Jesus came to fulfill the law

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Jesus said to the Jews, “Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17-19). The first five books of the Old Testament are referred to as the Law. These books were highly treasured by the Jews as the most sacred scriptures. Jesus says that every commandment presented in the Law is important. The written word was very important to the Jews of Jesus’ time. The books of the Torah were carefully written on scrolls and each scroll was painstakingly written to make sure each letter was properly formed with no missing dots. Jesus confirmed to the people of Israel that the original law of Moses was the law, every single word, every single letter, every single dot formed the law and nothing was to be taken away. He says, “Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven.” How many times have you heard people say that I believe in everything the church teaches but… (you fill in the blank). We tend to write-off the commandments just because they don’t fit into our life style. This includes things such as pre-marital sex, going to mass, going to confession, abortion, the death penalty. It is not only a sin to disobey these commandments, but it is even worse to teach or convince others that these things are not sins. Jesus makes it clear that we are NOT given the freedom to alter the law to fit our own needs. And because we chose not to obey the law, we try to rationalize our decision or justify our disobedience by saying things like these rules were made up by men or that the church isn’t always right. A sin is a sin no matter how we try to wrap it up. When we decide to forgo God’s commandments, we are telling God that we do not love him or that we do not love our neighbor and according to Jesus, these are the two most important commandments of all. Following his commandments to the letter of law will bring ultimate peace and joy. God asks us to love him unconditionally on his terms, not ours.

A Simple Prayer “Lord Jesus, grant this day, to direct and sanctify, to rule and govern our hearts and bodies, so that all our thoughts, words and deeds may be according to your Father’s law and thus may we be saved and protected through your mighty help.”

Yours in Christ Michael Marcon