Today’s Scripture theme is on the Law (Torah). The Law is the body of the 613 commandments (mizvoh), and first part of the three-part structure of the Tanakh, the Jewish Bible, known as the Old Testament to the Christians. The Tanakh (Jewish Bible) is composed of the Torah (the Law), Nevi’im (the Prophets), and the Ketuvim (the Writings).
Biblically, the Law is what comes out of the
Covenant (unconditional promise) that God made with us. In a way, the Law is a
codified form of the Covenant. Therefore, the 613 mizvoh (commandments) are specific elements to characterize the
Covenant.
Perhaps, the very first covenant that God had made
with us the humans is traced back to Eden. And it was more of a form of a
commandment:
You
are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of
knowledge of good and evil. From that tree you shall not eat; when you eat from
it you shall die (Genesis 2:16-17).
Alas, however, upon the fall of Adam and Eve to
Original Sin, tempted by Satan, we the humans broke this first commandment form
of covenant.
So, did this violation end the relationship between
God and us? Did God abandon us completely because of this? No. Why? Because God’s
steadfast love (chesed) never ceases,
as sung in every verse of Psalm 136 and also reflected in Lamentations of
Jeremiah (3:22-23). Though God did not exempt us from inevitable consequences
of the violation, He sure showed his
chesed – His forever enduring love as a form of covenant, espousing a hope
of the Messiah in Genesis 3:15:
I
will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers;
They will strike at your head, while you strike at their heel.
We were evicted from Eden, which symbolizes God’s
fold, as a consequence of Original Sin, the violation of His covenant command
in Genesis 2:16-17. And, as we were being kicked out of Eden, God made another
covenant with us, and it is written in Genesis 3:15-24, prophetically
describing how our life would be outside Eden, as a result of violating his
first commandment form of covenant in Genesis 2:16-17. As described in Genesis 3:16-24, the
consequence of the violation of Genesis 2:16-17 means a life of struggles.
However, in this covenant, God ensures hope – salvific hope – for His promise
for the Messiah in a rather cryptic expression: a zarah (offspring, seed, son) of the woman will destroy Satan,
though he will be hurt, giving us a hope of salvation by sending His Son
through Mary, the New Eve, as the New Adam, incarnating in the human flesh of
Jesus, to defeat Satan (Revelation 20:7-11), though he would also suffer
greatly, referring to the passion and death of Christ.
In fact, all human struggles described in the rest
of the biblical text both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament reflect
God’s covenant in Genesis 2:16-24, in response Adam and Eve violating Genesis
2:16-17. So, we have fallen again and again. But, because God’s love endures
forever (Psalm 136), we have been able to pick ourselves up, reconciling with
God and start over. That is why God had made covenant with Noah, Abraham,
Moses, and David. That is why God helped
Moses elect judges, and handed his Law to us through him. And, that is why God
has sent prophets. Then, finally, God has sent His only begotten Son,
incarnating the Logos-Theos because
of his enduring love (Word-God)(John 1:1, 14; 3:16) to fulfill his covenant (promise)
in Genesis 3:15.
In order to better understand today’s theme on the Law, perhaps, this background of the Law, tracing back to the concept of the Covenant. This way, we also understand and appreciate the Law, as an expression of God’s loving care for us, rather than taking our freedom away to restrict our life with regulations. No, our loving God is not a fan of legalism. That is why God has not made us his remotely-controlled robots by completely eradicating free will from us. Instead, God has given us the Law as an extension of His Covenant, which has evolved from Genesis 2:16-17, with added salvific hope in Genesis 3:15.
Now, with the above background, let us explore today’s
First Reading (Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9) and Gospel Reading (Matthew 5:17-19).
