CHAPTER 10
 
LAW AND FREEDOM

In this chapter we will continue our discussion of spiritual maturity. First I would like to address two criticisms which have been voiced concerning the manifested son concept. Contrary to what some think, this is not an elitist doctrine. Those last generation believers who have, because of the power of Christ in them (Phil.3:9), make the decision to be totally and completely committed to God, and thereby stand as candidates to become manifested Sons without first tasting death, are not elitist. Quite the contrary is true. Remember, we have stressed throughout these studies that we must walk as Jesus did (I John 2;6), and He took upon Himself the nature of a servant ie., a bondslave (Phil.2:7). This group will clearly have taken Jesus' admonition in Lk.22:26 to heart, "...the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves." This group of believers knows that we are not going to rule and reign until we first walk as a servant (Phil.2:8-9). They are not elitists, they are true servants. 

The second point deals with what at first glance appears to be the complexity of some of these topics and their interrelationships. Some people seem to think that every lesson the Bible teaches can be understood with a cursory glance at the text. However, look at what Peter says in II Pe.3:16 while referring to Paul's writings. "His letters contain some things that are hard to understand." Now, Peter wrote this knowing full well that man cannot understand that which is from God without the Holy Spirit (I Cor.2:14); yet, even so, he said some things are still hard to understand. Prov.2:4 told us to search for God's wisdom as we would for hidden treasure. That 

involves some work. For a more detailed look at this concept, review Cha.3. Remember, II Cor.3:18 and Ro.12:2 tell us to be transformed into His glory, and I Cor.2:7 told us that God's secret wisdom is destined for our glory. 

This glory will shine forth from mature manifested sons of God. In a previous chapter we saw the progression on an individual basis from brephos and huios. We saw that the Spirit gives life; whereas, the letter of the law kills (I Cor.3:6, II Cor.3:7 & Ro.7:9). In regards to the relationship between rules and freedom we saw that a baby is not yet under any real rules whereas, a child is under strict control. A teenager is guided by a mixture of rules and freedom, but Mature adults are supposed to be guided by the spirit of the law which has become engrafted within their very being, as opposed to the letter of some written code. 

This same concept can be shown to have applied to mankind as a whole from the time of Adam until now. Note, I am not saying that natural man is getting better and better. I am referring to that part of mankind which is seeking the Lord. When Adam fell, man's relationship with God plummeted from huios to brephos. Since that time all history has been God's plan to bring us back to that first status. Sadly however, it also show's man's continual refusal to grow up (I Sam.8:7) 

Have you ever wondered how Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did some of the things they did without being punished? According to Gen.20:12 Abraham was married to his stepsister, an act clearly forbidden and punishable under the Law (Lev.18:9&29). Yet, his marriage relationship with Sarah was blessed. In Gen 27:19-29 we are shown that Jacob obtained Isaac's blessing by deceit. Ps.5:6 tells us that God abhors liars. In Ps.55:23 He says He will bring down the wicked, and that deceitful men will not live out half their lives. Under the Law, Jacob should have been punished, yet he was renamed by God Himself. Furthermore, he became the father of the twelve tribes of the nation which was to bear this new God given name. The method by which Joseph obtained all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh as set forth in Gen.47:13-24 was contrary to the principle of usury as set forth in Prov.28:8, Prov.19:17 & Ex.18:13. Yet he too was blessed by God and not punished. Tamar, and possibly also Judah, should have been put to death for her transgression if the provisions of Lev.20:12 were adhered to at that time. 

These are merely a few examples, but I believe that the point is clear. Those actions were taken BEFORE the Law had been given to Moses on Sinai. According to Ro.5:13, "... sin is not taken into account when there is no law." Those people, even though physical adults, were spiritual infants. As such, like physical infants, they were not under the same code of conduct which would apply to older children. As the children of God progressed in the maturing process, more would be expected of them, and the rules would become more definite and strict. At that time, like now, natural man was pulling further and further away from God, but those who were seeking Him were beginning to make that gradual journey back into the relationship which Adam first had. In Matt.11:11 Jesus said that no man had been born up to that time who was greater than John the Baptist; yet, the least in the kingdom today is greater still. The progression is continuing. 

It was not until the children of Israel left Egypt that they came under the law as given to them in the wilderness. Generally speaking, by this time that part of mankind which sought the Lord had progressed from brephos to paidion, and were now pais. This progression can be illustrated in a slightly different manner. When a baby is a baby, the primary responsibility for raising and caring for him rests with the mother. The father is of course present, providing protection and security, but the mother's influence is the greatest. As the child gets older, the Father begins to make his presence felt to a greater degree as the 'lawgiver' or 'disciplinarian'. 

