What Old Testament Laws Are Still Binding Today?

The Bible teaches us that man shall not live by bread alone. You may be amazed at how much of the New Testament is quoted from the Old. In Deuteronomy 8.3, it says, He humbled you, and allowed you to hunger. Talking about when He brought Israel out of Egypt, He fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone. The man shall live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Notice every word that proceeds from God's mouth. We are to live by. Paul told Timothy, back in 2 Timothy 3.16, that all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instructions in righteousness. But how many go on to read verses 15 and 17 following this? Again, 2 Timothy 3 and verse 15. Notice what Paul told Timothy, that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation.

So the Holy Scriptures were written, and we're talking about the Old Testament, in this case, to make everyone wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. Then verse 17, that the man of God may be complete to complete us, our character, our development into his kingdom, thoroughly equipped for every good work. So this is the purpose and the reason for the Scriptures.

Timothy only had the Old Testament when Paul wrote this. Now today, many theologians and many churches say, well, the Old Testament has done away. You don't have to read the Old Testament, and they try to do away with it. But brethren, we teach and have traditionally taught and understand that every word of God expresses the mind of God and teaches us something. It teaches us, and we learn from it. This includes the Old Testament, it includes the law of Moses.

Even though certain things were included under what would be called the Old Covenant, and you and I are under the New Covenant, the covenant that the church lives under today. So brethren, we want to take a look at something today that I have people ask me all the time. Which laws of the Old Testament are enforced today? Which laws do we have to keep? Which ones should we keep? You might remember the Old Covenant community, National Israel, was in many ways a very different body of people from the New Covenant community today, spiritual Israel, or the church.

So let's take a look at some of the ways in which Israel and the church differ today. The way that Israel responded, what they were given to do, and what we do. I think in so doing, we will begin to see that there are certain things, certain principles, that we no longer have to do. So we'll take these one at a time.

First of all, Israel was a civil nation among other nations, just like the United States is a civil nation. The New Testament church today is composed of members out of all nations. God is not just working through one nation today. He is working in calling people out of all nations and all peoples. Now, in Psalm 83.4, I'll just quote a couple of scriptures to begin with. We find that Israel indeed was a nation. They have said, come and let us cut them off from being a nation talking about the Gentiles around Israel.

That the name of Israel may be remembered no more. So they wanted to cut them off. Israel was also called the congregation of Israel, if you remember, referring to a church. They were a church state at that time. In Judges 2, verse 20, we read that the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel.

He said, because the nation has transgressed my covenant, which I commanded their fathers, and has not heeded my voice. So we know that Israel was a nation at that time. We read in the Bible that the house of Israel, and later the house of Judah, went into national captivity. So they were a nation, they went into captivity, and God rewarded them as a nation, as a whole, or punished them as a whole. Now, we find in Matthew 28 and 19 something that we know, but sometimes we don't stop to think about it.

In Matthew 28, verse 19, Christ told his disciples, Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, not just Judah, not just the Jews, not just those in Jerusalem and Judea, but disciples of all the nations. Christ was actually telling the disciples at this time that the Gentiles would likewise be called and converted. All nations, not just the Jews, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

So it is clear, one clear difference between the Church today is that we are not a nation, in the sense of being like the U.S. or Germany or something else. God is not working through one country, he's working through people in many different nations. That was not true in the Old Testament. Israel became God's chosen people for a purpose. They were to be an example, they were to be a light to all the other nations, and be a beacon to attract the nations to God, to his way of life.

Now, a second difference. There are no judges in the Church. I'm talking about people who actually sit in official judicial positions. I'm not saying that there can't be somebody converted who's a judge in the court of this land, but we don't have judges. That's not a position in the Church. We do not have judicial systems set up today in the Church as ancient Israel did. They had a judicial system set up. Many of the laws that were given to ancient Israel through Moses—in other words, God passed on to Moses— and remember one of the big reasons why they were passed on to Moses, is because the people said, we don't want to hear God when he gave the Ten Commandments.

God could have pronounced all of this to them, given it to Moses to write down, but no, they didn't want to hear. They said, you go hear God.

