like excuses, but in reality, it would take a majority of Americans willing to pay the higher price for Kosher food, and Kosher kitchens before there would be change.
In the new testament, it has been preached by many that the Christian is not held to laws other than the Commandments given to Israel. However, once we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, our souls, heart, and mind are changed and Christians automatically follow a life asking ourselves what would Jesus do, when the answer is not totally apparent, and we counsel with each other in an effort to find the right answers. Jesus gave his earthly life in sacrifice for me, and even thoughknow I still have my sin nature, I do try to live a life with Judeo-Christian morals and virtue based on Biblical teaching. This is our culture passed down to us by our forefathers, and more specifically our grandparents.
In another post on my last hub article I stated that it is important to pay attention to who is talking and who is being talked to. The entire Bible is for our learning and understanding. Part of that learning and understanding is the Israel / Jewish experience as God's chosen people, as well as the Pauline Epistles for the Christian experience of being a part of the Church - The Body of Christ as our Lord and Savior. These distinctions do make us different, and yet we are linked together by God. Israel and America were formed for God's people and our Jewish and Christian faith.
Don't feel bad about deleting one of Canada's posts. I had to delete one that was horribly offensive. Horribly offensive has no place in discussions or debate. Insults and horribly offensive indicate that the person has nothing of value to say, and therefore does not change anything in these discussions if deleted. There is no atheist, and no other god or religion that offers what our Jewish and Christian faiths offer in explanation of why we are even here. There have been those who twisted our Holy Bible to justify wrongdoing, but the scriptures themselves do not support that at all. Our scriptures lead us to Jesus Christ on every page. The Old Testament is fulfilled in the New Testament, and cannot be considered as separate by any serious Christian who takes God at his word.
Still waiting....
Still tormenting innocent hubs huh?
I see Brian you have no hubs of your own. Perhaps you can amaze the hubpages community with your work, and we will eagerly critique you.
Show us that great Canadian prose and the soothing elegance with which you articulate your ideas.
Waiting......
- AUTHOR
Hello X-Con and thank you for your comment. I denied Brian in Canada's comment because he obviously had not read the hub and simply based what he thought about it on the ten commandments. Besides, his flippant mockery of the laws of God are not something I want to keep around.
I will keep on glorying God and may you do so as well!
Good job, North Wind. I agree with you that it is important to obey God without partiality. I'm disgusted by Brian in Canada's comment above. What a troll! Pay no attention to such ignorance and keep on glorifying God by your writing. God bless!
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