What is the Law of God for Christians - Literature review Example

Summary Paper MidAmerica Nazarene Introduction The Bible provides us inspirational messages about human life, a journey which begins in the mother’s womb and end in death. It also describes the essence of spiritual life that is manifestation of Jesus Christ. The laws, principles and roadmap of life and death given by the Bible act as guideline for human life, no matter what kind of life one has or the challenges that one has to endure. In this paper, five major themes from our lecture will be summarized. Law and Covenant According to King James Version, 1 John 3:4, sin has been defined as “transgression of the law”. Here, King James indicated law as the words of God. Today, the definition of law for the Christians does not adhere to the Old Testament since the New Testament has eliminated the concept of sacrificing. The question that now remains whether the laws of Old Testament are still valid for the Christians like they were for the Israelites before the arrival of Jesus Christ. The message of Paul in the New Testament instructs its followers that salvation comes from union with Jesus Christ which means having complete faith in Christ. Paul has not given any kind of instructions to his followers that they should circumcise or follow any other rules of the Old Testament. By attempting to associate with God’s instructions whether in the Old Testament or the New Testament, one has to follow a set of regulations, i.e. a system of law. The Law of Moses differs from the law of Christ in the manner that in the latter “Mercy is more important than obedience”. According to an example in Matthew 12:1-8, David ate consecrated bread which was meant for the Levites. Although, he did this only out of hunger this action is considered unlawful according to Moses while God does not regard it as sinful due to the circumstances that compelled David to eat the bread (What is the Law of God for Christians?) According to the Bible, covenant is considered as agreement between God and his followers which is strengthened by faithfulness and adherence. In the Bible, God has created covenants with many human beings to whom he had made different kinds of promises. Some of the major covenants are that which God made with “the patriarchs and the nation of Israel” (Covenants in the Bible). One such promise was the one that God made to Abram; He promised to gift the land of Canaan to Abram’s offspring. Thus, God also promised that Abram would have offspring and they would be as many as the stars in the sky. Abram trusted God even though this promise was incredulous (Covenants in the Bible). In the real life, law plays an important role in maintaining peace and order in a country. Disobedience of the law leads to punishments. Today, covenant is understood in relation to marriage. It is through the covenant of marriage that God’s creation is held together on this earth. The covenant of marriage has been sanctified by God since it indicates safety of lives and stability of homes. Oppression and Deliverance It has never been the will of God that human beings be troubled or oppressed by the existence of demons. It is not uncommon among the Christians to be troubled by evil spirits by way of oppression, harassment or torture. Many of the devoted Christians do not fight the evil spirits and endure their oppression for life by considering it as “spiritual warfare”. However, it is necessary that people find the courage to liberate themselves from these evil spirits. As opposed to what many Christians tend to believe, being oppressed is not normal and should not be part of any people’s lives. Although it is true that evil spirits try to take control of people’s lives, it is however stated in the Bible that God does not support such oppression of His believers like Act 10:38 tells us, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him”. Here healing indicates deliverance, which means freedom from oppression, from the evil spirit or demons (A Biblical approach to the ministry of deliverance). In the real world, many people endure oppression because of spiritual warfare which includes three elements like Temptation, Accusation and Deception. People should learn to guard themselves against these elements for deliverance. Temptation means when the evil spirit provokes a person to commit sin. This can be avoided by increasing one’s allegiance to God. Accusation is where the evil spirit constantly reminds one of his or her previously committed sins. One should not be influenced by such lies and should believe that true repentance can relieve him from all his sins. Deception means the evil spirit makes one believe that he has not been forgiven as he has done unpardonable sins. People very often continue to feel guilty because of such lies. Justice and Righteousness There is a correlation between justice and righteousness as is depicted in many Bible passages. Justice is the ultimate product of God’s righteousness. It is said that the new world which has been promised by God will be filled with justice and righteousness. These are mentioned in passages like in Psalm 103:6, “The LORD works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed”, or in Psalm 33:5, “He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD” (Justice and Righteousness, 2011). In any kind of covenant relationship, righteousness is the justice which comes from fulfillment of all obligations of the relationship. In any covenant and community, there are demands for ethical and legal obligations and by fulfilling these one can attain justice through righteousness. It is said that people are righteous “when they are deprived of what is due them in a relationship and trust in God for vindication” (Bromiley, 1995, p.193). Thus, in the real world, people who are oppressed like the poor and the helpless are righteous over the rich people who suppress them and deny them justice. However, every individual has been subjected to evil deeds and so just by being oppressed the person does not become righteous. The oppressed can become righteous only by repentance of past sins and maintaining faith on God. Kingdom of God and Hope One of the most significant topics in the New Testament is the Kingdom of God. According to many scholars, it is the core theme of Jesus’ public declaration. According to the German theologian, Johannes Weiss the Kingdom of God is a future proclamation and not anything ethical. Weiss explains that Jesus, during his lifetime, believed that he would one day become the Son of Man. He later anticipated that the day would come soon after his death. The kingdom is a heritage that Jesus has yet to enter into. In Matthew 10:23, it is stated that Jesus had sent twelve of his disciples to explore Israel, and he believed that by the end of the tour the Son of Man would bring the kingdom. When it did not happen, Jesus realized that it is only through his suffering the kingdom will come (Baker, 1999). The discussion of Kingdom is relevant with Christian Hope since it is “manifestly based on the promises and actions of God” (Marshall, 1990, p.213). It is always the feeling that something good will happen in the future that is Hope for Christians. In this process, hope will never be fulfilled. Hope can find its ground only if people keep faith that God has the ability to fulfill his promises. Jesus’ message about the coming of Kingdom depicts that God is on the verge of keeping his promise, and this has already started (Marshall, 1990, p.221). The modern society is replete with corruption, poverty, suffering and violence. People live with the fear of sudden terrorist attacks; young people have to fight against drug addictions, premarital sex and alcoholism. Today, people are living with the hope of a better world. The Bible states that Jesus will return to earth to establish his Kingdom from where he will rule all men. Peace and love will thrive in this Kingdom so that all beings of Nature can live peacefully with each other in this world. Grace and Faith Grace is defined as “God’s unmerited favor” (Cole, n.d.). If salvation comes by grace, then it means man has not done anything to deserve it. When God gives something to a person because he has done something good or has shown the potential to keep trust on God in future, then it is not grace. Grace is the gift of God that is not deserved by man. For example, when God forgives a person who has severely sinned, and does not punish him, then that is grace. Paul has said that faith on God is the means of getting grace since only faith can convince a man that God’s gift of grace is result of good works (Cole, n.d.). Today, man endures suffering in the form of disease and violence. Grace is the power of God that He has given us to endure the hardships of life. Instead of indulging in self-pity, we must learn to compare out pain with that of others. In stressful times, it we ponder on our past rather than on the present then we will see that that through God’s grace we have overcome the pains of the past. References A Biblical approach to the ministry of deliverance, ministering deliverance, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Baker, D.W. (1999). The Kingdom of God in New Testament Theology: The Battle, The Christ, The Spirit-Bearer, and Returning Son of Man, Bible, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Bromiley, G.W. (1995) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Q:Z, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Cole, S.J. (n.d.) Salvation by Grace through Faith Alone, Bible, retrieved on August 8, 2014 fromhttp://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Covenants in the Bible, GCI, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Justice and Righteousness. (2011) vision, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Marshall, H. (1990) The Hope of a New Age: The Kingdom of God in the New Testament. Jesus the Saviour. Studies in New Testament Theology, pp.213-28, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf What is the Law of God for Christians? GCI, retrieved on August 8, 2014 from: http://biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/kingdom_marshall.pdf Read More