Question: Any text that the Law of Mosheh against IDOLATRY, ADULTERY, Homosexuality, Murder, etc are already obsolete? Does it really matter if I commit adultery and fornication? As I am saved, will God forgive my sins even if I sin out of my own desire? (Hebrews 10:26).
Answer: Greetings in the name of mighty Jesus!
Hebrews 8:13 the Bible says, "In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away". This verse is part of a quotation from Jeremiah 31:31-34 in Heb 8:8-12. The quotation is used as proof that God did not intend to use the old covenant to obtain salvation, but instead to point to the Messiah.
"Obsolete" means something is no longer in use or useful for present procedural operations or workings of truth, and is just used for detailed explanation of the shadow of the New Covenant truth, and the evolution of it through various dispensations of the past time, present and the future.
When the eye's of the Nation of Israel gets opened to see Jesus at His Second Coming as their Messiah, whom Moses and the prophets spoke about (Luke 24:25, 26, 27, 44; Rom 11:25-26), then the Old Covenant will vanish away from use anymore (John 5:39, 40; Matt 23:23), because the Israelites would have entered by then in to the new covenant (Jer 31:31, 32, 33, 34; Ezek 36:24-25, 26-27), and OT by then will have its rightful space in the History Books for a spiritual lessons to learn like it is used with the Church now (Rom 15:14; 1 Cor 10:6).
Law was given through Moses (John 1:17), it was given to the Israelites to keep it and it was given in the conscience of the Gentiles to keep it, of which the 10 commandments of the spiritual law of God are universal to keep, so that all nations might be blessed (Rom 2:13, 14-16; Jam 1:25; Prov 14:34).
The reason law was given is,
1) To Reveal sin — The law was given to reveal the sinfulness of humans, and to imprison people under sin so that they would need a sinless savior (Rom 7:9, 13; 3:23; Gal 3:23).
2) Point to a Savior — The law was given to prepare people for the faith that would come, and to point the way to a savior (Gal 3:24).
3) Provide direction — The law provided God's guidance for the nation's physical and spiritual health (Psa 19:7, 8, 11; 119:105; Prov 28:4).
4) Provide a way of worship — The law provided a way of worship for the community of faith through yearly feasts (Heb 9:1). The first covenant was symbolic of the present time New Covenant that the Church enjoys with Christ working in them (Heb 9:9-10; Col 2:16-17).
5) Reveal God's nature — The law revealed God's nature, wisdom, righteous standards, and justice (Psa 19:7; Matt 5:48; 1 Peter 1:15-16; Exo 20:5-6; 24:3; 34:6-7).
6) To Function as a restraint in society — God set up law in all the nations through Kings and Governors and Presidents appointed to function and keep the Law and order (Rom 13:1-7).
7) To direct the believers in their behavior — The Lord wants the believers to submit to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, so that spiritually through a good behavior which the new nature of God gives us outwardly, we may be able to lead a peaceful lives (1 Pet 2:13-16).
So when Jesus came, He did not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it (Matt 5:17). Because we could not fulfill the righteous demand of the Father God in heaven, Jesus became a substitutionary sacrifice for us in our place, so that we could become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior (2 Cor 5:21).
In other words, Jesus gives us grace so that without fear of failing and sinning, we can fulfill all righteousness as a slave of God (John 1:16, 17; Rom 6:18).
Paul the apostle clearly asked all believers this question, just because we are given grace, does it mean we can sin freely? The answer he himself have given as a question again by saying, how can we who have been delivered from sin, will want to get in to its slavery again (Rom 6:14, 15)? Shall we sin because we are under the freedom of grace that Jesus supplies us, certainly not. Actually grace in itself is the spiritual strength supplied by God to overcome sin, and not to indulge in it freely and also look forward to the Rapture with hope (Tit 2:11, 12, 13-14; 1 John 2:2, 3), as some people turn the grace of God in to lewdness and deny the Lordship of Jesus Christ (Jude 4).
To a believer who is really saved, it does matter to keep himself from sins like adultery and fornication, etc... which is done against their own body of which the consequence will follow in their lives (1 Cor 6:18; Heb 13:4), as God forgiveness is not a free licence to sin, but is actually the power to oppose sin and overcome it by faith for the Glory of God!