In the First Reading (Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9), Moses,
as a predecessor of Jesus, speaking from his heart (O, Israel, listen!, like saying, listen, my dear!), telling not to take the Law lightly
and to turn into an object of our willful manipulation to make it to justify
our own ego-centric acts (Deuteronomy 4:2).Then, he reminded the Israelites to
observe the Law carefully because such an attentive observation leads to
attaining wisdom and understanding to be shared with other nations (Deuteronomy
4:6). Careful observation of Law begins with taking the both letters and the
spirit of each commandment (mizvah)
of the Law to our heart and act out of this. It is a teaching against
superficial observation of the Law and practice of the Law out of legalism. So
Moses said in regard to put our heart to the Law in our careful observation:
Be
on your guard and be very careful not to forget the things your own eyes have
seen, nor let them slip from your heart as long as you live, but make them
known to your children and to your children’s children
(Deuteronomy 4:9).
To us, the Law is a precious inheritance given by
God to guard and put our heart on and to pass on to our offspring. And when we
fail to do so, we would have to bear consequences. Then, we need to return to
God and return to be faithful to his Law with a hope for God’s mercy, believing
in His everlasting steadfast love, chesed.
So, even after many more generations had failed to
carefully observe the Law, as Moses had reminded during Exodus nearing the
promised land, as reflected in the First Reading, God kept his chesed (steadfast love), never forgetting
us, though we have forgotten Him in our sins, He sent His Son in Christ Jesus.
Thus, we entered in the biblical era of the New Testament.
Now, today’s Gospel Reading (Matthew 5:17-19) first
reminds us that God has sent the Son to fulfill both the Law (Torah) and the prophets (Nevi’im), two pillars of the Old
Testament (v.17). In fact, today’s Gospel Reading text is an introduction to
Jesus’ teaching on what he meant by fulfilling the Law, described in Matthew
5:21-48. And we have already sampled from this in the Gospel Reading for Friday
of the First Week of Lent (Matthew 5:20-26) and Gospel Reading for Saturday of
the First Week of Lent (Matthew 5:43-48).
So, we have already learned that fulfilling the Law requires us to put
it to our heart, reflecting Moses’ teaching on the careful observation of it,
in the First Reading.
What Moses warned – not to edit the Law (Deuteronomy
4:2). As to echo this, Jesus says:
Until
heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a
letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Therefore,
whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do
so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches
these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew
5:18-19).
Basically, Jesus also teaches the permanent status
of the Law of God. In other word, the Law of God endures forever with its
letters and spirit. And, those who carefully and faithfully observe this
permanent Law not only endure life on earth but will be greatly blessed in the
Kingdom. This is, in fact, juxtaposed to these words of Moses from the First
Reading:
See,
I am teaching you the statutes and ordinances as the Lord, my God, has
commanded me, that you may observe them in the land you are entering to
possess. Observe them carefully, for this is your wisdom and discernment in the
sight of the peoples, who will hear of all these statutes and say, “This great
nation is truly a wise and discerning people”. For what great nation is there
that has gods so close to it as the Lord, our God, is to us whenever we call
upon him? Or what great nation has statutes and ordinances that are as just as
this whole law which I am setting before you today?
(Deuteronomy 4:5-8).
While Jesus teaches that careful and faithful
observation of the Law, as fulfilled by him, will entitle us to great blessings
in his Kingdom, Moses taught the Israelites during exodus that careful
observation would lead them to become a great and respected nation with wisdom.
Moses taught this benefit of the Law during while the Israelites were still
journeying in wilderness, before becoming a nation. Jesus not only teaches us
as the fulfillment of the Law, along with the Prophets, but the ultimate
benefit of being careful and faithful observer of the Law. And it is great
blessings in the Kingdom where he reigns as the King. This Kingdom is far
greater than Eden, which we lost as the immediate result of the Original Sin.
This benefit of the Law is possible because of God’s covenant in Genesis 3:15 –
God’s promise to send His Son.
As his death was imminent in Jerusalem, Jesus said
pointing to his return at the end of time:
Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away
(Matthew 24:35).
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