SPECIAL TOPIC: PAUL'S VIEWS OF THE MOSAIC LAW

1. Paul follows Jesus' understanding of the relationship between the Old Covenant and His New Covenant (see SPECIAL TOPIC: WHY ARE OT COVENANT PROMISES SO DIFFERENT FROM NT COVENANT PROMISES?). This is clearly seen in
   1. Matthew 5:17-19, affirmation of the inspiration and eternality of OT revelation.
   2. Matthew 5:21-48, affirmation of the superiority of Jesus' words as ultimate revelation from YHWH. He clarifies and reinterprets both
      1. the law of Moses, vv. 31-32
      2. the Oral Traditions of the Jews
      3. He also intensifies the prohibitions from the act to the thought
   
   
2. The Mosaic Law is good and is from God (cf. Matt. 5:17-19; Rom. 7:12,16). Galatians 3 is a major NT text on how the OT functions in the New Age.
   1. It is not the way to righteousness and acceptance by God (it can even be a curse, cf. Gal. 3:13).
   2. It is still God's will for believers because it is God's self-revelation (cf. Matt. 5:17-19, Paul often quotes the OT to convict and/or encourage believers). It functions in sanctification, not justification!
   3. Believers are informed by the OT (cf. Rom. 4:23-24; 15:4; 1 Cor. 10:6,11), but not saved by the OT (cf. Acts 15; Romans 4; Galatians 3; the book of Hebrews). See  SPECIAL TOPIC: MOSAIC LAW AND THE CHRISTIAN
   4. It functions in the New Covenant to:
      1. show sinfulness (cf. Gal. 3:15-29)
      2. guide redeemed mankind in society
      3. inform Christian ethical decisions
         

          It is this theological spectrum related to the Law, from cursing (cf. Gal. 3:10-13) and passing away to blessing and permanency that causes the problem in trying to understand Paul's view of the Mosaic Law.  In A Man in Christ, James Stewart shows Paul's paradoxical thinking and writing:

          "You would normally expect a man who was setting himself to construct a system of thought and doctrine to fix as rigidly as possible the meanings of the terms he employed. You would expect him to aim at precision in the phraseology of his leading ideas. You would demand that a word, once used by your writer in a particular sense, should bear that sense throughout.  But to look for this from Paul is to be disappointed.  Much of his phraseology is fluid, not rigid. . . 'The law is holy' he writes, 'I delight in the law of God after the inward man' (cf. Rom. 7:12,22) but it is clearly another aspect of nomos that makes him say elsewhere, 'Christ had redeemed us from the curse of the law' (cf. Gal. 3:13)" (p. 26).

3. From 2 Cor. 3:7-11, Paul discusses Exod. 34:23-35. In v. 13 he compares the OT vs. NT using Moses' veil
   Paul makes several comparisons between Moses' covenant and Jesus' covenant.
   1. the Lord of Exodus = the Spirit of Jesus
   2. only Moses could approach God intimately versus all believers in Christ can approach God
   3. Moses' glory faded versus Jesus' glory never fades
   4. Moses' followers cannot see Christ in the OT versus Jesus' followers through the Spirit can correctly interpret the OT in light of Christ
   5. Moses brought the bondage of performance versus Christ brings the freedom of grace
   6. the letter of the Mosaic Law brings death versus the Spirit of the New Covenant brings life, life eternal, life abundant
   7. Moses' covenant was unable to produce a righteous people versus Jesus' covenant does produce righteous people (both objectively in justification and subjectively in sanctification), see SPECIAL TOPIC: SANCTIFICATION
   
   
4. From the theological outline of the book of Hebrews, one can clearly see the superiority of the NT over the OT, especially3:1-4:13; 4:4-5:10
   

   Heb. 1:1-3 Heb. 1:4-2:18  Heb. 3:1-4:13; 4:14-5:10 Heb. 6:13-7:28 Heb. 5:11-6:12 Heb. 8:1-10:18 Heb. 10:19-13:25

   Superiority of the Son over the prophets  Superiority of the Son over the angels  Superiority of the Son over the Mosaic Covenant  Superiority of the Son over the Aaronic Priesthood  Superiority of the believing Jews over the unbelieving Jews  Superiority of the Son over the procedures of the Mosaic Covenant  Superiority of the Son advocated and revealed in believers

5. For me, there are several main texts that drive my understanding of the relationship between the two Covenants of YHWH (listed at II. C.). Thank God for His self-revelation through Abraham and his descendants; Jesus has fulfilled and over flowed this revelation. He has opened the door for all people (see. SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH'S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN). Now we must view the OT through the lens of Jesus' ultimate revelation. The NT is not about Israel, but about Jesus! Neither Jesus or any Apostles reaffirm an OT national promise to Israel! (see SPECIAL TOPIC: WHY DO OT PROMISES SEEM SO DIFFERENT FROM NT COVENANT PROMISES?)

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