Even though to the higher level of law, that Jesus introduced for his followers to keep, may take time like forgiveness against repeated offenders, lust of the eyes and masturbation, covetousness, and the like, still the Lord's blood is able to cleanse us and keep us from all uncleanness if we continue to confess our sins to the Lord and have constant fellowship with edifying saints (Matt 5:1-48; 1 John 1:7, 9). True grace will help us, live Holy lives, unblameable and fruitful in every good work, while false grace or fallen from grace or grace abused or using grace the wrong way and using it in vain (2 Cor 6:1), will lead us to all sorts of uncleanness, lust and evil works that God hates. Some people who don't use grace by living religiously to keep the law by their own strength, and set aside the grace of God (Gal 2:21), such kind of fleshly walk also should be avoided (Gal 3:3; 5:4). All out effort in trusting Christ initially, is wasted through our unproductive religious walk, which will produce no eternal fruit.
One thing all believers need to understand, God doesn't gain anything just because we sin or don't sin, God hates sin because it destroys humans who are made in His in the image of His likeness, and prevents Him from helping the sinner who is destroyed by the ill-effects of it (Job 35:6-8; Isa 59:1-2).
So just because a believer is given liberty of free will to choose over sin, doesn't mean he can sin for years and decades together and still avoid the consequences of that sin he has enjoyed secretly (Gal 6:7). In other words, no believers can choose to sin and live under the protective umbrella of grace forever (1 Cor 15:10; 2 Cor 6:1). Simply Paul the apostle expresses by saying, to whom we submit, we become that ones slaves, or in other words those who have a fleshly desire to sin even after becoming a believer will become a slave to the sin he enjoys, and it will become a besetting sin in his life to pull him back each time of his spiritual growth or leap forward (Rom 6:16). Every time faith revives, that will set a believer free from sin that over powers him, which has a hold in his life (Rom 6:18-19). If the believer, sins by the weakness of the flesh and besetting sins, then confessing the sins to the Lord, it will cleanse him from all unrighteousness the moment he does that (1 John 1:7, 9). But if this sinful desires has not been given a death blow to be overcome forever by the grace of God, soon the consequences of the curse of sin will begin to take root in the family life of that person, and will cause great pain personally and to their family members.
'Besetting sin' is an idiom that means a main or constant problem or fault. So one must humble oneself before God and the elders of the Church who guide the believer personally, and try to overcome besetting sin as soon as possible by the grace of God (Jam 4:7-10; 1 Pet 5:6-9)! Praise the Lord!
The main thing to understand is, God will forgive and forget our sins, but people will never forget what we did and where we failed in our lives (2 Sam 12:6-12, 13-14). So this will of course affect our Christian Testimony, but more than that it will affect our families and our children in the next generation so much through the curses that got in to our lives because of our own stubbornness to forsake the sin that has been besetting us spiritually through our own unrestrained lust.
So every believer who is forgiven by the Lord will not just want to keep the external 10 commandments of the Law of Moses because those are basic level, but actually every believer need to strive to keep the internal commandments that Jesus taught in Matthew fifth chapter to overcome covetousness, lust, pride, anger, etc...by growing in his walk with the Lord to produce the fruit of the Spirit which is self-control, etc...in all goodness (Matt 5:1-48; Gal 5:22-23, 25). Only following this method will keep a believer always blessed, or else he will be caught up in sin-confess-sin cycle, which is a slavery to besetting sin until God chastises that believer through great trials and tribulations to let that evil or sinful desire be removed through the spiritual surgery at last done through the Holy Spirit (Ezek 36:26, 27, 29, 31). Hallelujah!
If we continue to commit sin after we are saved, and that too out of our own lustful desire which we want or own desire, then there remains no longer a sacrifice for sins, which means the protection of grace cannot cover us when this besetting sin takes place, thus Satan and his evil minions will have a strong foot hold in our lives to pull us back every time we want to move forward spiritually. Thus the effects of those sins will create "a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries of God" under the leadership of Satan and his minions who wee allowed by the believers through besetting sins (Heb 10:26, 27). The Lord will judge his people now when they are alive in this world, so that they might not be condemned with the world later (Heb 10:30-31; 1 Pet 4:17-19).
So we know for sure, that the 10 Universal commands of the Law of Moses which commands all against IDOLATRY, ADULTERY, Homosexuality, Murder, etc can never become obsolete until sinful man lives on the planet earth, as the law of Moses is given to restrain sinful humans from sinning freely (Gal 3:19 1 Tim 1:8, 9), it will be in effect even up to the end of the Millennial rule of Jesus and the Church (Mark 7:20-23; Rev 20:6, 7-10).
One final thing I want to share is, forgiven or saved souls hates sin (Psa 97:10), love Christ (John 21:15-19; Matt 22:36-40), remain humble (1 Pet 5:5), pursue holiness (Heb 12:14) and forgiving (Eph 4:32; Matt 18:21-22). Check yourself whether the above things are working in you, and then have the assurance of salvation intact within you for the Glory of God! You will do well. Farewell!
God bless!
Much Blessings....
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