15

A New Covenant

Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices– mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law– justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

Matthew 23:23

Have you ever had a time in your life when the rules didn’t apply to you?

Maybe you knew a person working at a music venue, so when a famous musician came to town you were allowed to slip in through an exit to meet them backstage and get an autograph. That exact scenario most likely didn’t happen, but you could imagine if it did. It can often feel pretty good to bend the rules or to receive special treatment. Like when the officer lets you off with a warning even though you clearly ran the stop sign. Ignoring, bending, or breaking rules can feel good but also can become dangerous if you are not careful. No one is above the law and soon, if you get caught, there will be consequences. 

Some people feel this way when it comes to scripture and the principles laid out within the pages. We choose to bend, break, or continually ignore what God has said. A little lie here. A little cheating there. But God will not be mocked. Over time those things will catch up to you and you will harvest whatever seeds you have spent your life planting. Many people who ignore or break biblical laws and principles do so because they believe the law or principle is no longer relevant. Some claim that the law of tithing or even the principle of first-fruits described in the Bible are no longer relevant and applicable in this day and age. This incorrect idea comes from the thought that because of the coming of the messiah, Christ Jesus, we are no longer living under the old covenant law, but are living under grace and therefore not obligated to follow any of the Old Testament laws. This convenient belief comes from a false interpretation of what the law is and what grace is. Jesus Himself declared that He did not come to abolish or do away with the law; but He came to fulfill the law. Grace, in the New Testament, is always an increase on the law. It is never a decrease or diminishing of the law. 

For example, in the old testament, the law stated that you should not commit adultery. In the New Testament, under grace, Jesus said that a person should not even entertain lustful thoughts. Which is a more extreme command; living under the law, or living under grace? In the Old Testament, the law states that you should not kill. In the New Testament, Jesus tells us that we should not only not kill, but we should love our enemies. This is a much more extreme stance. The Old Testament law stated that we should not steal. Jesus told us that not only should we not steal, but we should give to anyone who has need. This is a much more sacrificial stance. The same is true in every area of the Christian life. Not only should we uphold the moral law handed down to Moses wherever it was reiterated by Jesus; but we should also use that law as a starting point for our ever-increasing walk with God. The law was the ground floor; grace is the ceiling. Think of it like this, under grace, we should use the standard of the tithe as a starting point in our giving, not as something that is no longer relevant, and therefore there is no expectation of bringing the first fruits to God. God still deserves the first and the best. He always has and he always will. 

In today’s passage, Jesus is exposing and scolding the hypocrisy of the pharisees and religious leaders of the day. Jesus accused them of doing their religious, lawful duty of bringing the tithe of their increase, but at the same time neglecting other important matters like justice, mercy, and faithfulness. Then Jesus makes a bold statement we should all pay attention to. He says, “You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” What Jesus was basically saying to everyone listening is this: You should be merciful, just and faithful, but you should do those things while also not neglecting to do the other things. Do them both! Don’t stop tithing and bringing your first fruits to God! If tithing was no longer relevant or expected, then Jesus would have said that then and there. He would have said, “Don’t worry about the tithe; just focus on being just, faithful and merciful.”  But He didn’t, in fact, Jesus said the opposite. He told the people to continue the tithe, but now, under grace, to increase and use the Old Testament laws as a stepping stone to greater obedience, greater faith, and even greater imaging of God. 

How much more should we leave behind a legacy of generosity, since God initiated that generosity by sending His one and only son to die in our place? Should we respond to that generosity with less generosity or with more generosity? 

Let's be people who leave a legacy of responding to God’s generosity with even greater generosity!