Now, humans aren’t spiritual beings, they are made of the dirt, like the animals. But God calls humans to become something more, he elevates them to live and rule in Eden, the place where heaven and earth are one. They are invited to eat from the tree of life. This tree is an image of receiving God’s own eternal life into ourselves, it’s about a whole new kind of existence. Physical beings living forever, how could that even work? Sharing in God’s life, transforms our bodies, so that we can inhabit heaven and earth, at the same time. God’s life also transforms our imaginations, so that we learn how to rule the world like God, in the power of love. But, humanity is quickly deceived by a spiritual rebel, he lies to the humans, saying that they can rule, and get eternal life on their own terms. God exiled all of them from the garden, cut off from the source of true life. Evil and death now have power over us and we live in a world of fear, self-preservation and violence. But God promises that one day, a human will come to defeat evil and death, at their source and to open up a new way to a reunited heaven and earth.
What’s the purpose of the law? While the Torah has laws in it, the Torah itself is fundamentally a story about how God is creating new kinds of people, who are fully able to love God and love others. When Jesus taught about the Torah, he said that he was bringing that story to its fulfillment. The story begins with God creating humanity, who rebels and God chooses Abraham, to bless all of the nations through his family, who end up in slavery down in Egypt and God rescues them. Then at Mount Sinai, God makes a covenant with Israel, an agreement, and all of the laws that Moses gives to Israel are the terms of that agreement, like a constitution. By following these laws, Israel would show the other nations what God is like. The 613 commands are only a selection from that original constitution and even these, have been broken up and placed at strategic points within the story.
We’ll see a really clear pattern, Moses gives the first laws to Israel and right after that, there’s a story of Israel breaking those very laws, they worshiped the golden calf. So Moses gives some more laws and then we get more stories of rebellion, and some more laws and rebellion again and we start to see the point. No matter how many laws, they’re just gonna continue to rebel. So at the conclusion of the Torah’s story, Moses gives this final speech to Israel, as they prepare to go into their new home and he tells them, you’re not going to follow all of God’s laws, you’ve proven to me that you’re incapable. Moses says the problem is that their hearts are hard and that they’re going to need new transformed hearts, if they’re ever going to truly follow God’s law. The story goes on to recount Israel’s total failure, they go into the land, they break all the laws. Ezekiel, he said that if Israel was ever going to obey the law, God’s Spirit would have to transform their hard hearts, into soft hearts and Jeremiah, he said that’s when obedience to God’s command wouldn’t feel like a duty, but they would be written deep in their hearts and Isaiah, he promised a future leader, Israel’s Messiah, who will lead all of the people in obedience to the law, Jesus saw himself as continuing that story. Jesus agreed with the law and the prophets, when he taught that it’s out of the human heart that come the most ugly parts of human nature, it’s like the default setting of our hearts is opposed to God’s law.
Jesus said that he came to solve that problem and in his words, to fulfill the law. What does Jesus mean, to fulfill the law? Jesus said the demand of all of the laws in the Torah, could be fulfilled by what he called the great command, that we are to love God and to love others. Jesus showed how love is far more demanding, than we realized. Do not murder, and Jesus says when we treat someone with disrespect or nurse resentment against them, we’re also violating God’s moral idea, because we’re not treating that person with love. True love ought to extend, even to our own enemies, even though this command seems very simple, Jesus showed how our hearts are not currently equipped to fulfill even this basic command of God, to love others. But where Israel failed, Jesus brought this story to its fulfillment.
This promise of a reunited heaven and earth reaches its fulfillment in Jesus, he is a human, but he is also way more. In Jesus, God and humanity have become one, so that he can restore the rest of humanity to its lost calling. Jesus was tested by that same deceptive spiritual being, not in a garden, but out in the wilderness. This deceptive spiritual being, it tells Jesus the same lie, you could rule the whole world right now, if you come under my authority and do things my way. Jesus knew that lie leads to death, he rejected it, and was victorious over the spiritual power of evil. Then Jesus started announcing that God’s heavenly rule was arriving here on earth, through him. Jesus went around confronting the power of death, in healing and exorcisms. Jesus was opening the way back to eternal life, to rule with God, and become new humans.
Jesus also confronted our imaginations, by teaching how corrupt spiritual powers enslave whole communities with their lies, like my tribe is superior to your tribe. Jesus said, every human is an image of God. The lie that power comes through force, but Jesus taught that real power requires sacrifice and generosity. The lie that peace comes through violence, but Jesus said true peace comes through self-giving love. As Israel’s Messiah, he fully loved God and others and he showed all of the nations, what God is truly like. Jesus did this through his acts of compassion and mercy. This is a new kind of humanity, a humanity transformed by God’s life and his love. Jesus didn’t just talk about these ideas, he lived them out, he brought God’s Heavenly Kingdom to Jerusalem, to confront the powers. In fact, that’s what got him arrested, but from Jesus’ point of view, his coming death was actually a battle. Not against humans, but against the real enemy, the spiritual powers that enslave us through their lies.
Ultimately by loving his enemies, Jesus gave his life and let evil do its worst, but God’s love has the power to create life, even out of death, that’s what happened when Jesus rose from the dead. The risen Jesus is human, but a new kind of human. When Jesus’ followers met him alive from the dead, he had a transformed body that could live in heaven and earth, at the same time. Jesus told his followers, that he would send God’s Spirit to transform their hearts, so that they could follow him and fulfill the purpose of the law, to love God and to love their neighbor. Jesus is like a new category of human, one that can live and rule with God forever. Jesus is the new humanity, that we are called to become. Jesus said that all authority in heaven and earth, belongs to him. Jesus sent out his followers to announce that his eternal life is available to us now, in the present. We can experience eternal life now? Jesus said, that eternal life is knowing this God of love, so that our imaginations can be transformed, as we’re liberated to love God and to love our neighbor. We trust, that even if we die, God’s love will transform our bodies, and raise us up, to live in the new creation with Jesus and the new humanity ruling in a united heaven on earth, together. The one who loves, fulfills the law, Romans 13:8.
