The
Righteousness of Christ in the (Ceremonial) Law
The Righteousness of Christ in the (ceremonial) Law
Advent Review and Sabbath Herald,
April 22, 1902
The greatest difficulty Paul
had to meet arose from the influence of Judaizing teachers. These made him much
trouble by causing dissension in the church at Corinth. They were continually
presenting the virtues of the ceremonies of the law, exalting these ceremonies above the gospel of
Christ, and condemning Paul
because he did not urge them upon the new converts.
Paul met them on their own
ground. "If the ministration of death, written and engraven
in stones, was glorious," he said, "so that the children of Israel
could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his
countenance; which glory was to be done away: how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? For if the ministration of
condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory."
The law of God, spoken in awful grandeur from
Sinai, is the utterance of condemnation to the sinner. It is the province of
the law to condemn, but there is in it no power to pardon or to redeem. It is ordained to life; those who walk in
harmony with its precepts will receive the reward of obedience. But it brings
bondage and death to those who remain under its condemnation.
So sacred and so glorious is
the law, that when Moses returned from the holy mount, where he had been with
God, receiving from his hand the tables of stone, his face reflected a glory
upon which the people could not look without pain, and Moses was obliged to
cover his face with a veil.
The glory that shone on the
face of Moses was a reflection of the righteousness of Christ in the (ceremonial) law. The
law itself would have no glory, only that in it Christ
is embodied. It has no power to save. It is lusterless only as in it Christ is represented as full of righteousness and truth.
The types and shadows of the sacrificial
service, with the prophecies, gave the Israelites a veiled, indistinct view of
the mercy and grace to be brought to the world by the revelation of Christ. To Moses was unfolded the significance of the
types and shadows pointing to
Christ. He saw to the end of that which was to be done away when, at the death
of Christ, type met antitype. He saw that only through Christ can man keep the
moral law. By transgression of this
law man brought sin into the world, and with sin came death. Christ became the
propitiation for man's sin. He proffered his perfection of character in the
place of man's sinfulness. He took upon himself the curse of disobedience. The
sacrifices and offerings pointed forward to the sacrifice he was to make. The
slain lamb typified the Lamb that was to take away the sin of the world.
It was seeing the object of that which was to be
done away, seeing Christ as revealed in the (ceremonial) law, that illumined
the face of Moses. The ministration of the
law, written and engraved in stone, was a ministration of death. Without
Christ, the transgressor was left under its curse, with no hope of pardon. The
ministration had of itself no glory, but the promised Saviour, revealed in the
types and shadows of the ceremonial law, made the moral law glorious.
The Jewish Economy Revealed
Christ.--Paul desires his brethren to see that the great glory of a
sin-pardoning Saviour gave significance to the entire Jewish economy. He
desired them to see also that when Christ came to the world, and died as man's
sacrifice, type met antitype.
After Christ died on the
cross as a sin offering, the ceremonial law could have no force. Yet it was
connected with the moral law, and was glorious. The
whole bore the stamp of divinity, and expressed the holiness, justice, and
righteousness of God. And if the ministration of the dispensation to be done
away was glorious, how much more must the
reality be glorious, when Christ was revealed, giving his life-giving,
sanctifying Spirit to all who believe?
The proclamation of the law
of ten commandments was a wonderful exhibition of the glory and majesty of God.
How did this manifestation of power affect the people?--They were afraid. As they saw "the thunderings,
and the lightnings and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain
smoking," they "removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto
Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let
not God speak with us, lest we die." They desired Moses to be their
mediator. They did not understand that Christ was their appointed mediator, and
that, deprived of his mediation, they would certainly have been consumed
"Moses said unto the
people, Fear not; for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before
your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near
unto the thick darkness where God was."
The pardon of sin,
justification by faith in Jesus Christ, access to God only through a mediator
because of their lost condition their guilt and sin,--of these truths the
people had little conception. In a
great measure they had lost a knowledge of God and of the only way to approach
him. They had lost nearly all sense of what constitutes sin and of what
constitutes righteousness. The pardon of sin through Christ, the promised
Messiah, whom their offerings typified, was but dimly understood.
Paul declared, "Seeing
then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech: and not as
Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not
steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: but their minds were
blinded; for until this day remaineth the same veil
untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which veil is done away in
Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their
heart. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord,
the veil shall be taken away."
The Jews refused to accept
Christ as the Messiah, and they cannot see that their ceremonies are
meaningless, that the sacrifices and offerings have lost their significance.
The veil drawn by themselves in stubborn unbelief is still before their minds.
It would be removed if they would accept Christ, the righteousness of the law.
Many in the Christian world
also have a veil before their eyes and heart. They do not see to the end of
that which was done away. They do not see that it was only the ceremonial law
which was abrogated at the death of Christ. They claim that the moral law was
nailed to the cross. Heavy is the veil that darkens their understanding. The
hearts of many are at war with God. They are not subject to his law. Only as
they shall come into harmony with the rule of his government, can Christ be of
any avail to them. They may talk of Christ as their Saviour; but he will
finally say to them, I know you not. You have not exercised genuine repentance
toward God for the transgression of his holy law, and you cannot have genuine
faith in me, for it was my mission to exalt God's law.
The Moral Law a Transcript of
Christ's Character.--Paul did not represent either the moral or the ceremonial
law as ministers in our day venture to do. Some cherish such antipathy to the
law of God that they will go out of the way to denounce and stigmatize it. Thus they despise and pour contempt on the majesty and glory
of God.
The moral law was never a
type or a shadow. It existed before man's creation, and
will endure as long as God's throne remains. God could not change nor alter one
precept of his law in order to save man; for the law is the foundation of his
government. It is unchangeable, unalterable, infinite, and eternal. In order for man to be saved, and for the honor of the law
to be maintained, it was necessary for the Son of God to offer himself as a
sacrifice for sin. He who knew no sin became sin for us. He died for us on
Calvary. His death shows the wonderful love of God for
man, and the immutability of his law.
In the sermon on the mount,
Christ declared, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the
prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you,
Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from
the law, till all be fulfilled."
Christ bore the curse of the
law, suffering its penalty, carrying to completion the plan whereby man was to
be placed where he could keep God's law, and be accepted through the merits of
the Redeemer; and by his sacrifice
glory was shed upon the law. Then
the glory of that which is not to be done away--God's law of ten commandments,
his standard of righteousness--was plainly seen by all who saw to the end of
that which was done away.
"We all, with open face
beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image
from glory to glory even as by the
Spirit of the Lord." Christ is the
sinner's advocate. Those who accept his gospel behold him with open face. They
see the relation of his mission to the law, and they acknowledge God's wisdom
and glory as revealed by the Saviour. The glory of Christ is revealed in the
law, which is a transcript of his character, and his transforming efficacy is
felt upon the soul until men become changed to his likeness. They are made
partakers of the divine nature, and grow more and more like their Saviour, advancing step by step in conformity to the will of God, till they
reach perfection.
The law and the gospel are in perfect harmony. Each upholds the other.
In all its majesty the law confronts the conscience, causing the sinner to feel
his need of Christ as the propitiation for sin. The gospel recognizes the power
and immutability of the law. "I had not known sin, but by the law,"
Paul declares. The sense of sin, urged home by the law, drives the sinner to
the Saviour. In his need man may present the mighty arguments furnished by the
cross of Calvary. He may claim the righteousness of Christ;
for it is imparted to every repentant sinner. God declares, "Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast
out." "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us
our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." By Mrs. E. G.
White.