LISTEN: Jesus, the Law, and Us, Part 2 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 227 since Jan. 20, 2017 / Day 594 since Jan. 1, 2016 with Daniel Whyte III)

---

Jesus, the Law, and Us, Part 2 (Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 227 since Jan. 20, 2017 / Day 594 since Jan. 1, 2016)

What is the Gospel? According to 1 Corinthians 15, the Gospel is embodied in these words: “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

John Calvin said, “The whole gospel is contained in Christ.”

TEXT: Matthew 5:17-18:

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

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.

———-

Warren Wiersbe said, “Jesus made it clear that he had come to help people honor the law and help God’s people love it, learn it, and live it.”

In our last message, we saw that Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament Law by being obedient to it, not only in word and deed, but in spirit as well. Jesus’ perfect obedience to the Law is what partly guarantees our salvation: we are not perfect, but Jesus is perfect on our behalf. That message could be called, “Jesus, the Law, and Us — the Past.” Due to the aspect of this passage that we are going to consider today, this message could be called, “Jesus, the Law, and Us — the Present.” And, Lord willing, on tomorrow, we will look at “Jesus, the Law, and Us — the Future.”

Many Christians and nonbelievers have this idea that the Old Testament Law has nothing to do with us today. But, Jesus tells us differently. He says, “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law.” Heaven and earth are still here, so the Law must still be in effect — even down to its most minute detail. The “jot” is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet — so small that it does not even look like a letter. The “tittle” is a tiny grammatical mark — similar to our accent mark or the dot over an “i”. That is how serious Jesus is about obedience to the Law, even in the New Testament era.

This means that we are still obligated to obey all of God’s words — including those in the Old Testament. Obviously, the way our obedience plays out will be different because we are living in a different time and a different place. But that is the beauty of Jesus already fulfilling the Law. He demonstrated that God is not just looking for rote obedience; He is looking for people who obey out of pure and loving hearts. We are no longer shackled to the Law and an arcane system of sacrifice and punishments. The Law was there to show us that we have fallen far from God’s standard. But, now, we can be free in Christ. We love because Christ first loved us. We obey because Christ showed us what it means to obey. We pursue purity and holiness because Christ demonstrated complete purity and holiness in His life. Because of Christ, the Law is not our enemy; the Law is not our taskmaster. The Law is our friend. And we follow it because we know that it is God’s good plan for orderly living in this sin-cursed world.

——-

Now, if you are with us today and you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, allow me to show you how you can place your faith and trust in Him for salvation from sin and Hell.

First, accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”

Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

Now that is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.

Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. I am sorry for my sins, and today I choose to turn from my sins. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. I trust Jesus Christ as my Savior and I choose to follow Him as Lord from this day forward. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.

If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please email me at [email protected] and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.

God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.

---

Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books including the Essence Magazine, Dallas Morning News, and Amazon.com national bestseller, Letters to Young Black Men. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry.

He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others.

He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary). He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry degree.

He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica since 1987. God has blessed their union with seven children.