I’ll start off my addressing the points in your initial presentation:
The OT burnt offerings were not intended to appease God for the sins of man. For it is written that God takes no pleasure in burnt offerings. It is also written that no works of the law have saved anyone. The OT rituals instead served as a symbol for giving up something of value to gain something of greater value and fore shadow Christ’s sacrifice. But what kind of sacrifice does this mean?
While the word “sacrifice” can mean ritual killing, its most general meaning comes from the Latin roots of “sacer” and “-facere”, the process of making something sacred.
So Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is His final step of glorification. In Heb 2:10, it is written “For it was fitting for Him…to perfect the author of our salvation through sufferings.” He gave up the earthly desire to hate his persecutors in favor of things with greater spiritual value, love and forgiveness. We are called upon the follow Christ’s example for making ourselves sacred and His example of sacrifice. He overcame. Therefore, Biblical sacrifice is making ourselves sacred by humility and overcoming our inclinations to sin. (Pslm 2: 17) Christ’s victory, to love unto death, means that he has power over sin and that by calling on his name, He will drive sin from us in our time of need. This is the meaning of Heb 2:8. Having proven His capacity overcome Satan’s best efforts, he gains mastery and power over the sin and death.
Your doctrine states that the OT laws still apply and Christ extended them to include our intentions. From this arises the false idea that the OT laws apply to us. And because we cannot obey them fully, we do not even try. That condemns us to hell, therefore it is claimed, Christ presents Himself as a sacrifice on our behalf (sacrificial atonement). Or in another interpretation, His sacrifice serves as a substitute for the sacrifices we should have made but did not (substitutional atonement).
Neither interpretation is correct because scripture clearly states that “no means can clear the guilty” (Exd 34:7)
Scriptures having to do with the law not passing away, mean that we must obey continue to obey his commandments, to love God and our neighbors, and that doing so is important to our salvation. (James 2:14-26) (Rev 2:7, 3:5). By the time of the Pharasees, this internal sense of the Mosaic rituals had been lost and worship had fallen into unspiritual legalism. Because the Mosaic rules had become empty gestures, Jesus reminds his followers that the internal significance and spiritual principles contained within the OT rules have not passed away. (1 John 2:7-9) (2 John 1:5-6)
In Rom 7:6-7, Paul clearly says that the external rituals (the oldness of the letter) were given so that we could know and obey the internal spiritual law (newness of spirit). In 7:14, Paul confesses that by following only the external letter of the law he was motivated by his carnal nature (to preserve his reputation, to show his superiority, etc.) when in fact the law is spiritual. Later in verses 22-23 he refers to the external legalistic laws, “the law in his members”, and the spiritual “law of his mind” This means that legalistic compliance with Mosaic law in meaningless and can be dismissed, but only to the extent that you obey the spiritual laws represented by the OT rituals and prohibitions. That is also why, as Christians, we believe in following and obeying the 10 commandments which are spiritual, but dismiss the rituals and prohibitions which in themselves are earthly.
(February 18, 2013 at 1:44 pm)Drich Wrote: Righteousness is the quality or state of being that being in the presents of God demands. In other words it is God's absolute standard.Scriptural support for this is weak. First, we have many example of people being in the presence of God who do not meet an “absolute” standard of righteousness. For example, Moses stood in God’s presence and spoke to him face to face. The Apostles walked and talked with Jesus, who was God in the flesh.
The OT burnt offerings were not intended to appease God for the sins of man. For it is written that God takes no pleasure in burnt offerings. It is also written that no works of the law have saved anyone. The OT rituals instead served as a symbol for giving up something of value to gain something of greater value and fore shadow Christ’s sacrifice. But what kind of sacrifice does this mean?
While the word “sacrifice” can mean ritual killing, its most general meaning comes from the Latin roots of “sacer” and “-facere”, the process of making something sacred.
So Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is His final step of glorification. In Heb 2:10, it is written “For it was fitting for Him…to perfect the author of our salvation through sufferings.” He gave up the earthly desire to hate his persecutors in favor of things with greater spiritual value, love and forgiveness. We are called upon the follow Christ’s example for making ourselves sacred and His example of sacrifice. He overcame. Therefore, Biblical sacrifice is making ourselves sacred by humility and overcoming our inclinations to sin. (Pslm 2: 17) Christ’s victory, to love unto death, means that he has power over sin and that by calling on his name, He will drive sin from us in our time of need. This is the meaning of Heb 2:8. Having proven His capacity overcome Satan’s best efforts, he gains mastery and power over the sin and death.
Your doctrine states that the OT laws still apply and Christ extended them to include our intentions. From this arises the false idea that the OT laws apply to us. And because we cannot obey them fully, we do not even try. That condemns us to hell, therefore it is claimed, Christ presents Himself as a sacrifice on our behalf (sacrificial atonement). Or in another interpretation, His sacrifice serves as a substitute for the sacrifices we should have made but did not (substitutional atonement).
Neither interpretation is correct because scripture clearly states that “no means can clear the guilty” (Exd 34:7)
Scriptures having to do with the law not passing away, mean that we must obey continue to obey his commandments, to love God and our neighbors, and that doing so is important to our salvation. (James 2:14-26) (Rev 2:7, 3:5). By the time of the Pharasees, this internal sense of the Mosaic rituals had been lost and worship had fallen into unspiritual legalism. Because the Mosaic rules had become empty gestures, Jesus reminds his followers that the internal significance and spiritual principles contained within the OT rules have not passed away. (1 John 2:7-9) (2 John 1:5-6)
In Rom 7:6-7, Paul clearly says that the external rituals (the oldness of the letter) were given so that we could know and obey the internal spiritual law (newness of spirit). In 7:14, Paul confesses that by following only the external letter of the law he was motivated by his carnal nature (to preserve his reputation, to show his superiority, etc.) when in fact the law is spiritual. Later in verses 22-23 he refers to the external legalistic laws, “the law in his members”, and the spiritual “law of his mind” This means that legalistic compliance with Mosaic law in meaningless and can be dismissed, but only to the extent that you obey the spiritual laws represented by the OT rituals and prohibitions. That is also why, as Christians, we believe in following and obeying the 10 commandments which are spiritual, but dismiss the rituals and prohibitions which in themselves are earthly.
