Matthew 5:17-20
The Fulfillment of the Law
17 “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. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus said He came to fulfill the law, not to abolish it…So Jesus did not void the Mosaic Law…Instead, He fulfilled it… Jesus did indeed fulfill the Law of Moses. This means that He perfectly kept the Law and fulfilled all its righteous requirements…
He fulfilled the law in two ways…One was through His Perfect Obedience...Jesus lived a sinless life, perfectly obeying every commandment of the Law…He demonstrated what it means to live a life fully submitted to God's Will…Secondly He was Mankind’s Sacrifice for our sins…Jesus' death on the cross was the ultimate fulfillment of the sacrificial system of the Old Testament…He became the perfect sacrifice, atoning for the sins of humanity…By fulfilling the Law, Jesus provided the ultimate solution to the problem of sin…He opened the way to Eternal Life for all who believe in Him…
Besides the Gospel of Matthew, Luke writes about Jesus' fulfilling of Mosaic Law, when He speaks of the Prophet Isaiah...In Luke 4:21, Jesus quotes Isaiah 61:1-2, proclaiming that the prophecies of the Old Testament are being fulfilled in His ministry...This is a significant moment in Jesus' ministry, as He explicitly connects Himself to the Old Testament and claims to be the One who was to come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets...By fulfilling the Law, Jesus demonstrated the true meaning and intent of God's commands...He showed that the Law is not merely a set of rules and regulations, but a reflection of God's righteous character...And Jesus is the Perfect Reflection of God...
By fulfilling the Law of Moses, we see through His ministry and teachings that He was the One who the Prophets and Moses had written about...Jesus often would challenge the rigid interpretations and applications of the law by the Pharisees and scribes…He emphasized the importance of the attitude of the heart and the spirit of the law, rather than merely adhering to its external requirements…So we can see better through His ministry, deeds, and teachings that Jesus did not come to abolish the moral principles of the law but did actually fulfill them…
Jesus affirmed the Ten Commandments and other moral laws…In fact, He elevated these the Ten Commandments and the other Godly laws to a higher standard, calling His followers to love their enemies and to turn the other cheek…It's important to understand that Jesus' teachings fulfilled the law in a deeper sense…He provided the ultimate sacrifice for sin, thereby fulfilling the sacrificial system of the Old Testament…His teachings also revealed the true meaning and intent of the law, emphasizing love, forgiveness, compassion, and justice…Therefore, while Jesus fulfilled the law, He did not abolish it…His teachings offer a deeper understanding of the law and a higher standard of living…