Christ's statements about the law

Christ stated that He did not come to destroy the law, but to fulfil it.

"His purpose is not to change the law, still less to annul it, but to reveal the full depth of meaning that it was intended to hold" (John R.W. Stott, The Bible Speaks Today, Inter-Varsity Press, Leicester, England, 1978, p. 72).

Elsewhere Jesus emphasized that we must obey the law of God. On one occasion "one came and said to Him, 'Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?'" Christ's response was clear:

"... If you want to enter into life, keep the commandments" (Matthew 19:16-17).

The next two verses make it plain that the commandments Jesus refers to here are the Ten Commandments.

In spite of Christ's plain statement about the Old Testament law, many students of the Bible down through the years have misunderstood His teaching.

"In every generation of the Christian era there have been those who could not accommodate themselves to Christ's attitude to the law ... for they declare that the very category of law is abolished for the Christian ... that no law any longer binds Christian people except the law of love ..." (The Bible Speaks Today, p. 72).

Those who believe that the law is no longer binding tend to take the approach that to assert that commandments are to be obeyed is to enact a form of bondage, whereas to be a Christian means to be free.