John 7:19, 24

“Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?”

If Yeshua (Jesus) came to abolish the law of Moses, why would He say these words? I imagine if that were the case, then He would have more than likely said, “None of you keeps the law. Good! I came to nullify it anyway.” But this is clearly not the case, since He is admonishing the Pharisees for failing to keep the law of Moses!

Well, here’s a couple ways to look at this:

• The Pharisees were being hypocrites for forcing everyone to follow the law of Moses but not following it themselves. It wasn’t so much about whether the law was still valid, but the hypocrisy exhibited by the Pharisees.
• The law is still valid, but the Pharisees had interpreted it incorrectly. They thought themselves to be in line with the law of Moses, but they were not.

But further on, in verse 24, Yeshua says “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” Clearly Yeshua is telling them that we should judge according to the law of Moses (therefore it is still valid), & that the Pharisees had failed to interpret the law (interpreting the law is the responsibility of judges in our modern legal system).

I am a firm believer that the law of Moses is still valid to this day. But without Yeshua, my ability to interpret the law is about as good as any Pharisee — not good at all! Thus, I must take the words of Yeshua concerning the law very seriously. Only through Him can I understand how to judge with righteous judgment!

“I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. (Jeremiah 31:33)”

“Don’t think that I have come to abolish the Torah (law of Moses) or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete. Yes indeed! I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah — not until everything that must happen has happened. So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness is far greater than that of the Torah-teachers and Pharisees, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven! (Matthew 5:17–20)”