We teach that the Mosaic Law is an important revelation of moral and spiritual truth that was incorporated into the Old and New Covenants. While many stipulations apply only to Israelites living in the Promised Land, others are binding on all humanity. Therefore, the Mosaic Law has abiding significance as a guide to proper living for God’s people.

Six hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ, God told the Israelites that He was going to make a new covenant with them. Jeremiah 31:33 says, “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law [Torah] within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

God promised to write the Torah, the Law of Moses, on their hearts just as He had written them on tablets of stone at Mount Horeb. He never intended to abolish the Mosaic Law; instead, He was going to transform their hearts so they could keep His commandments.

This is also what Jesus said when He explained the New Covenant to His disciples. In Matthew 5:17-20, Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus didn’t come to save people in their sins; He came to save them from their sins. He came to change the hearts of His people by the power of the Holy Spirit so they can obey God perfectly. True Christians love God’s laws and keep His commandments.

This is the same message that Paul taught Jewish and Gentile Christians. In Romans 3:31, Paul said, “Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law” (NIV). The context of this passage is clear; Paul is speaking of the Law of Moses. Far from abolishing the Mosaic law, Paul affirmed the authority and importance of the Torah for all Christians.

The Law of Moses is the constitution of the nation of Israel and the kingdom of God. It is the basic legal and moral framework for the Old and New Covenants. It defines good and evil, right and wrong, for all people for all time. Therefore, the Mosaic Law has abiding significance as a guide to proper living for God’s people.

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All Scriptures are from the English Standard Version unless otherwise noted.