God's Law vs God's Desire.

[This Vale Of Tears]

7 “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”​

8 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard.​

St. Matthew 19​

​

This is something that's been bothering me, that many of the laws we see recorded in Leviticus may not actually reflect the true desire of God. It bothers me because there seems to be no mechanism to determine which laws were given that are fully in line with God's values and which ones represented a compromise because of the recalcitrance of the Israelites and people in general.

The unregenerate scoffer loves to remind us that God permitted men to sell their daughters into slavery (Exodus 21:7) and certainly passages like this were used to defend slavery as a practice in 19th century America. But the notion that God actually wanted slavery offends me. In fact, I think it grieved God that the very people He freed from slavery through great effort, signs, and miracles, and an astonishing deliverance from the most powerful army on earth would immediately impose slavery upon themselves and upon aliens.

And Jesus affirms to the Pharisees what should have been evident all along, that some of the laws God gave did not represent His heart or his ideals for people to live by. God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16) that much is evident, but a stiff necked people were bent on divorce no matter what, just like they were to practice slavery, so God's law set limits on it, even setting a year of Jubilee in which all slaves would be free.

So I'm just throwing out some thoughts in hopes of starting a discussion because quite honestly, this is uncharted territory for me.

I forward this link to CRI to see if they have any resources on this subject. I would love to have people here weigh on in this though.....

 

[aspen]

training wheels my be necessary, but they will never lead to expertise on a bike. the law is for sinners and the dead. only Christ can bring us from the law into the light. the law would have never been necessary if we didnt sin because it would have been already written on on hearts (internalized rather than externalized) and it would have been naturally present in our perfect love.

 

[This Vale Of Tears]

The insufficiency of the law is something we know through the prism of the New Covenant and doesn't answer the question. Why is this so important to me? Because I want a strong response to those who think that God's laws are irrelevant because He endorsed slavery. I think He allowed slavery because of the hardness of their hearts, the same reason He allowed divorce. But this still gives rise to the question, how do we differentiate?

 

[KingJ]

I believe only a Christian can differentiate. We know the heart of God better then before. Kind of like a helper vs a wife. How can a helper ''wash dishes'' for no money? It is on par with expecting someone who doesn't love God to respect marriage. How can they? They live entirely for themselves. That is why the Christianity 101 = death to self. We stay married because it pleases God. Divorce = pleasing self = satanic.

With OT slavery we have to be so careful in isolating verses. We need to read all of Lev 25, Exo 21 and add to that the fact that Jews would stone each other for evil.

So whenever we assume slavery was permission for rape and adultery, don't assume.

There are three scriptures that provide the perfect context for all verses on slavery:

1. Its a six year contract Exo 21:2
2. Lev 19:34 The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.
3. Deut 23:15 If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand them over to their master.

Every slave was a foreigner residing among them.

 

[This Vale Of Tears]

I believe only a Christian can differentiate. We know the heart of God better then before. Kind of like a helper vs a wife. How can a helper ''wash dishes'' for no money? It is on par with expecting someone who doesn't love God to respect marriage. How can they? They live entirely for themselves. That is why the Christianity 101 = death to self. We stay married because it pleases God. Divorce = pleasing self = satanic.

With OT slavery we have to be so careful in isolating verses. We need to read all of Lev 25, Exo 21 and add to that the fact that Jews would stone each other for evil.

So whenever we assume slavery was permission for rape and adultery, don't assume.

There are three scriptures that provide the perfect context for all verses on slavery:

1. Its a six year contract Exo 21:2
2. Lev 19:34 The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.
3. Deut 23:15 If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand them over to their master.

Every slave was a foreigner residing among them.

There's plenty of evidence of God's true feelings on slavery. Those sermons preached in 19th century America in support of slavery were not trying to capture the heart of God, they were trying to justify an abhorrent practice and didn't care about God's true feelings on the subject. Man was not born to be enslaved, he was born to be free. God tolerated slavery, but he didn't endorse it. In the end, you may be right that there is no exegetical mechanism for determining which laws were given only because man's heart was hard and bent on certain evils, that those who love God will understand God's true desires.

 

[KingJ]

Those sermons preached in 19th century America in support of slavery were not trying to capture the heart of God, they were trying to justify an abhorrent practice and didn't care about God's true feelings on the subject.

Amen! Tim 1:10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers--and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine.

 

[This Vale Of Tears]

My request for information from the Christian Research Institute on this question was answered with excellence, thoroughness, and far exceeding expectations. My sincere gratitude to Hank Hanegraaff, research consultant Warren Nozaki, and the CRI staff for all the thoughtful effort put into this response:

September 11, 2014

Dear James,

Grace to you and peace!

The trick with your question is the biblical writers never divided the Scriptures between Laws representing God’s values and desires and Laws setup on account of sin. The entirety of the Bible offers to every person special revelation on God’s values and desires. We could never know anything about what God values and desires without the Scriptures, and while we can be certain from nature there is a Creator and the universe bears the finger prints of an Intelligent Designer, we could never know what God desires for all humanity apart from God traversing the great divide between the visible and invisible words and sharing what is on His heart.

Only Jesus mentions divorce as being given on account of sin (Matt. 19:3-9), but this was never to say, "Ok, you sinners want to dissolve your marriage covenant; well, I do not want that, but if you insist, here is the guidelines for how to do it." That is never the case. Jesus stressed that God wanted marriage covenants to last from the very beginning.
A good number of Christian scholars believe Jesus’ reason for mentioning Moses gave the law regarding the certificate of divorce to dignify women who were created in God’s image. They reason that if a man became a deadbeat, failed at his family responsibilities, he would be in violation of the covenant of marriage. This would leave the wife in a predicament, since she would be left alone and destitute. The certificate of divorce would help her to remarry and receive support from a husband willing to fulfill his family obligations. Without a certificate of divorce, she could never remarry, neither was it likely she could be a single-working-mother with a steady job to pay the bills, which was something unavailable to women at the time. This would be an act of love to the woman left destitute on account of a deadbeat husband.

