Last week we started talking about God our Judge. I don’t think people fully understand what kind of Judge God is. Last week I said God was a good Judge. That He is. We have to remember that all the attributes of God work together at the same time. The same God who is peace, is also a God of war. The same God who is love, is also righteous. He is both the judge and the Defender. God does not put one part of Himself to the side so He can do other things. All of His attributes operate in perfect balance in Him all at the same time. That’s what makes Him God, He truly is amazing.
This means we cannot hide behind His love to escape His judgment. It would be unrighteous for Him to sweep our sin under the rug and God is righteous and just. So like in the garden of Eden, it was not a question of love. Adam and Eve broke the “law”. They ate of the tree they had been warned not to eat from. The consequence or sentence for that was death. They did not die immediately but they suffered spiritual death and separation from God. This meant that they had to leave the garden, Genesis 3:23.
God judged Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden. He pronounced the consequences of their sin, Genesis 3:17-19. His righteousness required justice. His love made Him clothe them and cover them before they left the garden, Genesis 3:21. His love is why God had always planned to give us Jesus since before time began, Revelations 13:8.
Last week we also learnt what the role of the judge is, it is to interpret and apply the law. The law says you are to do this, you have not done it, therefore the consequences for that are a, b and c. In the context of our Christian walk, what is the law? Matthew 5:17-20 says (and this is Jesus speaking):
“Do not think that I came to do away with or undo the Law [of Moses] or the [writings of the] Prophets; I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For I assure you and most solemnly say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke [of the pen] will pass from the Law until all things [which it foreshadows] are accomplished.
So, whoever breaks one of the least [important] of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least [important] in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever practices and teaches them, he will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. “For I say to you that unless your righteousness (uprightness, moral essence) is more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
The law of Moses refers to the 10 commandments that were given to Moses on Mount Sinai by God, Exodus 20. Jesus tells us that He fulfilled the law but did not abolish the law. Does that mean the law is still in force? The answer is no. The law found its ultimate fulfilment and satisfaction in Jesus.
Matthew 22:36- 40 gives us further insight, it says, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” Jesus answered him, “Love the Lord your God with every passion of your heart, with all the energy of your being, and with every thought that is within you.” This is the great and supreme commandment. And the second is like it in importance: ‘You must love your friend in the same way you love yourself.’ Contained within these commandments to love you will find all the meaning of the Law and the Prophets.”
This means if we truly love God and we truly love others, then the rest of the commandments are self-fulfilling. If you truly love God, you’re not going to use His name in vain or worship idols. If you love a person, you are not going to kill them, that deals with murder. You are not going to sleep with their husband or wife and that deals with covetousness and so on. So as New Testament believers, we are called to love God first and then other people, but we are no longer bound by the law of Moses so to speak.
Galatians 3:1-5 then explains it this way after Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, “Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.”
That makes it clear that we are no longer living under the law but we are justified, made right with God, by faith in Jesus Christ. It has nothing to do with our own works or our ability to keep the law because we failed and still continue to fail.
Galatians 5:1-6 says, “At last we have freedom, for Christ has set us free! We must always cherish this truth and firmly refuse to go back into the bondage of our past. I, Paul, tell you: If you think there is benefit in circumcision and Jewish regulations, then you’re acting as though Christ is not enough.
I say it again emphatically: If you let yourselves be circumcised you are obliged to fulfill every single one of the commandments and regulations of the law! If you want to be made right with God by fulfilling the obligations of the law, you have cut off more than your flesh —you have cut yourselves off from Christ and have fallen away from the revelation of grace! But we have the true hope that comes from being made right with God, and by the Spirit we wait eagerly for this hope. When you’re joined to the Anointed One, circumcision and religious obligations can benefit you nothing. All that matters now is living in the faith that works and expresses itself through love.”
So, if we are no longer under the law, does that mean that God being a Judge is a thing of the Old Testament? Or is He only a judge to unbelievers and not those who are in Christ? We will continue this next week.
Love and blessings,
Melissa Tsingano.
Heavenly Whispers Blog 
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