What’s the purpose of the law? While the Torah has laws in it, the Torah itself is fundamentally a story about how God is creating new kinds of people, who are fully able to love God and love others. When Jesus taught about the Torah, he said that he was bringing that story to its fulfillment. The story begins with God creating humanity, who rebels and God chooses Abraham, to bless all of the nations through his family, who end up in slavery down in Egypt and God rescues them. Then at Mount Sinai, God makes a covenant with Israel, an agreement, and all of the laws that Moses gives to Israel are the terms of that agreement, like a constitution. By following these laws, Israel would show the other nations what God is like. The 613 commands are only a selection from that original constitution and even these, have been broken up and placed at strategic points within the story.
We’ll see a really clear pattern, Moses gives the first laws to Israel and right after that, there’s a story of Israel breaking those very laws, they worshiped the golden calf. So Moses gives some more laws and then we get more stories of rebellion, and some more laws and rebellion again and we start to see the point. No matter how many laws, they’re just gonna continue to rebel. So at the conclusion of the Torah’s story, Moses gives this final speech to Israel, as they prepare to go into their new home and he tells them, you’re not going to follow all of God’s laws, you’ve proven to me that you’re incapable. Moses says the problem is that their hearts are hard and that they’re going to need new transformed hearts, if they’re ever going to truly follow God’s law. The story goes on to recount Israel’s total failure, they go into the land, they break all the laws. Ezekiel, he said that if Israel was ever going to obey the law, God’s Spirit would have to transform their hard hearts, into soft hearts and Jeremiah, he said that’s when obedience to God’s command wouldn’t feel like a duty, but they would be written deep in their hearts and Isaiah, he promised a future leader, Israel’s Messiah, who will lead all of the people in obedience to the law, Jesus saw himself as continuing that story. Jesus agreed with the law and the prophets, when he taught that it’s out of the human heart that come the most ugly parts of human nature, it’s like the default setting of our hearts is opposed to God’s law.
Jesus said that he came to solve that problem and in his words, to fulfill the law. What does Jesus mean, to fulfill the law? Jesus said the demand of all of the laws in the Torah, could be fulfilled by what he called the great command, that we are to love God and to love others. Jesus showed how love is far more demanding, than we realized. Do not murder, and Jesus says when we treat someone with disrespect or nurse resentment against them, we’re also violating God’s moral idea, because we’re not treating that person with love. True love ought to extend, even to our own enemies, even though this command seems very simple, Jesus showed how our hearts are not currently equipped to fulfill even this basic command of God, to love others. But where Israel failed, Jesus brought this story to its fulfillment.
This promise of a reunited heaven and earth reaches its fulfillment in Jesus, he is a human, but he is also way more. In Jesus, God and humanity have become one, so that he can restore the rest of humanity to its lost calling. Jesus was tested by that same deceptive spiritual being, not in a garden, but out in the wilderness. This deceptive spiritual being, it tells Jesus the same lie, you could rule the whole world right now, if you come under my authority and do things my way. Jesus knew that lie leads to death, he rejected it, and was victorious over the spiritual power of evil. Then Jesus started announcing that God’s heavenly rule was arriving here on earth, through him. Jesus went around confronting the power of death, in healing and exorcisms. Jesus was opening the way back to eternal life, to rule with God, and become new humans.
Jesus also confronted our imaginations, by teaching how corrupt spiritual powers enslave whole communities with their lies, like my tribe is superior to your tribe. Jesus said, every human is an image of God. The lie that power comes through force, but Jesus taught that real power requires sacrifice and generosity. The lie that peace comes through violence, but Jesus said true peace comes through self-giving love. As Israel’s Messiah, he fully loved God and others and he showed all of the nations, what God is truly like. Jesus did this through his acts of compassion and mercy. This is a new kind of humanity, a humanity transformed by God’s life and his love. Jesus didn’t just talk about these ideas, he lived them out, he brought God’s Heavenly Kingdom to Jerusalem, to confront the powers. In fact, that’s what got him arrested, but from Jesus’ point of view, his coming death was actually a battle. Not against humans, but against the real enemy, the spiritual powers that enslave us through their lies.
Ultimately by loving his enemies, Jesus gave his life and let evil do its worst, but God’s love has the power to create life, even out of death, that’s what happened when Jesus rose from the dead. The risen Jesus is human, but a new kind of human. When Jesus’ followers met him alive from the dead, he had a transformed body that could live in heaven and earth, at the same time. Jesus told his followers, that he would send God’s Spirit to transform their hearts, so that they could follow him and fulfill the purpose of the law, to love God and to love their neighbor. Jesus is like a new category of human, one that can live and rule with God forever. Jesus is the new humanity, that we are called to become. Jesus said that all authority in heaven and earth, belongs to him. Jesus sent out his followers to announce that his eternal life is available to us now, in the present. We can experience eternal life now? Jesus said, that eternal life is knowing this God of love, so that our imaginations can be transformed, as we’re liberated to love God and to love our neighbor. We trust, that even if we die, God’s love will transform our bodies, and raise us up, to live in the new creation with Jesus and the new humanity ruling in a united heaven on earth, together. The one who loves, fulfills the law, Romans 13:8.
