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Today's Little Lift
by Jim Bullington
Jesus said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5.17-18; all emphasis mine above and below, jb).
A person’s attitude toward Scripture speaks volumes about a person; though we can’t be perfect, attitude still is a great predictor of actions and intentions. Jesus, on the other hand was perfect; His attitude toward Scripture was one reason He was perfect. Regardless of how He carried out the precepts of the Law, a flawed attitude toward Scripture would have doomed Him to mediocrity and sin. While it is unrealistic to think that we can live above sin, it is NOT unrealistic to think that we can have the same attitude as Jesus about Scripture. We will examine that attitude in the remainder of today’s devotional.
First, Jesus saw the Law and the Prophets as an “official” body of work with a common intent and purpose. He spoke of the fact it was needful that this “body of work” be fulfilled. Literally, documents have no intent; they merely reflect the intent and purpose of their author. Jesus knew this about the Old Testament. He did not see the Law and the Prophets as documents with intent apart from their author; He saw them as documents containing the exact intent of their single author, Jehovah God. This is why Jesus said that the Scriptures must needs be fulfilled.
Secondly, Jesus saw the Law and the Prophets as temporary in authority. While He explicitly denied His intention to negatively affect the function of the Law in any way, He also saw a time coming in which the Law’s purpose would be fulfilled and hence the cessation of its authority. He DID NOT say that the Law would not pass away; He did say that the Law would not pass away until “till all is fulfilled.” He used similar language toward the end of His earthly ministry as He spoke of the certainty of certain coming events. Regarding the fall of Jerusalem and the accompanying signs, He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.” (Matthew 24.34; see also Mark 13.30 and Luke 21.32). He certainly was not saying the current generation would not pass away; He was simply affirming this would not occur until other things had happened. In this same manner, He was not affirming that the Law and the Prophets would not pass away, just that it would not occur until other things had happened first.
Finally, Jesus saw that there were Divine assurances that protected the whole of Scripture. When He affirmed that not a single “jot” or “tittle” would be pass away, He promised what mere man cannot promise. Without getting technical, the “jot and tittle” were the tiniest markings used in Hebrew writing. One could think of them as the dot over the English “i” or, the cross over the letter “t”. His statement is one which was intended for emphasis; it was just another way of saying that absolutely nothing would be missed; every intention, every purpose, every prophecy, every hope, every promise (and all other “every’s” were safe in God’s hands. God authored Scripture, He protected Scripture, and He would see that the Old Covenant was entirely fulfilled before replacing its authority with a better and more lasting covenant (i.e. the New Testament; see the entirety of the book of Hebrews).
Who should determine our attitude toward Scripture? If it is a body of writings from a single author (various men wrote as they were inspired by God’s Holy Spirit), shouldn’t God define the proper attitude toward it. On the other hand, if it is merely a human book which falsely claims Divine authorship, doesn’t that dictate what our attitude should be? There is no in between!
Questions:
1. When Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount, in what form was the Old Testament?
2. What authority did Jesus see in the Old Testament while He was on earth?
3. If Jesus had such high regard for Scripture, can we have less? If yes, how can such be justified?
4. Did Jesus fulfill the Law and the Prophets? If yes, were they not to pass away according to His statement?
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