Christian
Churches of God
No.
271
(Edition 1.0 20090909-20090909)
This paper is the first of a series of papers in number
parts which deal with the position of Paul and an overview of what he teaches
and the historical framework in which he operated. Paul was the founding father of the modern
church. A dynamic leader, often persecuted and attacked for his teachings, he
led the church through tumultuous times. Without Paul’s teachings and guidance
many would never be able to understand the complexity and wondrous nature of
God and the son/Messiah He sent to us. In this part we deal with Paul and the
Law.
.
E-mail: secretary@ccg.org
(Copyright ã 2009
Storm Cox and Wade Cox)
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This paper is available from the World Wide Web page:
http://www.logon.org and http://www.ccg.org
Paul and the Law
Paul's name
was originally Saul.
Acts 13:9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said....
(RSV used throughout unless otherwise stated.)
Acts 9:11 And the Lord told him, "Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul;
The first mention of Saul is in the book of Acts, prior to his conversion in relation to the stoning of Stephen.
Acts 7:58 Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
Acts 8:1a And Saul was consenting to his death.
From the tribe of Benjamin, Paul was raised an Israelite. He was of the sect of the Pharisees.
Philippians 3:4b-5 If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: [5] circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;
Paul was
trained to be a tentmaker.
Acts 18:1-3 After this Paul left Athens and went to
Corinth. [2] There he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had
recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered
all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, [3] and, because he was of the
same trade, he stayed with them, and they worked together—by trade they were
tentmakers.
Paul had
citizenship in Tarsus of Cilicia, and was educated in Jerusalem (Acts 26:4).
Acts 22:3 ‘I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated strictly according to our ancestral law, being zealous for God, just as all of you are today. (cf. also Acts 9:11; 21:39)
He was a
Roman citizen as well.
Acts
22:25-27 But when they had tied him up with thongs, Paul said to the
centurion who was standing by, ‘Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who
is uncondemned?’ [26] When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and
said to him, ‘What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen.’ [27] The
tribune came and asked Paul, ‘Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?’ And he said,
‘Yes.’ (cf. also Acts 16:37)
He was also
a member of the Jewish council.
Acts 26:10 And that is what I did in Jerusalem; with
authority received from the chief priests, I not only locked up many of the
saints in prison, but I also cast my vote against them when they were being
condemned to death.
Paul persecuted and scattered the church and many were imprisoned.
Acts 8:1b,3 … And on that day a great persecution arose against the church in Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the region of Judea and Sama'ria, except the apostles.
[3] But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
Acts 9:1-2 Meanwhile Saul, still breathing
threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest
[2] and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he
found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to
Jerusalem.
Acts 22:4-5 I persecuted this Way up to the point of death by binding both men and women and putting them in prison, [5] as the high priest and the whole council of elders can testify about me. From them I also received letters to the brothers in Damascus, and I went there in order to bind those who were there and to bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment.
Paul was
very zealous for the traditions of Judaism which were advanced by the sect of
the Pharisees and which Christ had condemned. No doubt this was the basis of
his hatred of the Christians because it struck at the very beliefs of the
Pharisees regarding the traditions which contradicted a great deal of the Spiritual word of the
Law of God.
Galatians 1:14 I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors.
(cf. also Phil. 3:5; Acts 22:3; 23:6; 26:5)
Christ had
this to say of these traditions of the elders that were advanced by the Scribes
and the Pharisees: “Why do you also transgress the Commandments of God by your
traditions”; and then said: “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it
is written: ‘This people honour me with their lips but their heart is far from
me. In vain do they worship me,
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men’” (Mat. 15:3; Mk. 7:6-7; Isa.
29:13). God has said through Isaiah that He would do
away with these traditions. Paul did not yet understand the intention of God
through Christ and the church. For that reason, and error of doctrines,
he persecuted the church contrary to the law of God yet thinking he was
blameless in the law of God. His statement that he was
“blameless under the law” taken in isolation might indicate to some that he did
not understand that he had transgressed the law. He was like many Jews today
that think they are blameless under the law but sin and reject the Christ that
redeemed them. When he was called he then understood his calling. He had
considered he was blameless under the law yet then realised he had transgressed
the law through tradition and hatred. This view is mirrored and demonstrated in
his teachings in Romans 3:9,10,19,20,23 and Galatians 3:10-12.