You write down what he says, and you come back and tell us.

And so that's exactly what he did.

So many of the laws given to ancient Israel were actually instructions for the judges, how they were to carry out their responsibilities.

The system that came in effect began in Exodus 18. You might remember Moses was adjudicating all of the cases, everything. He was sitting there, wearing himself out from morning to night. People had come to him. The people were wearing themselves out, standing in the hot lines, waiting to get up to talk to Moses. It was suggested by Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, that he have rulers. And many of these then became judges over the people.

Now, I want you to notice an example from God that he gave to Moses to give to Israel of what I'm talking about here. Exodus 21.

We'll spend a little time here in the Old Testament today, and flipping back to the New Testament. In Exodus 21 and verse 15, what do you do in certain situations? Notice, verse 16, He who strikes his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

Verse 16, He who kidnaps a man and sells him, or he is found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death. And he who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death.

Now, how was it determined that somebody had cursed his father or cursed his mother?

Presumably, there was some sort of judicial hearing.

The parents come, they lay this claim against their son. He cursed us, he curses us all the time, he belittles us, and the judges say, well, okay, do you have any other witnesses? And they try to verify it. They'll talk to both parties, hear them out. After which, the judge would determine that the individual was guilty of his sin. If he was, then they would administer the death penalty. That's the way it was done. Didn't wait 50 years to execute somebody. If they were guilty, they had to do it. So, it wasn't just an accusation. Somebody had to be there to listen carefully, to question each party, to be able to find out if this was true.

And were there other witnesses who could verify this type of sin?

Now, does it remain a sin for the New Covenant Christian to curse his father or mother?

Under the New Covenant, is that a sin? Absolutely, it's a sin. To do so would violate the fifth commandment that you are to honor your father and your mother. And the second great commandment that says, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. So, does the Church today execute the death penalty in such a case? No, we don't. I don't have the authority to go around stoning people or executing people. Enforcing the law in this way is something that lies at the level of civil government. See, now, Israel was a civil government. Today, you and I live under a civil government that's not God's government. We live in the U.S., the Germans live in Germany, the French live in France. They're all subject to the laws of those nations. God will hold the civil authorities responsible for enforcing these things. However, we still commit sin if we violate this law of Moses, and it is referred to as the law of Moses that bans cursing our parents. It is still the sin. So, you see, the principle is still there. The judgment, in a sense, the judgment is still the same death. You've got to repent of it if you do it. But if never repented of, we know, if this is the sin that a person does, he never repents of and never will, then it leads to ultimate death because the wages of sin is death in the lake of fire. And God will ultimately administer that final penalty. He is the one who will do it. So, clearly, you know, this is something. And the reason I'm reading this is to show you that these were instructions. One, to the people to know, no, you don't do this, but secondarily to the judges on how to handle it and what the penalty should be. You know, somebody might say, well, in a case like this, I think we should lock him up for 30 days. You know, but that's not what God said. Now, notice another law. And in this, let's go over to Deuteronomy 19. Deuteronomy chapter 19 and verse 15.

Deuteronomy chapter 19 verse 15.

Another law that God gave says it was not sufficient for one witness to convict a person, a minimum of two and preferably three witnesses was necessary to obtain a conviction. Now, notice the law and what God has to say about this. One witness shall not rise up against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits. By the mouth of two or three witnesses, the matter shall be established. Now, if a false witness rises up against any man to testify against him for wrongdoing, then both men in the controversy shall stand before the Lord, before the priest, and the judges. The priest was supposed to know the law, and the judges were to adjudicate the law, who served in those days. And the judge shall make careful inquiry. Indeed, if the witness is a false witness who has testified falsely against his brother, then you shall do to him as he thought to have done to his brother. So you shall put away the evil from among you. Whatever he was accusing his brother of, maybe it was a death penalty, if he was a false witness, and if his brother had been convicted of death, he dies for bearing false witness. So the law was very clear. This passage, the instruction was that a false witness was to suffer the penalty that might have been imposed upon his brother. Now, brethren, we find who made the determination that the witness was true or false?