A careful examination of the names by which God made Himself known to mankind as they went through this progression will show a similar influence along the road to spiritual maturity. Before I go into this, several points need to be reemphasized. First, as we have said many times before, there is only one God (Mk.12:29 & Isa.45:6 among others). Secondly, the word "name" means "nature of" or "character of." (I Sam.25:25) 

To say that God has several names by which He has made Himself known is to say that He has revealed different aspects of His nature to us at different times. For example, we see God revealing Himself as the 'healer' in Ex.15:26; the 'sanctifier' in Lev.20:7-8, and 'our righteousness' in Jer.23:5-6. In the human realm a man might be a lawyer, father, husband, brother, friend, and neighbor. These are all different natures of the same man, each having a unique character, and but not all necessarily revealed to each person with whom that man may come into contact. 

Turning to Isa.33:22 we see that the "Lord" (Hebrew word YHWH pronounced 'ya-way') is the "LAWGIVER" It was YHWH who told Moses in Ex.19:20 to come to Mt. Sinai in order to receive the ten commandments, and it was God's nature as YHWH which Moses called FATHER in Deut.32:5-6. Remember, by this time the progression to spiritual paidion (toddler) had already been made. Now turn to Ex.6:2 wherein we read, "God also said to Moses, "I am the Lord (YHWH). I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty (El Shaddai) but by My name the Lord (YHWH) I did not make myself known to them." (parenthesis and emphasis added) Going back to the original Hebrew we see that God is revealing Himself for the first time as "Father/Lawgiver". Before that time His name, or nature as Father / Lawgiver was not known to either Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob. If you had gone to Abraham and mentioned the name YHWH he would not have known who you were talking about. 

While Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob may well have known the word YHWH, these patriarchs did not know or comprehend the nature of God which that word described. They did not know, nor did they have any experiential knowledge of the attributes of God which that word encompassed. (see Gleason Archer Jr.'s discussion on pages 113-114 of his book A Survey of Old Testament, Introduction, Moody Press, 1974.) For purposes of an analogy you could know that your neighbor was a thespian, but unless you know what a thespian is, you would not know that he was an actor. God was therefore revealing something about Himself to Moses in Ex6:2 that none of the Patriarchs had known That something was the nature - attribute of God known as Father - Lawgiver which was inherent in the name YHWH. The only name by which God had as of yet revealed himself to Abraham on a permanent basis was El Shaddai. 

An interesting thing about most Eastern languages, including Hebrew, is that certain words have either a masculine or feminine gender to them. The word Shaddai is a feminine gender word based upon the Syrian word literally meaning "large breasted / multibreasted one" or "provider" (see New Brown Driver, Briggs, Gesenius -Hebrew Aramiac English Lexicon) The nature God revealed to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who were spiritual infants, was that of a feminine gender provider, and not Father/lawgiver. 

Do not be shocked or surprised that God has feminine as well as masculine characteristics. Gen.1:27 said, "...God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him male and female He created them." By no means is this intended to be critical of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remember, we must first crave pure spiritual milk as babes before we can mature. The point, however, is this. The generations which came before Moses were less spiritually mature then were those which came after. In a very real sense Moses' predecessors were not under the law because newborn babies are not accountable for their actions. As such, they did not know God as Father /lawgiver, only as creator and provider. Those who followed were to be more accountable. 

By the time of Jesus' appearance, as a group, believers had gone through the stages of brephos and nepois from Abraham to Moses. During the time from Moses to John the Baptist they had progressed from paidion to pais. Today, the Church is to be moving through the stage of teknon and on to huios. Ever since Peter and Paul argued about the relationship between the law and freedom in Galatians Cha. 2 this topic has been a stumbling block to the 'teenage' Church. Allow me to explain what I mean. 

There can be no doubt after reading Eph.2:15, Col.2:13-14, Ro.10:4, Ro:7:6, & Gal.5:1 that the Law has been fulfilled. Yet, it was Peter's attempts to impose the letter, or portions of the old law upon the Gentile believers which provoked this response from Paul in Gal.2:11-12. 

"When Peter came to Antioch I opposed him to his face because he was wrong ... I said to Peter ... `You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it then that you force the Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?'... if righteousness could be gained through the law Christ died for nothing." In Chapter 3:10 Paul continues by pointedly saying that all men who rely on observing the law are under a curse. The mixture of law and spiritual freedom which spiritual teenagers (teknons) are under is not a mixture of old covenant law and new covenant grace. 