Nevertheless,
where it was convenient Paul used his strict Pharisaical background.
Acts 23:6 When Paul noticed that some were
Sadducees and others were Pharisees, he called out in the council, ‘Brothers, I
am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. I am on trial concerning the hope of the
resurrection of the dead.’
Paul’s
conversion was not a conversion to the understanding of the necessity to keep
the Law. He was already a zealous keeper of the traditions but he had to be
shown the relationship of the faith to the law and that was the reason for the
writing and the meaning of the text of Galatians.
His
conversion was to the understanding of the higher spiritual obligation of the
faith. The primary aim and end of the entire Law of God was expressed in the
Two Great Commandments.
Matthew 22:37-39 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. [38] This is the great and first commandment. [39] And a [the] second is like it, You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
Paul
understood the intent. The purpose of his ministry, and therefore ours, was to
preach those two commandments because if we keep them both we will not sin and
the law is then irrelevant to us.
If we do
not steal from our neighbour because we fear being arrested and jailed, we are
still thieves but just not practicing ones. If we love our neighbour we would
not think of stealing from them because we would not have them suffer.
Therefore, if we love our neighbour the laws against theft, slander,
covetousness and violence, etc. are irrelevant because they do not enter into
the equation. Hence the statement, being “dead to the law”.
Many people seek to justify their transgression of the law by arguing that Paul once kept the law and was a sinner and persecutor of the brethren only to be converted. They then argue that Paul ceased to keep the law and taught others to do so. These people are guilty of a serious error.
Acts 20:5-16 states:
[5] These went on and were waiting for us at Tro'as, [6] but we sailed away from Philip'pi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we came to them at Tro'as, where we stayed for seven days. [7] On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the morrow; and he prolonged his speech until midnight. [8] There were many lights in the upper chamber where we were gathered. [9] And a young man named Eu'tychus was sitting in the window. He sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer; and being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. [10] But Paul went down and bent over him, and embracing him said, "Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him." [11] And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed. [12] And they took the lad away alive, and were not a little comforted. [13] But going ahead to the ship, we set sail for Assos, intending to take Paul aboard there; for so he had arranged, intending himself to go by land. [14] And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mityle'ne. [15] And sailing from there we came the following day opposite Chi'os; the next day we touched at Samos; and the day after that we came to Mile'tus. [16] For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he might not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hastening to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost.
Here we see Paul and his companions keeping the Feast of Unleavened Bread then travelling back to Jerusalem in order to keep Pentecost there. That was an interesting move for someone who supposedly has done away with the law!
Paul’s detractors seek to use this scripture to show that Paul was worshipping on a Sunday, but what does it actually say?
The King James version states at Acts 20:7:
And upon the first [day] of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.
This
version is written to infer that it was a church meeting and that Paul was
preaching and that the breaking of bread was as a communion service. However,
the word rendered preaching is the Greek word dialogue meaning a conversation
between two or more people.
The
breaking of bread was simply a meal. The word for week is sabbaton which can refer to any
seven-day period. So, simply, Paul was having a meal on Sunday evening with his
companions and their conversation continued until midnight, as he was leaving
the next morning.
People
also try to assert that because Paul did not force new converts to be
circumcised that he preached against circumcision and hence the law. But what
was Paul’s response to this?
Acts
21:17-26
[17] When we had come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. [18] On the following day Paul went in with us to James; and all the elders were present. [19] After greeting them, he related one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. [20] And when they heard it, they glorified God. And they said to him, "You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed; they are all zealous for the law, [21] and they have been told about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or observe the customs. [22] What then is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. [23] Do therefore what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; [24] take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you but that you yourself live in observance of the law. [25] But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with our judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity." [26] Then Paul took the men, and the next day he purified himself with them and went into the temple, to give notice when the days of purification would be fulfilled and the offering presented for every one of them.