Hank Hanegraaff and CRI hold that while the civil and ceremonial aspects to the Law find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ, the moral aspects to the Law are still applicable. The Law of Moses can be broken down into three basic divisions: the moral law, the ceremonial law, and the judicial (civil) law.

God’s moral law is relevant, applicable, and obligatory. It is encapsulated in the Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:3-17; Deut. 5:7-20) or, more concisely, summarized in the words of Jesus: "You shall love the Lord Your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets" (Matt. 22:37-40, NKJV). Our Lord here declares that all of the moral demands in the Law are ultimately fulfilled in these two commandments. Those who truly love God with all of their heart, soul, and mind will not have any gods before Him, make any idols, take His name in vain, or dishonor His Sabbath. Those who truly love their neighbors as themselves will honor their parents, and not commit murder, adultery, or theft, or bear false witness or covet their possessions.

God’s moral commands are binding on all men, in all eras, in every nation, including believers today.1 He has bound all men under the moral law in order to also have mercy on all men (Rom. 11:32). We do not and cannot receive salvation by observing these commandments (Gal. 3:21-22); however, we can do our utmost to imitate and demonstrate the righteous character of God in response to the salvation that is ours freely through faith. We can affirm that while salvation is by grace through faith apart from works (Eph. 2:8-9), our guide for living is manifested in the moral law (Rom. 3:31).

One may even say there are three uses of the law. It can serve to bring one to the knowledge of God’s perfect righteousness and holiness but also to reveal one’s own sinfulness and separation from all that is holy. It is a tutor that leads us to Christ (Gal. 3:19). The law can serve to restrain evil in society (Rom. 13:3-4). Sinners may constrain themselves from doing some evil on account of their fear of enduring the consequences of their actions. This never makes a person righteous, but it does keep that person from doing evil. The law can also serve as a righteous standard for living, as it reveals to us the heart of God (Matt. 5:18). Anything short of these three uses of the law would be the error of antinomianism.

We, however, are no longer under ceremonial aspects of the Law. It consists of the commands contained in the Mosaic Law that describe the dietary restrictions, ritual cleansings, blood sacrifices, observance of holy days, and so forth that pointed to the Christ who would come to redeem His people, and were more "shadow" than "substance." The ceremonial aspect of the Law has been "nailed to the cross" (Col. 2:14, NKJV), since that which was foreshadowed in the promise has come in His fullness (Col. 2:17). Christians are free to eat, drink, and celebrate holy days as they please (Acts 10:9-16; Mark 7:14-19; Col. 2:16; 1 Tim. 4:3-5).

Many nations today implement adapted tenets of the judicial (civil) aspect of the Law in order to maintain justice; however, this aspect of the Law is no longer mandated by God (other than the call to obey civil authorities [e.g., Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:13-17], which is a moral obligation). The judicial law, under a theocratic form of government, informs followers of the moral and ceremonial law how to enforce the statutes contained therein. It, for instance, directs that those who dishonor their parents shall be put to death (Lev. 20:9), which we do not observe because we are not under a theocratic form of government.

It is furthermore evident from the historical evidence available, as well as the New Testament witness, that Jewish authorities in the first century were not observing the entire judicial law, since the Romans officially took away their right to execute capital punishment. The Jews occasionally tried to fulfill the civil law for severe offences, such as blasphemy or adultery (Luke 20:6; John 8:7; 10:31; etc.); however, Scripture clarifies that the Law is an all-or-nothing proposition: you either fulfill it in its entirety or you are guilty of offending in all points (James 2:10).

Hank and CRI also recognize that Christians variously understand the Law in terms of how aspects relate to believers today. A dispensational Christian, for example, would consider the relevance of certain Old Testament passages differently than Lutheran and Reformed Christians. Reformed theonomists (theonomy meaning governed by God rather than others) would differ somewhat in their interpretation. Much more can be written on this subject, which cannot be contained in a single research response letter. We, therefore, encourage believers to study the various positions and, using sound principles of hermeneutics, come to a logically coherent and exegetically defensible conclusion on the intended message the biblical writer sought to communicate. To this end, we believe the following related equip.org resources will be helpful:

DB010 – L-I-G-H-T-S To The Word of God
DI501-1 - Practical Hermeneutics: How to Interpret Your Bible Correctly (Part 1)
DI501-2 - Practical Hermeneutics: How to Interpret Your Bible Correctly (Part 2)
DP801 - President Bartlet’s Fallacious Diatribe
JAO100 - One Shot, One Book, One God: Apologetics and the Unity of the Bible
CP0715 - Does Sunday Observance Violate the Sabbath?
CP0710 - The Atonement
DL300 - Addressing the Legalist
DS420 - Should We Keep the Sabbath?
DS421 - Sabbath Keeping and the New Covenant
JAV342 – Can Christians Celebrate the Passover?
JAF2342 – Cherry-Picking the Commandments
We also recommend the following resources from our bookstore:
The Atonement: Its Meaning and Significance (SB656/$15.00) by Leon Morris
The Murder of Jesus (B577/$14.99) by John MacArthur 4
The Complete Bible Answer Book Collectors Edition (B982/$21.99) by Hank Hanegraaff
Perspectives on the Sabbath: Four Views (B1040/$24.99) edited by Christopher John Donato

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"The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace" (Num. 6:24-28, ESV)

Sincerely,
Warren Nozaki
Research Consultant
Christian Research Institute