Led by the law or by the Holy Spirit?

It is not unusual to hear a lot of Christians profess that we are no longer under the law but we still have a fair bit of them who like to resurrect the law when it suits them.

The common argument I hear is “Jesus did not come to change the law” or “do we have to throw away the Ten Commandments?” Ironically I only ever hear this from those who try to defend tithing (getting really sick of this now). But here are the verses of scripture that records the famous saying of Jesus

17Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.18For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Mat 5

What really does the word fulfil mean? It means to complete, carry out, or realize. If for instance an architect draws up plans for a building and these plans come to fruition when the building has been completed, does he still get the builders to keep building? That would be a complete waste of time and wholly unnecessary. Since the building has been completed, builders are no longer required. The building is then passed on to its owners to do with as they please.

Since every aspect of the law has been fulfilled in Christ Jesus, are we still required to keep observing it? That would be quite silly just as silly as builders trying to build a building that has been completed.

It was imperative for Jesus to fulfil the law so that the promise of the Father could be bestowed upon those who are to be heirs of salvation. All aspects of the law were fulfilled in Him. He fulfilled the aspect of the Passover by being the sacrifice, atoned for our sins by being the lamb of atonement, fulfilled the tithes by birthing the church who are now God’s tithe and became God’s firstfruit through His resurrection amongst all other requirements of the law.

With this accomplished, the grace of God could be revealed to all who receive Christ Jesus and we all could now become God’s sons.

And we get a completely new guide: The Holy Spirit and not the Old Testament law!

In trying to defend tithing, I usually hear some ignorant people ask if am advocating that the 10 commandments should no longer be followed. How ignorant can one be! What was Jesus answer when He was asked what the greatest commandment was? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and strength and love your neighbour as yourself. Upon these two do all the other commandments lie.

The Holy Spirit makes it possible for us to obey these two commandments by our having the law written on the circumcised fleshy tablets of our hearts. He is the guide who shall lead us to all truth! And His presence in our lives shows that we are God’s sons.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. John 16: 13

For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Romans 8:14

As long as you recognize the role of the Holy Spirit in your life, you do not require any man-made laws to make you live right. Your church imposing a 10% giving standard should not be the reason you give. You should be able to hear the voice of the Spirit as He instructs you on what to give.

I was once told a story by a gentleman. He was invited to attend a program in another church and during the program God laid in his heart to give every single penny he had on him at the time to the visiting minister. And what made it even harder for him was that more than half of the money in his possession was not his. He obeyed the voice of the Spirit nonetheless. He approached the pastor of the church and told the pastor that God had asked him to give money to the guest preacher. And as it turns out, the church was struggling to make up the amount of the money they had wanted to give to the guest preacher and the money this gentleman handed in, made it up to the exact amount. You cannot beat God!

Some believe that this kind of approach would never produce real Christians; hence they like to introduce some moral laws to assist the Holy Spirit. This unfortunately makes the word of God of no effect in the lives of many with a lot of them unable to develop a mature relationship with God.