Here we
have James, Christ’s own brother, together with the Elders, requesting that
Paul undertake purification in the Temple according to law to prove to the Jews
that he was a keeper of the law. This story is one of the most powerful
witnesses of the upholding of the law in the New Testament.
The
church was not released from the requirement to obey the law by the death of
Christ but rather the sacrificial system was fulfilled in him. The Sign of
Jonah was still to run 40 years from John the Baptist and Christ’s ministry and
ended when the Temple was destroyed on Judah’s failure to repent of the
continued profaning of the law by their oral traditions after the 40 years of
grace they had been given. Judah’s Temple system ceased at the Temple’s
destruction in 70 CE.
Christ
said in Matthew16:4:
An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah." So he left them and departed.
We know
that Jonah’s work with Nineveh entailed one day’s journey (the ministry of John
the Baptist within one year) and two days preaching (Christ’s ministry of two
years) with 40 days to repent (30 CE to 70 CE) when the sacrifices ceased. The
prophesies of Daniel concerning the 70 weeks of years and Christ’s reference to
the Sign of Jonah did not end until the Temple was destroyed, therefore, the
system was not judged until their period of grace (40 years) was up (see the
paper The Sign of Jonah and the History
of the Reconstruction of the Temple (No. 013)).
The Jews
were judging righteousness by physical symbols such as circumcision, and as
Paul rightly states: “If circumcision was enough then we had no need for
Christ”. Did Paul preach that circumcision was unnecessary or redundant as a
practice? No. He simply said that gentiles who were called as adults were not
required to be circumcised but their children born after their conversion would
by law have to be circumcised, and they were. See also the paper Purification and Circumcision
(No. 251).
James’
activities in the Temple were correct and according to law. Paul was under
instruction by the council to keep the Law of God by chapter and verse. (Acts
21:17-40)
In Acts
21:24 the apostles (almost certainly James) told him to take the four men and
purify himself along with them and pay their expenses so that they may shave
their heads (in other words, complete their vows under the law, as would Paul,
completing his vows taken at Cenchrae (cf. Acts 18:18)). Why was that? Thus all will know that there is nothing in
what they have been told about you but that you yourself live in observance of
the Law (RSV) (see also KJV: Keep the Law).
This
whole episode was counted as righteous by Christ from Acts 23:11 which states:
The following
night the Lord stood by him and said, "Take courage, for as you have
testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also at Rome."
For
someone who is argued to have done away with the law, he is going to great
lengths to keep it.
Churches
that teach a celibate priesthood seek to use Paul to argue that he was against
marriage. These people are also guilty of a grave inaccuracy. Paul preached
against a celibate priesthood and the housing of single women in convents.
In Paul’s
1st letter to Timothy 5:9-16 it states:
[9] Let a
widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been the
wife of one husband; [10] and she must be well attested for her good deeds, as
one who has brought up children, shown hospitality, washed the feet of the
saints, relieved the afflicted, and devoted herself to doing good in every way.
[11] But refuse to enrol younger widows; for when they grow wanton against
Christ they desire to marry, [12] and so they incur condemnation for having
violated their first pledge. [13] Besides that, they learn to be idlers,
gadding about from house to house, and not only idlers but gossips and
busybodies, saying what they should not. [14] So I would have younger widows
marry, bear children, rule their households, and give the enemy no occasion to
revile us. [15] For some have already strayed after Satan. [16] If any
believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her assist them; let the
church not be burdened, so that it may assist those who are real widows.
Here Paul
forbids the keeping of single women under 60 years of age together in convents
because they should seek marriage or re-marriage, as they may otherwise fall
into sin. This is a direct condemnation of the convent system.
1Timothy
is clear in regard to the desirability for the ministry to be married.
