I often discuss matters of scripture with friends. Occasionally one expresses a perspective common these days, believing certain parts of the Bible found in the New Testament, but shunting aside the Old. They accept the words of Jesus, but everything else descends in various levels of suspicion.

Jesus poked holes in this logic: 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. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, nor the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

Not one iota of the law given to Moses will disappear—not a jot or tittle as the King James Version puts it. It’s foolish to accept the words of Jesus while ignoring the Old Testament, when Jesus clearly pointed us to the wisdom and direction found there.

Most people who claim to believe Jesus but not the rest of the Bible simply don’t know much about Jesus. They see Jesus as a great moral teacher while failing to consider his actual teachings. You cannot follow Jesus and ignore the Law of Moses.

It requires reading and study and effort to dive into the Bible and gain greater depths of understanding. Plus, we need the illumination of the Holy Spirit as we do so. Those who jabber on about their biblical knowledge without doing the hard work live only in the shallows.

I hope to move into deeper waters.

Matthew 5 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Aaron Burden