It is not a matter of combining the old rules of touch not and taste not with the leading of the Spirit. That is a mixture which leads to death in the physical realm. Remember, the law brings death (II Cor.3:7). In Col.2:20-23 Paul asked, 

"...since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why as though you still belong to it do you submit to its rules; do not handle, do not taste, do not touch! They are all destined to perish because they are based upon human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have the appearance of wisdom, with their self imposed worship their false humility, and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence." How many denominations do you know that seem to specialize in rules you must follow in regards to what you wear, what you eat, how you entertain yourself or where, and with whom you go? 

These groups forever treat you like a spiritual pais (child) and will never let you "grow up into Him who is the Head, that is Christ" (Eph.4:15). Even if they acknowledge that, as a group, the Church is supposed to be in the teknon stage, they would be like Peter in Gal.2:11-21 and mistakenly try to impose the letter of the written code, and not the Spirit of the law of love. In Gal.5:12 Paul's response to continued attempts to impose the letter of the old law was definite: "As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves." Why be so concerned about going back under the law? The letter kills - only the Spirit gives life (II Cor.3:6) 

How easy it is to follow clearly defined written rules. That has been their appeal. If you want to know how you are progressing, merely compare your actions to your denomination's check list Why are the teen years so difficult? Because, a teenager is attempting to move into the adulthood stage, which means leaving the comparative security of those specific rules behind. It means saying good-bye to old established and trusted patterns for what at first glance, is the unknown. Teen years are great, but look at what God promises to those who are able to step into spiritual adulthood. 

"Now if the ministry that brought death which was engraved in letters on stone came with glory... will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious. If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness. For what was glorious has no glory in comparison with the surpassing glory." (II Cor.3:7-10 emphasis added) As spiritual teenagers there is a rule we must keep no matter how we feel, no matter whether we understand, and no matter what the response is. That rule is to walk in love (Gal.5:13). However, as we recognize the leading of the Spirit more and more in our lives, the legal requirement to love begins to disappear and the 'desire' to love replaces it. This is the Spirit of the law: walk in love, first to God and then to man. There is one other reason why it is difficult to give up the old law, and that is peer pressure which tries to keep us from doing something differently from the way our parents or grandparents did. 

Paul was clearly persecuted by the Jews for his failure to conform to their customs. He was also attacked by Jewish believers for his stand that Gentiles need not comply with the old law and customs. However, even Paul finally yielded under this peer pressure. After ignoring the leading of the Spirit, he went back to Jerusalem and took part himself in an old law sacrifice (Acts 21:4 & 21-26). Remember, he did this after he himself had said, "...You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ... (Gal.5:3). 

A careful reading of Paul's writings will reveal that from this time on, he never again spoke of being alive and remaining at the coming of Christ. From this time forward, his hope of going from teknon to huios, without first tasting death in the physical realm is never mentioned by him again (Ro.8:23-24, II Cor.5:4, I Thes.4:7, and I Cor.15:51). This is the topic of another study in and of itself, but the point simply put is: we need to be aware of the pressure which 'religious' peers can and will bring to bare upon us to remain where we are, and to do things the way they have always been done. There is nothing wrong with a custom and/or tradition, so long as that custom or tradition does not keep you from maturing spiritually. 

Concerning the letter of the law, Jesus said in Matt.5:17 that He did not come to abolish it, but to fulfill it. We know from II Cor.5:21 and Heb.4:15 that He was without sin, and that He fulfilled it perfectly as His Father directed (John 14:31). However, at times Jesus did not fulfill the letter of the law, but He did fulfill the Spirit of it. According to Ex.35:2 whoever does any work on the Sabbath must be put to death. Under the law you couldn't even light a fire to cook a meal. All preparation must have been completed prior to the Sabbath, yet Jesus condoned the harvesting of grain for personal consumption on that day (Matt.12:1). He even went so far as to heal all who came to Him on the Sabbath (see 12:15 & John 5:18). Another example can be seen in Jesus' treatment of the adulterous woman in John 8:4-5. The law of Lev.20:10 clearly commands death in that situation. It is not an option, it is a command. Jesus' failure to so state that was a clear infraction of the "letter" of the old law. Yet His Father was satisfied with this type of fulfillment. 

This introduces us to another concept that will be discussed in more detail in the next chapter, but bares mentioning here. Earlier we showed that God revealed Himself in different ways at different times. This brings to mind the question, "What was the name God used when He revealed all of His natures, or at least all of those which He has chosen to reveal?" Certainly Jesus knew that name. According to Lk.1:32 He was known as 'SON OF THE MOST 

HIGH GOD,' and not the comparatively limited revealed nature as YHWH. Note, this is not to say that any name of God is less than any other name; rather, some names reveal more then just one nature, and would therefore be more complete in their description. The name which is "MOST HIGH" would therefore be most complete. 