1Timothy
3:2 and 12
[2] Now a bishop must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher,
[12] Let deacons be the husband of one wife, and let them manage their children and their households well;
Paul here is adamant regarding this:
1Timothy 3:4-5 He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way; [5] for if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for God's church?
This teaching is for very good reasons. Bishops will tend to their church in the same way that they tend to their wives and children. If they brutalise their family they will brutalise the church.
Likewise, if they are lackadaisical in governing their families, allowing their children worldly freedoms, they will allow the people of the church the same freedom.
Paul’s comments regarding not being married need to be put in context.
1Corinthians
7:8-9
[8] To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is well for them to remain single as I do. [9] But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion.
These verses are used by the celibate priesthood as ones of righteousness. However, the law states that he who fails to provide for his family is worse than an unbeliever.
1Timothy 5:8
[8] If any one
does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has
disowned the faith and is worse
than an unbeliever.
Paul
believed, probably because Christ was present in his conversion, that he too
would be crucified as Christ was. He had no concept that his ministry would go
on for as long as it in fact did. He simply felt that those in the church
charged by Christ to die, would not be as committed to their charge if
distracted by family commitments.
Not all
the ministry were charged to be martyrs and were encouraged to marry as
previously shown, and was in fact a prerequisite to their office.
Paul
actively encouraged marriage by all members of the community with dispensation
to those being sent amongst the gentiles in high-risk situations.
The NT
indicates that Paul probably did marry from some of the comments in his
letters.
In Romans
16:13 Paul says: “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine”.
It is
argued by the celibates that this comment was merely an indication of a tender
relationship with Rufus and his mother, but it is also argued that Rufus was
his brother-in-law and that Paul did later marry and that was the basis of his
later comments regarding travel with the wife.
In
1Corinthians 7:39 Paul states clearly that the wife is bound by the law until
the death of her husband. Clearly he upheld the law of God regarding marriage.
In
1Corinthains 9:1 he specifically refers to himself as an apostle and states
that he is doubtless an apostle to the Corinthians. He says in 9:3-5: My answer to them that examine me is this;
Have we not power to eat and drink? Have we not power to lead about a sister as
a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?
Clearly
he was at least contemplating marriage if not actually married otherwise the
example was rather pointless. Cephas definitely was married as Paul says here.
From
verses 6-8 he specifically relies on the law to support his argument. In verse
9 he quotes the Law of Moses regarding the forbidding of muzzling an ox while
it treads the grain (Deut. 25:4) in support of his argument regarding the
entitlement to be sustained by the church in the work.
The biblical position
on unity in the church is very clear among the apostles. Paul is no different.
1Corinthians
1:10-17
[10] I appeal
to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree
and that there be no dissensions among you, but that you be united in the same
mind and the same judgment. [11] For it has been reported to me by Chlo'e's
people that there is quarreling among you, my brethren. [12] What I mean is
that each one of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to
Apol'los," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to
Christ." [13] Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you
baptized in the name of Paul? [14] I am thankful that I baptized none of you
except Crispus and Ga'ius; [15] lest anyone should say that you were baptized
in my name. [16] (I did baptize also the household of Steph'anas. Beyond that,
I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) [17] For Christ did not send me
to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, lest the
cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
Paul here is discussing the rise of
personality cults which has been a factor of the church and our communities
since the beginning. We see here that the Corinthians were putting importance
on the person who baptised or ordained them, thus taking the focus away from
their new spiritual status and showing partiality towards the one who baptised
them. The gift is from God, not the person who baptised them. Modern churches
of God have fallen into this trap, particularly in the last twenty-odd years,
and follow the command of an individual and that individual’s interpretation.
Such views affected the Churches of God from the rise of the Radio Church of
God and destroyed the theology of the Adventists.
Paul says in verse 10 that we all speak the
same thing and let there be no contentions among you. This refers back to the law.
Those who would cause a
schism in the church are held accountable for the schism. Unity of the body is
a critical aspect of the faith. People who split the body on administrative
grounds are held accountable for that fact. False prophecy is an indicator of
whom God is dealing with in the body. It is true that there are many administrations
but one Lord as Paul taught.
