"The Law"
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What is the “Torah”?
What is the “Torah”?
When we think of the “Torah”, we usually think of the “ten commandments”. You're most likely familiar with the Ten Commandments in the Bible; stuff we generally take as good advice: don't murder, don't steal, honor your parents...the list goes on.
And those are just the first 10!
There are 613 different commands given to the Israelite people in the Torah.
There are 613 different commands given to the Israelite people in the Torah.
There are (arguably) a total of 613 different commands given to the Israelite people, the most famous of which being the Ten Commandments, in the first five books of the Bible alone. These first five books are collectively called "The Torah" which in English means "The Law."
That name is a little misleading, though. While the Torah does have plenty of laws in it, it's more of a story about how God is creating people to love Him and love others. When Jesus spoke about the Torah, He talked about how He was bringing this story to its fulfillment.
What then is the Mosaic law definition, and how does the story of the Torah play out?
What then is the Mosaic law definition, and how does the story of the Torah play out?
Now the word “Torah” is usually translated in English as the law because it has all of these laws in it. As you read through them, you wonder, “Am I supposed to obey some of these, all of these and what's the purpose of the law?”
Well, that translation is kind of confusing, because while the torah has laws in it, the book itself is fundamentally a story about how God is creating new kinds of people who are fully able to love God and love others.
When Jesus taught about the Torah, he said he was bringing that story to its fulfillment. The story begins with God creating humanity (who rebels), and God chooses a man named Abraham to bless all of the nations through his family. But his family ends up in slavery down in Egypt!
God rescues them from slavery; then at Mount Sinai, God makes a covenant with Israel (which is like an agreement), and all the laws that Moses gives to Israel are the terms of that agreement...like a constitution. So some of the laws are about rituals and customs that set Israel apart from the nations. Other laws are about relational justice or morality, and by following these Israel would show the other nations what God is like.
Alright, so from here, most people figure that the rest of the Torah is just the complete list of laws that Moses gives Israel. But no, the rest of the Torah just continues the story! The 613 commands are only a selection from that original Constitution, and even these have been broken up and placed at strategic points within the story.
Now you have to pay attention, because you'll see a really clear pattern as Moses gives the first laws to Israel: “Don't worship other gods, and don't make idols”, and then right after that, there's a story of Israel breaking those very laws! They worship the golden calf.
So Moses gives some more laws, and then you get more stories of rebellion. Some more laws, rebellion again, more laws, more rebellion...no matter how many laws God gives, they're just going to continue to rebel.
So when we get to the conclusion of the torah's story, Moses gives a final speech to Israel as they prepared to go into their new home. He tells them “you've proven to me that you're incapable of following God’s commands.” Moses believed at their problem was that their hearts were hard and that they were going to need new, transformed hearts if they were ever going to truly follow God's law; and he was right!
Moses's words were true, and throughout much of the rest of the Old Testament we see the death and destruction that besieges Israel because they are unable to follow God's laws. Later in the story, though, we begin to hear from prophets who spoke of a day when following God's commands would feel like a pleasure rather than a duty. The prophet Isaiah also spoke of a Messiah who would lead all the people in obedience to the law.
While much of the rest of the Torah is spent explaining these laws, the laws are still only a part of the Torah's overall narrative.
While much of the rest of the Torah is spent explaining these laws, the laws are still only a part of the Torah's overall narrative.
The story of the Old Testament goes on to recount Israel's total failure. They go into the land, they break all the laws. The next section of books in the Jewish tradition are the fifteen books of the Prophets, and they reflect back on the story. For example, Ezekiel said that if Israel is ever going to obey the law God's Spirit would have to transform their hard hearts into soft hearts. Jeremiah shared that at that point, obedience to God's commands wouldn't feel like a duty; instead, they would be written deep in their hearts. Isaiah promised a future leader (Israel's Messiah) who will lead all of the people in obedience to the law.
To review, we have the law and the prophets, and together they’re telling one connected story about God's desire to bless the whole world through a nation (Israel), who ends up needing a new heart!
Love God & Love Others
Love God & Love Others
In the New Testament, we find Jesus, who explained his ministry as continuing that story. He agreed with the law and the prophets when he taught that it's out of the human heart that come the most ugly parts of human nature. It’s as though the default setting of our hearts is opposed to God's law, but Jesus also said that he came to solve that problem, “to fulfill the law”.
So what does he mean when He says that He came “to fulfill the law”? Well, first, he said that the demand of all of the laws in the Torah could be fulfilled within what he referred to as the “great command”: that we are to love God, and love others. On the face of it, that seems pretty easy; we all want to love! In reality, we think that we want to love, but Jesus showed how love is far more demanding than we realize.
Jesus used a couple examples to show this: He quoted the law “do not murder”, and then he said, “Yes, not killing someone is a very loving thing, but when you treat someone with disrespect, or when you nurse resentment against them, you're also violating God's moral ideal, because you're not treating that person with love!”
True love ought to extend even to our own enemies.
True love ought to extend even to our own enemies.
Even though this command to love seems very simple, Jesus showed how our hearts are not currently equipped to fulfill even this basic command of God: to love others.
But where Israel failed, Jesus brought the story to it's fulfillment: as Israel's Messiah, he fully loved God and others! And more than that; he showed all of the nations what God is truly like.
He did this through his acts of compassion and mercy, and ultimately by loving his enemies even unto death. After his resurrection, he told his followers that he would send God's Spirit to transform their hearts. With the empowerment of God’s own Spirit, their hearts would be renewed, and in this way they (and we) could follow him, and fulfill the purpose of the law: to love God, and to love others.
In an amazing way, we see how God uses the fulfillment of the story of the law and the prophets to draw people’s heart back to Him. Or, in the words of the Apostle Paul the one who loves fulfills the law.