Well, it said the priests and the judges. They had to inquire. They had to find out. They had to ask questions. The judge and the priests obviously did this. No penalty could be enacted against the accused before the judge, and the priests verified that the testimony was true. Since there are neither judges or priests today in the Church, the Church today, we don't enact this law in that manner against false witnesses.

However, it remains a sin, does it not, to bear false witness against another person under the new covenant? So the spiritual law is still there.

The penalty is actually death unless you repent of it. So it remains a sin.

Notice how the principles applied in the Church today. Over here in Romans chapter 13 and verse 9. Notice the apostle Paul said, For the commandments, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness. So bearing false witness was something that was taught to the Gentile churches. You shall not covet if there are any other commandments. They are all summed up in this saying, namely, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Again, the wages of sin is death, so the death penalty is applied unless you repent.

It's interesting to note that the apostle Paul made this principle or used this principle when he wrote to Timothy. 1 Timothy chapter 5. 1 Timothy 5.19.

Verse 19. Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses.

So you don't receive an accusation against an elder unless there are more than one witness.

This principle was used as a precedent and justification for matters dealing with proper government in the church today. So we try not to just go on one person's word when it comes to quote-unquote some big problem. We try to go by the evidence, and unless there's overwhelming evidence, there needs to be more than just the one witness. The same is true of false witnesses.

The church doesn't administer the death penalty today if somebody is a false witness, but we do have to deal with that person. If that's something that he's done, then there are certain sanctions. He may be told to repent, obviously, and he might be asked to stay home for a while. He needs to really think about what he's done to contemplate it and to go over it.

The principle is true today. There is a difference between the way the old covenant was administered, it was an administration of death, and the way the new covenant is administered today if you break the law. Now, another fundamental difference is this. There are no functioning Levitical priests in the church today. We don't have judges, and we don't have the Levitical priests.

You might remember in Exodus 29 and Leviticus 8, Moses, who was the older brother of Aaron, was inducted as the first high priest in Israel, beginning a dynasty of succession.

His sons, the sons of Aaron, were the only ones who could be the high priest. Exodus 29 and verse 9 addresses this. Let's go back to Exodus 29 verse 9.

It says, "'You shall gird them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, put the hats on them, and the priesthood shall be theirs for a perpetual statute.' It is a perpetual statute, so you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons." Only the sons of Aaron could be high priests, and they were of the tribe of Levi.

He and his descendants were instructed to bring animal sacrifices and offerings before the central sanctuary. First of all, the tabernacle, later on, the temple.

Most of the book of Leviticus lays out instructions for the ironic priesthood in the tribe of Levi, who attended and assisted the priests. So they were there to help.

Let's go over to Numbers chapter 3 and verse 5. Numbers 3 and verse 5.

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "'Bring the tribe of Levi near, and present them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him, and that they may attend to his needs and to the needs of the whole congregation before the tabernacle of meeting, to do the work of the tabernacle.'" So they had to do the work of the tabernacle. Also, they shall attend to the furnishings of the tabernacle of meeting. Verse 10, "...so you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, that they may attend to the priesthood, but you find that the Levites took care of a number of what we would call the menial jobs in dealing with the tabernacle, setting it up, taking it down, hauling it, and later on at the temple." So they had animal sacrifices. So God chose the tribe of Levi. However, the sacrificial system that was set up is no longer enforced today. We do not offer up—we don't come here every Sabbath—an offer up a bull or a lamb or a turtle dove or some type of oblation or whatever it might be.

We find that the sacrificial system became unnecessary in New Testament times. Why? Because the great sacrifice came. Jesus Christ shed his blood.

Hebrews 7, verse 20, addresses this beginning here in verse 20. It says, I want you to notice that Jesus Christ is now a high priest, not the sons of Aaron.

It says, By so much more, Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant than you.

Why is it a better covenant? Because it's founded on better promises.

The Holy Spirit, forgiveness of sin, and eternal life.

It says, Also, there were many priests because they were prevented by death from continuing. They died. Their son took over.

But he, because he continues forever, has an unchanging priesthood.