Understanding of the
body is revealed through its officers and achieved through collective operation
in the Spirit.
1Corinthians, right up to chapter 4, deals
with the unity of the faith within a unity of doctrine. There is only one
truth. Paul condemns idolatry from Romans 1:22-25.
[22] Claiming to be wise, they
became fools, [23] and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images
resembling mortal man or birds or animals or reptiles. [24] Therefore God gave
them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their
bodies among themselves, [25] because they exchanged the truth about God for a
lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is
blessed forever! Amen.
The
worship of the One true God features prominently in Paul’s writings, as does
adultery. The primary objective of the faith is the marriage of the creation to
Christ.
This
unity of one bride and one groom is paralleled by the unity of one doctrine. Individual
men cannot allow and must not allow opinions and interpretations to splinter
the church. Christ tightened the marriage laws so that divorce was only allowed
for adultery. Christ could not prepare a wedding of which he was the groom and
be a proponent for divorce. Likewise, adultery is an attack on the marriage and
thus cannot be tolerated in the church.
1
Corinthians 6:9-10,13,18:
[9] Know ye
not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived:
neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers
of themselves with mankind, [10] Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
[13] Meats for
the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now
the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the
body.
[18] Flee
fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that
committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. (KJV)
Galatians
5:19:
[19] Now the
works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication,
uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance,
emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness,
revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told
you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom
of God. (KJV)
1Thessalonians
4:2-5:
[2] For ye
know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus. [3] For this is the will
of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: [4]
That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification
and honour; [5] Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which
know not God:
Our
capacity to be faithful to our physical partners is directly proportionate to
our ability to be faithful to Christ. The matters listed above are all aspects
of the Law of God. The classes of prohibitions stem directly from the law.
Christ kept the law that he personally gave to Israel at Sinai. It is not the
Law of Moses but the Law of God, given through Christ.
Paul said
in 1Corinthians 11:1 (RSV):
Be imitators
of me, as I am of Christ.
The KJV
translates this passage as:
Be ye followers of me, even as I also [am] of
Christ.
The word mimētēs (Strong’s G3401) is usually translated as followers but
the RSV translates it as imitators.
Being a member of a church means that you are a follower of that religion, or a supporter of that faith. If you are a Buddhist it means you follow Buddha but you do not necessarily imitate him. You can be in a Christian church and not actually imitate Christ.
2Th 3:7 For 1063 yourselves 846
know 1492 how 4459 ye ought 1163
to follow 3401 us 2248: for 3754 we behaved 812 0 not 3756 ourselves disorderly 812
among 1722 you 5213;
2Th 3:9 Not 3756 because 3754
we have 2192 not 3756 power 1849,
but 235 to 2443 make 1325 ourselves 1438
an ensample 5179 unto you 5213 to 1519 follow 3401 us 2248.
Hbr 13:7 Remember 3421
them which have the rule 2233 over you 5216,
who 3748 have spoken 2980 unto you 5213
the word 3056 of God 2316: whose 3739
faith 4102 follow 3401 , considering 333 the end 1545
of [their] conversation 391.
3Jo 1:11 Beloved 27, follow 3401 not 3361 that which is evil 2556, but 235 that which is good 18.
He that doeth good 15 is 2076 of 1537 God 2316: but 1161 he that doeth evil 2554
hath 3708 0 not 3756 seen 3708 God 2316.
The word that correctly translates as follows is as follows:
Strong’s Greek Dictionary (SGD) 190 is akoloutheō
which means:
1) to follow one who precedes, join him as his
attendant, accompany him 2) to join one as a disciple, become or be his
disciple, a) side with his
party.
We behave as Christ behaved, imitating him so that those imitating us imitate Christ.
People say that Paul did away with the law. This passage shows the opposite. Christ said in John 14:15:
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
To which commandments
was he referring? He was referring to Matthew 22:37-39 as discussed above.
