Have you ever heard someone accuse Christians of being hypocritical for following some Old Testament commands but not others? They might say, “If you want to use the Old Testament to say that homosexuality is wrong, then you also can’t eat shellfish, do any work on a Saturday, and women can’t go to church when they’re menstruating.” It’s a “gotcha” argument. The essence of the argument is that if you consider one Old Testament Law to be authoritative, they all must be authoritative, and if you ignore one, then you have no right to insist that anyone should obey the others. This argument is often used when a part of Christian moral teaching conflicts with the current whims of culture.
How do we respond to this? Are we being hypocritical? Or can we make a valid argument?
Much can be said on this matter. First, when we debate with unbelievers about morality, we should recognize that they do not accept the Scriptures as authoritative. Therefore, it probably will not work to quote chapter and verse. In such cases, we will be more effective using natural law. We let the Scriptures guide our thinking, and then show how a certain command is good for an individual and/or their neighbors.
But when unbelievers bring up the Bible, we should be ready to answer their objections. In this case, it is helpful to distinguish between three types of Old Testament law: moral, civil, and ceremonial. Many commands reveal God’s will for how all humans should live. These are the moral law, and they are God’s eternal will. But Israel was also a church and a state, which God instituted. So some laws formed the constitution for Israel as a nation. This is the civil law. Other commands regulated the worship practices. This is the ceremonial law. There can be some overlap between these three categories. For example, “You shall not murder” is obviously moral law and civil law.
Moral laws are fairly easy to identify. They are good for the individual and for our neighbors. If a command is repeated in the New Testament, by either Jesus or his apostles, that is also a good indicator that it is part of God’s eternal moral law.
But there were also certain laws that only applied to how Israel should function as a nation. Those laws were for a specific time and place. There is certainly wisdom behind them, but they are not necessarily prescriptive for how every nation on earth must function.
There were also many laws that regulated the way Israel should worship. For example, sacrifices, Sabbath laws, feast days, and food laws. Anything about worship was ceremonial. One key word that helps to identify ceremonial laws is “unclean.” There were many things that would make a person unclean for a certain period of time without being morally wrong, like having a baby, menstruating, or touching a dead body, like when they would bury a family member. They had not sinned, but they had to abstain from the temple for a time, and they might have to offer a sacrifice when they return. Again, there is wisdom behind these laws, while some seem random or obscure. The general purpose of the ceremonial law was two-fold. First, they prophesied of Jesus. This is especially evident in the sacrifices. Second, they distinguished Israel from the other nations. By abstaining from certain things, even things that seem random, they demonstrated that they were set apart by Yahweh (the Lord) from other nations in order for the Christ to come into the world.
So Jesus says in Matthew 5:17-18, “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 say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” By his perfect life and sacrificial death on the cross, Jesus fulfilled the entire Law: moral, civil, and ceremonial. But fulfilling the Law does not abolish God’s will. So the civil law is not necessarily prescriptive for every nation on earth. Christ fulfilled the ceremonial laws; therefore, they are obsolete and not binding on a Christian. And the moral law is still God’s eternal will for how his creation should function. When we recognize these three categories, it becomes much easier to distinguish which Old Testament commands are still prescriptive for all people.
The peace of Christ be with you all,
Pastor Dan Antal