He is always the high priest and will continue to be so. Therefore, he is also able to save to the utmost those who come to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

For such a high priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, has become higher than the heavens, who does not need daily as those high priests to offer up sacrifices, first for his own sins, and then for the people. For this he did once for all.

He only did it once when he offered up himself.

So Christ offered himself up.

For the law appoints his high priests men who have weaknesses, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son, who has been perfected forever.

So Jesus Christ today fulfills that position and office of the high priest.

Christ came as an eternal priest after the order of Melchizedek. Back up to verse 11 in this chapter. Notice what it says. If perfection were through the Levitical priesthood, for under it people received the law, what further need was there of another priest should arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron.

For the priesthood being changed.

Okay, what was the change in the priesthood? From the Levites to Melchizedek.

I mean, that's what he's talking about.

He is of the order of Melchizedek.

There is of necessity also a change of the law.

Of what law?

Of the law stating who could be a priest.

The law said that the Levites were. So there's now been a change.

Christ is.

He sees of the order of Melchizedek.

God has sworn that he would be high priest.

Says, For he of whom these things are spoken, belongs to another tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar.

For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning the priesthood. For it is yet more evident if in the likeness of Melchizedek there arise another priest, who has come not according to the law of the Feshely commandment, but according to the power of an endless life. For he testifies, you are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment.

What former commandment? That the Levites should be priests because its weakness and unprofitiveness.

For the law itself made nothing perfect. On the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope through which we draw near to God. So, brethren, you find that Jesus Christ, after the order of Melchizedek, is our high priest today.

So, there was a change in the law as to who could now be high priest. And that's Christ. Remember this. You and I can learn a lot from studying the old sacrificial system.

And one of these days we will go through that with you. It's loaded with all kinds of typology that points forward to Jesus Christ, to him as our Savior, that he was to be the ultimate sacrifice.

But that system is no longer in force. There is not a functioning Levitical priesthood in the Church today. The tabernacle was destroyed. The temple was destroyed.

And there is no functioning Levitical priesthood today. So, we don't have a priesthood in God's Church. Now, another difference is simply this. There is no system of legal penalties in the Church that the Church that existed in ancient Israel.

These penalties included capital punishment. They included corporal punishment.

And they included fines. So, capital punishment, corporal punishment, and fines.

The Judges of ancient Israel were instructed to impose an elaborate system of punishment in a case of specific crimes. Now, I as a minister in God's Church don't do that today.

Let's go back to Exodus 21 again, verse 12. Exodus 21, verse 12.

And notice we read through this earlier. He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death.

So, you know, what if you're, for some reason, you're responsible for somebody's death?

It says here, if he strikes him, he shall surely be put to death. But notice, however, there is an exception. However, if he did not lie in wait, but God delivered him into his hand, then I will point you to the place where he may flee. They had cities of refuge in ancient Israel. And if somebody were guilty of what we would call manslaughter today, and he killed somebody, but he didn't mean to, it wasn't deliberate, then he could flee to the city of refuge. Now, the nearest of kin could hunt him down before he got to that city of refuge and kill him before he got there. But if he got to the city of refuge, he could appear before the judge. The family would appear before the judge. The judge would adjudicate if it were what we would call manslaughter, he was allowed to live. But he could not go out of that city.

If he did, he was subject to be killed. So it's not like locking somebody up in a jail, where they sit there for years rotting, but he's in a city. He can work, have a job, have his family there, and so on. But if a man acts with premeditation, a premeditated murder, against his neighbor to kill him by treachery, you shall take him from the altar. You could go to the altar and hold to the horns of the altar and ask for mercy. That's where mercy was extended.

That he may die, and he who strikes his father and mother shall die, we've already read through those. So one of the penalties did include the death penalty. The death penalty was applied for certain sins and crimes at that time. Now let's notice about corporal punishment, verse 23. Verse 23, if any harm follows—he was talking about a man fights and hurts a woman with child, and she gives birth prematurely—yet no harm follows. He shall surely be punished according to the woman's husband. What the husband imposes on him, he shall pay as the judges determine.

But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand,