Noah, a preacher of righteousness

With the recent film release of 'Noah', it seems like our attention is being drawn again to the account in Genesis of the Flood. The film, with obvious film-makers' poetic license, explores what this epic event in human history may have looked like (or, from the director's perspective, imagines how a myth would have looked in reality). I was thinking a few months ago about Noah as I was reading through Genesis, and thinking through what we are meant to make of him and the story of God decisively acting to wipe out every living creature except those on the ark - essentially, to bring chaos and de-create what was created, ready for a new beginning solidified in the call of Abram in Genesis 12. The great thing about the Bible is that it offers its own commentary on these events, and 2 Peter 2 is really helpful in thinking over Genesis 6-9. Peter is looking ahead towards the future judgement that will come upon the false teachers who have been plaguing the church, and he draws upon several accounts in Genesis to illustrate his point that 'the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.' (v9) In mentioning the Flood, Peter says that God 'protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness' (v5). So let's unpack exactly what that might mean, and then think about how it applies to us today.

1. Noah knew God was righteous
To be a 'preacher of righteousness', Noah would have had to have known that it is a key aspect of God's character and very nature and being. Genesis 6:9 says that 'Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.' The last clause of that verse, that he walked faithfully with God, is not detachable in meaning from the description of Noah as righteous; they are intrinsically linked. It wasn't that Noah was a decent guy, so God decided to save him and his family. Noah knew God, and although we aren't given much detail as to how he related to God on a daily basis or how he knew what he knew about God, we can surmise that God had revealed something of His character and heart to Noah. God had shared His hatred of sin and His plan to destroy His creation with Noah, but He had also shared a promise to establish His covenant with Noah and save him and his family. (see Genesis 6:11-21). As a result, Noah knew God was a righteous God. He must have known about God's role as Creator and sustainer of the whole earth, and therefore God's power to destroy it as well. He must also have known that God would never lie but always keep His word. His knowledge of these truths resulted in his obedience when God told him to build an ark. He acted in faith, because he knew God was righteous and would keep His promise to save him.

2. Noah knew God's righteousness meant impending judgement
As a necessary consequence of God's righteousness, He has to judge sin. Noah warned his generation that there was a God who saw their sin and was imminently about to bring cataclysmic judgement upon the whole earth. The fact that only 8 people were saved on the ark was not due to a lack of mercy on God's part, but of humanity's stubborn refusal to repent and believe. The description of Noah as a 'preacher of righteousness' encapsulates what it must have meant to be someone living in such a fallen world, with the certain knowledge of God's coming judgement, and to have a godly desire to see men saved. The film has been criticised for showing Noah to be increasingly vindictive against humanity, more concerned about saving animals than men's souls. I don't think that can match up with the biblical description of this righteous man.

3. Noah lived a righteous life of faith
Noah's own righteousness came by his faith and the way that he lived his faith out. He found grace in the eyes of the Lord and God gave him the privilege of His covenant and of being the father of all future generations. It must have been a fearful thing to be on the ark, knowing you were the only survivors of a world-wide catastrophe. Perhaps Noah and his family heard the people outside the ark perishing, who once scoffed at what he was doing. Perhaps there was also an element o relief, that all the ungodly enemies of God, who would have been enemies to Noah too, were now destroyed.
Noah was human and flawed as his drunkenness after the Flood shows, but still he demonstrated a life of faith, which made him righteous in God's eyes.

How can we be preachers of righteousness?
As Christian believers, we have a fuller revelation of God's righteousness and the righteousness that is ours by faith: in Jesus Christ. In Christ we see God-in-flesh, His holiness lived out perfectly in human form. On the cross we see the righteousness of God punishing sin, and the righteousness of Christ as the innocent, perfect sacrifice. If we are in Christ, our sins have been dealt with, the penalty has been paid, and His righteousness is credited to our account (2 Cor 5:21).
In our generation, we see evil and wickedness just as Noah did- perhaps with some new outlets due to modern technology. Pornography and sexual immorality are facts of modern society which have escalated far beyond control, to the growing anxiety of politicians. We have saved thousands of childrens' lives through vaccinations and medical advances, yet we kill 500 unborn children every day through abortion. Our generation needs to hear the truth about God's righteousness and the coming Day of judgement when Christ will return. They will only be saved from an eternity in hell if they repent and believe the gospel of Christ. Are we boldly proclaiming this word of truth? And are we modelling in our lives the righteousness of a life of faith, as we seek to imitate Christ? There is much challenge in the story of Noah, this hero of faith, and perhaps this element of challenge gets overlooked because we are too busy fussing about the historicity of the account and the hows and whys of the earth being deluged. Let's not get distracted from the main point: Noah was a preacher of righteousness. We should be too!

