Topical Bible: The Law of Moses: Christ: Made Under

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The Law of Moses, also known as the Mosaic Law, is a comprehensive set of divine instructions given to the people of Israel through Moses. It encompasses moral, ceremonial, and civil laws, and is foundational to the Old Testament covenant between God and His chosen people. The Law is detailed primarily in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

Christ and the Law

In the New Testament, Jesus Christ is depicted as being "made under the law" to fulfill its requirements and to redeem those who were under the law. This concept is crucial in understanding the relationship between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant established through Christ.

Galatians 4:4-5 : "But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons."

This passage highlights the incarnation of Christ, emphasizing His birth into a Jewish family and His subjection to the Mosaic Law. By being "born under the law," Jesus fully identified with humanity and the Jewish people, adhering to the law's demands and living a life of perfect obedience.

Purpose of Christ's Subjection to the Law

1. Fulfillment of the Law: Jesus declared in Matthew 5:17 , "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them." Christ's life and ministry were the embodiment of the law's ultimate purpose, bringing to completion what the law foreshadowed.

2. Redemption from the Law's Curse: The law, while holy and good, also brought a curse upon those who failed to uphold it perfectly. Galatians 3:13 states, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us." By His sacrificial death, Jesus took upon Himself the penalty of the law, offering redemption and freedom to all who believe.

3. Establishment of a New Covenant: Through His death and resurrection, Christ inaugurated a new covenant, rendering the old covenant obsolete. Hebrews 8:13 notes, "By calling this covenant 'new,' He has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear."

4. Adoption as Sons: As Galatians 4:5 indicates, Christ's redemptive work under the law enables believers to receive "adoption as sons." This adoption signifies a new relationship with God, characterized by grace rather than adherence to the law.

Christ's Perfect Obedience

Throughout His earthly ministry, Jesus demonstrated perfect obedience to the law. He observed the Jewish feasts, participated in synagogue worship, and adhered to the commandments. His sinless life qualified Him as the perfect sacrifice, fulfilling the law's demands and providing a means of justification for sinners.

Romans 8:3-4 : "For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit."

In summary, Christ's being "made under the law" is a profound theological truth that underscores His role as the fulfillment of the law, the redeemer from its curse, and the inaugurator of a new covenant of grace. Through His obedience and sacrifice, believers are liberated from the law's condemnation and are brought into a new relationship with God as His children.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Galatians 4:4
But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Christ, Though Known to the Jews under the Law, yet Only ...
... 4:2); thus intimating, that though the Law had the ... accordingly, while he declares
that Moses testified of ... are manifested in the person of Christ; but comparing ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 9 christ though known.htm

The Law Given, not to Retain a People for Itself, but to Keep ...
... Wherefore, Peter elegantly transposes the words of Moses, teaching that the ... the Jews
had a foretaste under the Law, is exhibited in Christ, "Ye are a ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 7 the law given.htm

Christ Rightly and Properly Said to have Merited Grace and ...
... not be justified by the law of Moses," (Acts 13 ... Law is righteousness, who can deny
that Christ, by taking ... as if we were the observers of the Law, merited favour ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 17 christ rightly and.htm

Christ the End of the Law
... to see how they can only be restored by Jesus Christ, the great ... For when Moses had
spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 22 1876/christ the end of the.htm

Introduction
... This Law has not been repealed. That the Law of Moses is not binding on Gentiles
is clear from Acts 15.. ... It is the Law which Christ Himself was "made ...
//christianbookshelf.org/pink/the law and the saint/introduction.htm

Were Christ and the Apostles Mistaken?
... If he has misled us in reference to Moses and the law, can we trust
him in reference to grace and truth by Jesus Christ? ...
/.../concerning the assumptions of destructive criticism/iv were christ and the.htm

"Grace and Truth came through Jesus Christ. " These Words Belong ...
... For His God and Father both gave the law through Moses, and made grace and truth
through Jesus Christ, that grace and truth which came to man. ...
/.../origen/origens commentary on the gospel of john/3 grace and truth came.htm

Law and Grace.
... Moses was the representative of the law. ... of the old dispensation"the last prophet
under the law. You remember that before Christ made His appearance at the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/moody/sovereign grace/chapter v law and grace.htm

"That the Righteousness of the Law Might be Fulfilled in Us. "
... by himself, (Exodus 34:6, 7.) to Moses, engraven deeply ... The law and justice come
better to their own ... all eternity, there is something in Christ's that elevates ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xiv that the righteousness.htm

Against the Jews on the Question of the Sabbath.
... These are the things which the spiritual law of Christ enjoins on us and
those who observe that become superior to the law of Moses. ...
/.../john/exposition of the orthodox faith/chapter xxiii against the jews on.htm