“Tis the season to be Jolly, fa-la-la-la-la”, but have we ever stopped and pondered why? Why should we be jolly and especially in this season of Christmas? It’s undoubtedly not Santa or the earthly gifts we give one another, although these are joyous add-ons to the holidays, they are not the main reason that we should be filled with joy. The reason is that we celebrate the gift of Jesus. Not just the birth of Jesus, but also what Jesus came to do for us on the cross. Moses foretold that God will raise up a prophet like himself from among the Israelites in Deuteronomy 18:15, and of course, he was talking about Jesus.
Now, for us to completely understand the true and amazing gift of the birth of Jesus, the fulfilment of all the prophecies foretold about Him and how He fulfilled the Law, we need to dig a little deeper and understand Deuteronomy a bit more. Deuteronomy translated from Greek means the second law and, in short, it was due to an entire generation passing on in the desert after 40 years. The Lord then gave the Law for a second time to prepare the Israelites for crossing into the promised land. This second reading of the law and covenant with the Lord was to prepare the new generation on how to live their lives in a manner that would be pleasing to the Lord, as well as to warn them of the things they would face and should abstain from in the land they would cross over to inherit.
History mentions 613 laws, the “Laws of Moses”, that needed to be known and kept. Moses wrote the book in the last week of his life to prepare for future generations. We can divide Deuteronomy basically into 3 parts. Part 1, the Past (Recollection) Deut 1v1-4 & 43 Faithlessness condemned; Deut 1v6, 3v29 and Faithfulness counselled; Deut 4v1-43. Part 2 The Present (Regulation) Deut 4v44 & 26v19, Love expressed; Deut 4v44 & 11v32, Law expanded; Deut 12v1 & 26v19. Part 3 the Future (Retribution) Deut 27v1 & 34v12, Covenant affirmed; Deut 27v1 & 30v20, Continuity assured; Deut 31v1 & 34v12. This paints a picture for the Israelites of where they came from, where they were now, and where they are going, as well as what they would face; things like corruption, immorality, injustice, and idolatry, to name a few. Things we think of as wrong in the world today were happening then. But, amid all this, Moses gave them (and us) a prophecy of the saviour.
Jesus, our gift, came to earth as a human and walked the earth, fulfilling all the laws of Deuteronomy. He lived a life that upheld every law and covenant of the old testament. The Spirit led Him into the wilderness in Mathew 4 and the enemy came to him after he had fasted for 40 days and 40 nights and tempted him. He rebuked the enemy by quoting Deuteronomy each of the 3 times the enemy tested Him. I mean, wow! On an empty tummy, Jesus still quoted and upheld the law!
In the “Sermon on the Mount”, we are told that not one jot or title will pass from the law. However, Jesus fulfilled the law on the cross for us that the Father will look at us, but not before looking at Jesus, and what Jesus endured for us on the cross saved us from our past, present and future sins. Jesus was asked to summarise the law of Moses, and he again quotes Deuteronomy saying, “love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength”, and with Leviticus, “love your neighbour as yourself”.
So, Jesus fulfilled the prophecies and laws foretold through Moses, and if we believe we are truly set free; but, then what about the law of Moses and do we now just do away with it and carry on as we feel like? No, we act and behave as being under the law of Christ. Jesus repeats all the 10 commandments except the 4th, regarding the Sabbath. Tithing also is not repeated, however, on multiple occasions Jesus calls us to give generously, cheerfully, and liberally. We are saved for righteousness, and not by our righteousness, which is probably one of the most important concepts to grasp in our lives, as we often feel that we need to be doing things to earn righteousness. But it is a gift, received by faith, and once we embrace it, it overflows into good deeds that reflect Jesus to others.
So, let’s be joyful this festive season, as well as each day of our lives with hearts and lives surrendered, knowing that Jesus has fulfilled all the prophecies foretold in the Word, just as it said He would when he ascended on high. He has left us with the Holy Spirit to guide, teach, and transform us more and more to be like Jesus daily.
– Ethan van der Linde