Rest in time of need- some more thoughts

I'm coming back to this theme of rest; I looked up all the times 'rest' is mentioned in the KJV and I was really struck at the story of God and God's people it showed me. From the rest of God in Genesis 2:2 to the pattern of rest He created for His people as shown in the Law (Ex 20:11, Deut 5:14), God knew that man would always be searching for rest. One of the biggest things that stood out to me is that biblically, rest is not found in not working per se, but in God Himself. So in the laws and commands about keeping the Sabbath, the reason for those commands was so that people could take time to draw near to God, rather than simply stop working and put their feet up. Look at Ex 33:14:

'...My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.'

As Moses communes with God, whose holy presence has filled the tabernacle, God gives him this assurance of His ongoing presence with Israel even though they are a 'stiffnecked people' (v5). This promise is fulfilled as in Numbers it says 'At the commandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the Lord they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents' (Num 9:18). They physically rested from travelling when God's presence filled the tabernacle, but I wonder if that is also a picture of a spiritual rest. They knew God was close to them; they had nothing to fear.

What went wrong?

The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 95:

'Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.' (Heb 3:7-11)

Rest was only to be found in God, but instead of drawing near to Him and listening to Him, they grumbled and let their hearts grow hard against Him. They were denied rest, because they would not find it in God. They wanted just to have their temporary needs met of a varied diet and a permanent home (see Numbers 11).

The writer of Hebrews argued that since Israel failed to enter God's rest, then there 'remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.' (Heb 4:9) How do we enter it? He then goes on to write about our 'great high priest... Jesus the Son of God' (v14). Jesus was a man who entered the rest of God and so could offer it to others (Matt 11:28-29). He kept the Sabbath in the way it was intended, by using it to draw close to God and others rather than simply following some legalistic rules about not picking corn (Luke 6). Isaiah prophesies about a Branch, a root of Jesse, who will come and 'the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him' (v2). This seems to be shown in John 1:32 when the Spirit rests on Jesus at His baptism, and Jesus Himself referred to similar prophecies in Luke 4:18 (Isa 61) and said they were fulfilled in Him.

Isaiah 11 goes on to talk about the new creation where the wolf shall dwell with the lamb (v6), and it says that 'in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.' (v10). So this must refer to Jesus, standing as a flag or banner of God's people, the One the Gentiles seek, and His rest shall be glorious because He has brought salvation to the nations. And this will be our rest too!

What about now?

Well, going back to Hebrews 4, after pointing us to Jesus as our high priest, the writer reminds us that he was 'in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.' (v15) What deprives us of rest in God? Sin. But if we come to Christ, we can share in His perfect rest in God, because He was sinless.

'Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.' (Heb 4:16)

This is the real key for us as Christians. There will be times of trouble for us, sometimes because of our sin and mess-ups, but also from sickness, or persecution, or other factors beyond our control. How do we find rest in all these circumstances? By going to the throne of grace, seeking God for His mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. The answer to our frantic busy-ness, to our despair, to our desperation, is found not in retreats, finishing tasks, new possessions, relationships or entertainment, though I know I have tried to find it in all of these things. It's only in God Himself that we can find the rest we crave.

The concept of Home

My husband and I were talking about this and it made me think through what a Home is in the Bible. Why are we so obsessed with creating a home for ourselves? Is it right to do that?

The overall conclusion I came to is that the reason we are home-makers is that

we seek to recreate Eden, our Paradise that was lost.

In Eden, as described in Genesis 1-2, we lived in a perfect world, in a perfect relationship with God. There was no danger, there was no bloodshed. But man's sin in Genesis 3 broke that perfect safety. Adam and Eve were cast out into a lonely and scary world with predators. Their son Cain became a murderer, and he himself needed God to give him a mark of protection as he feared for his own safety. The world had become brutal.

And so, ever since then, human beings have sought to create a home for themselves, as a haven of safety and domestic security. Our home is where we retreat at the end of the day, where we feel safe from the insults and attacks of others, where we can really be ourselves. It doesn't matter if it's a tent or a red-brick building, its function is the same.