The Hebrew equivalent for this total revealed name is EL ELYON. This name is found interspersed throughout both the Old and New Testaments. Our understanding of what God is telling us as He revealed each of His natures to us, and how they interrelate is critical to our understanding of what it means to be a huios of the MOST HIGH GOD. The totality of God's revealed nature to us is EL ELYON, and is more concerned with the spirit of the law then the letter of it. Hence, Jesus' fulfillment of the spirit of the law was its perfect fulfillment. 

Jesus knew the totality of God's nature as El Elyon, this knowledge is important. In the Old Testament we saw that Korah challenged the letter of the law as pronounced by YHWH to Moses. Korah only knew the nature of God which had generally been revealed as of that time, and that was a combination of El Shaddai and Yhwh. In Nu.16:27-33 we see that Korah's breach of the letter of the law led to his physical death. On the other hand, we have the example of David eating the shewbread as found in I Sam.21:4-5 and recounted in Matt.12:4. According to Lev.24:9 this bread belonged to the sons of Aaron, and not to members of the tribe of Judah. How could David break the letter of the law and not be punished? We see that David knew the nature of God known as El Elyon. David wrote Psalms of praise to the Most High God. Indeed, Ps.50:13 - 14 clearly shows that the Most High God is desirous of praise more so then "legal" offerings as proscribed in the law of Moses. (Note also, that this is shown to be true in Hosea 6:6, and in Hosea 7:16 show us that Hosea was also aware of God's revealed nature as El Elyon. II Chron.30:19 tells us of King Hezekiah's prayer "...May the Lord, who is good pardon everyone who sets his heart on seeking God - the Lord, the God of his fathers - even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary." Vs. 20 advises us that "... the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people.") 

This is not to say that the law is wrong, or served no purpose (Gal.3:21). I am however saying that even when the law was the main element of spiritual life to the children (pais) of God, He was at various times and in various ways hinting that there was still something ahead that was better. He did so temporarily, revealing Himself as El Elyon. The children were not yet mature enough to continually deal with the freedom that comes with El Elyon. The law is there to lead the children to Christ (Gal.3:24). The hard and fast rules a parent sets down for a young child are not the ones that same parent wants that child to live by when he reaches adulthood. If that were the case, adults wouldn't touch the stove because their mothers told them not to when they were younger. Most of those early rules have as their purpose the protection and guiding of the paidions and pais along the way until they reach young adulthood, ie. their teen (teknon) years. 

Spiritual adults will be Sons of the Most High God and worship and understand His nature as such. The full rights of mature sonship do not go to those who put themselves back under the rules which were only meant to lead them to a certain stage of their development (Gal.4:5&30). Likewise, the promises of Ps.91:1&9 contain a requirement that is often times overlooked. Vs.1 says, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty." It would be difficult to dwell in someone's shelter unless you know who that someone is, and what requirements He makes prior to your taking up residence. Verse 9 clearly states that dwelling with the Most High is a condition precedent to the physical protection promised therein. 

Refer back to that verse in Hosea 4:6 we have used in several of these lessons. "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge, because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests." As was mentioned earlier, Hosea had knowledge of El Elyon, the Most High God (see also Nu.24:16) and to reject Him brings with it a two fold malady: 1) physical destruction and 2) His rejection of you as a priest. Ps.107:10-12 states that, "some sat in darkness and deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains for they had rebelled against the Words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High, so He subjected them to bitter labor." (emphasis added) Not only must we guard against being pulled back, or held back, by rules which by their very nature cannot bring life, but we must not reject the revealed nature of God which takes the place of these rules (Ro.7:10 & Ez.20:25). 

Jesus calls us "brothers" (Heb.2:11). We have the same Father, and we are to know His nature as revealed in the name 'the Most High God', which includes YHWH, but is not limited to YHWH. Likewise, it includes El Shaddai, but is not limited to El Shaddai. It includes Elohim (creator) but is not limited to Elohim. Notice who receives the end time promise according to Dan.7:27: "...the sovereignty, power, and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the MOST HIGH. His kingdom we be an everlasting kingdom and all rulers will worship and obey Him." (emphasis added) 

Melchizedek was priest of the Most High (Gen.14:18). That order of priesthood encompasses the indestructibility of life (Heb.7:3&16). We are priests (I Pe.2:5&9 and Rev.5:10), and we are to serve the MOST HIGH GOD. However, we serve not in the Levitical order with its letter of the law which brought death, but under the order of Melchizedek which leads to life. It is in this order that we will find our great High Priest Jesus who lives forever and ever (Heb.7:23-24).