1Corinthians
10:1-6 (KJV)
[1] Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; [2] And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; [3] And did all eat the same spiritual meat; [4] And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. [5] But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. [6] Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
The NT states clearly that the Law was given to Moses by Christ. Thus we know that Paul and the disciples were clear in their understanding of the pre-existence of Christ. Paul states clearly that he keeps the same law that Christ did. Christ kept the Sabbath and so did Paul.
Acts 18:4
[4] And he argued in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded Jews and Greeks.
Christ
kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread, so did Paul and the others, therefore, so
do we.
[3] and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.
[6] but we sailed away from Philip'pi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we came to them at Tro'as, where we stayed for seven days.
[8] Let us, therefore, celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Colossians 2:16
[16] Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath.
In regards
to the New Moon, here we see Paul telling the gentiles not to be ashamed of
keeping what were once Jewish festivals but are now theirs also. Christ adhered
to the New Moons also as a matter of logic, because if Paul mimicked Christ and
Paul kept the New Moons then it dictates that Christ had done so also. He kept
the law and the Feasts, and the New Moons were kept faithfully by all Judaism
up to the destruction of the Temple, and Christ was the King and the
replacement High Priest without sin. To assert that this text does away with
the Sabbaths, New Moons and Feasts is a complete misuse of the language both of
the Greek and the English.
[2] Now the Jews' feast of Tabernacles was at hand.
As Christ
kept the Feast of Tabernacles, so did Paul and therefore so do we.
Acts 18:18-21
[18] And Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, and then took his leave of the brethren, and sailed for Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila; having shorn his head in Cenchrea: for he had a vow. [19] And he came to Ephesus, and left them there: but he himself entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with the Jews. [20] When they desired him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent." [21]: "But bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem: but I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus." (KJV)
This is the vow that had to be fulfilled at Jerusalem when he went there as we saw above.
Since the vast majority of the readers of John’s gospel were non-Jewish, it was necessary to use the phrase “the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles” (Jn. 7:2). Christ’s actions solidify the command to keep the Feast as He charged his physical family to keep it in John 7:8, and in verse 10 we see that he also went to keep the Feast. Even though the religious leaders of the time sought to kill Him, this did not deter Jesus from keeping it and going in to the Temple and he was teaching (Jn. 7:14). This fact leaves us without any excuse to not observe these important days.
The Feast to which Paul was referring could
have only been the Feast of Tabernacles. A reconstruction of the timeline of
Paul’s travels shows this to be so. He arrived in Corinth (Acts 18:1) and
stayed at the home of Justus for 18 months (Acts 18:11). He then travelled to
Jerusalem, where he arrived in the autumn of 52-53 CE. Paul clearly saw the
need and the importance of keeping the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem, which
was the headquarters of the Church at that time.
Acts 27:9
[9] As much time had been lost, and the
voyage was already dangerous because the fast had already gone by, Paul advised
them,
Bullinger
states in his notes to verse 9 this fast, was the tenth day of the seventh
month, the Day of Atonement. He thinks it was about Oct. 1 in that year
(Companion Bible).
It is clear that Paul kept the law as Christ did, thus imitating Christ. We know that the Law was not done away with because Christ says in Matthew 5:17-18 that:
[17] "Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them. [18] For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.
Revelation 22:6
[6] And he said
to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the
spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon
take place.
Until
these events do take place all is not fulfilled
Sin is
the transgression of the law (1Jn 3:4). If Paul did not keep the law then he
sinned. If he was sinning then as an imitator of Christ, we say that Christ was
a sinner also. An attack on Paul and the law is an attack on Christ.
Who are
the saints of God? These are they that keep the Commandments of God and the
faith or testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:17; 14:12).
And when
is all fulfilled? The completion of the Resurrection and the Judgment and the
coming to earth of the City of God is the fulfilment of the plan. Yet even then
when we have fulfilled the plan and put an end to the rebellion and brought all
of the creation to God heaven and earth will not have passed away and the law
will stand. We have another task ahead of us which will require our life and
faith to continue within the Laws of God as they emanate from His nature which
we will inherit.
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