Friday, April 4, 2014

We're Not Under The Law

This is not being taught in most churches.  It took some time for me to study the Scripture references and allow the Truth to settle in.  But then I believe the Word of God is infallible, not everybody does.  Many people don't let the Bible get in the way of what they believe or the traditions they enjoy holding on to.  God's Word is alive and active and so powerful.  It has substance to replace the substance of what we hear, smell and see.  In reality, the spiritual world is so much more real than what we see.  --  Donna


Something New
by Andrew Wommack

Luke 5:36-37, "And he spake a parable unto them; No man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with the old. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish."

Matthew 9:11-17, Mark 2:16-22, Luke 5:30-39

These two parables are in response to the scribes' and Pharisees' criticism (v. 30) and the question from John's disciples about why Jesus didn't act according to their religious traditions and expectations (Mt. 9:14; Mk. 2:18).

The gist of these parables was to show that Jesus came to do a new thing that would not mix with the old covenant ways that were familiar to people (Isa. 43:18-19; Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:7-13).

A new cloth sown on an old garment in Jesus' day would shrink the first time it was washed. Then it would tear away from the old garment that had already shrunk, making the hole worse. This illustrates that Jesus did not come to patch up the old Mosaic covenant, but to replace it (Heb. 7:18-19).

Also, new wine (not yet fermented) had to be put into new or reconditioned wineskins to allow for the expansion of gases within the skin as the result of the fermentation process. Otherwise, an old wineskin that had already been stretched by use would simply burst and all the wine would run out.

The Old Testament laws could never stretch enough to accommodate the New Testament truths of mercy and grace (Heb. 10:1-10). Jesus set us free from the judgment of the Old Testament laws (Rom. 6:14; 7:1-4; 8:2; 10:3-4; Gal. 3:12-14, 23-24; 5:4; Phil. 3:9).

These religious scribes and Pharisees (Lk. 5:30) were making the terrible mistake of trusting in their own efforts to produce their right standing (righteousness) with God. Jesus did not come to accept our sacrificial acts, but to make Himself a sacrifice for our sins. He did all this to give us new life in Him. Thank Him for His grace today.

Visit Andrew's website.

Editor's Note:  Don't let your religious traditions or beliefs get in the way of studying what the Word says about this subject.  Most people don't let the Bible get in the way of what they believe, but it is God's Word, and He has provided so much more for us than most of us have ever realized.


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