In the little vignettes and stories we have in the Bible, we catch glimpses of people's homes. Isaac is deceived by Jacob in the security of his home, Joseph is welcomed into the home of Potiphar but his master's wife tries to seduce him then falsely accuses him, King David calls for Bathsheba to be brought into his home so that he can sleep with her. In a fallen world, the home has become a place of corruption and sin, just as much as the outside world. And the devil loves to attack the homes of believers, because a home where God is at the centre is a piece of Paradise which magnetically attracts those seeking love and friendship.

But we mustn't forget that home can become a fatal trap of comfort, too. Abraham and Sarah were brave enough to leave their home to follow God's calling on their lives. Ruth left her home in Moab to make her home with her mother-in-law Naomi. Israel had to leave their homes in Egypt in order to escape slavery, and it took 40 years of wandering in the wilderness before they reached the Promised Land.

We, like them, need to hold onto the promises of God. Our homes on earth are temporary; our real home is in heaven and it is eternal (John 14:2, Heb 11:15-16). Let us uphold marriage and the family as the foundation units for a solid society, and our homes as places where we welcome the stranger, the needy, the vulnerable (Lk 14:13-14). Our homes can be for them a taste of the new heavens and the new earth that will one day come, where there is no pain, suffering or danger anymore (Rev 21). Let us not seek to create a nice home as an end in itself, but in a blazing signpost that we were made for greater things.

Sex before marriage: what does the Bible say?

Some people think that the Bible doesn't say much about sex. Other people think the Bible is really negative about sex. I was asked by a Christian friend recently how I would go about explaining what the Bible says about sex before marriage to someone who is a Christian and sleeping with their boyfriend or girlfriend. This post is really my response to that question.

Summary:
God has such a high value on sex that He designed it to be just for marriage.

The argument starts in Genesis. God makes Adam and Eve, marries them, and they enjoy sex as an expression of their unity: 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.' Gen 2:24 The implication is that you can't become one flesh physically (ie in sexual intercourse) without first being joined before God in marriage. This makes sense in that sex is a picture of giving yourselves completely to one another- this just isn't appropriate outside the safety net of marriage, where you have made a lifelong commitment to each other.

The high value God places on sex within marriage is emphasised throughout the Old Testament- most notably in the command against adultery (Ex 20:14). If you engage in pre-marital sex, you are in one sense being unfaithful to your future spouse. If the person ends up being someone you marry, you have still spoilt something special and unique meant for marriage only.

There are people in the Old Testament who disregard God's design for sex and marriage, and the result is always spiritual disaster. Look at Solomon: he had a ridiculous number of concubines (300!), and they had a terrible influence on him. He also married 700 women, and they 'turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God' (1 Kings 11:4). Solomon had built the temple and was gifted with wisdom from God, and yet in this matter he was blind to the warnings he was given, and so his kingdom was torn away from him (1 Kings 11:11). This ties into the idea that Christians going out with/marrying non Christians is spiritually damaging, because you are essentially uniting yourself with someone who is spiritually dead (see Ephesians 2 for the strong contrast between Christians and non-Christians, and 2 Cor 6 for instruction on not being 'yoked' with unbelievers).

The New Testament letters speak a lot about sexual purity. There are several key passages where 'fornication' (ie sex before marriage) is condemned (1 Cor 6:12- 7:40; Eph 5:1-7; 1 Thess 4:1-8), and in Hebrews 13:4 it says that the marriage bed should be kept pure, for God will judge the sexually immoral. The key emphasis in all these passages is that we've been saved by God's grace and set free from the crippling, disabling power of sin over our lives. Therefore our whole lives as Christians are about using that power to resist sin and live 100% for Jesus instead of being ruled by passion just like non-believers are.

When people have problems with what the Bible teaches on sex, it actually points to a bigger problem: their attitude towards God. Too often we are driven by our own desires for a relationship or physical intimacy, instead of putting God's agenda at the top of our priorities. If you're a Christian and you know another Christian who is struggling in this area, encourage them to draw closer to God. If you can, suggest meeting up together to read the Bible. Working through a short letter like 1 Thessalonians would only take a few sessions, and all you'd have to do is read it and discuss it. If they're really serious about being a Christian, they have to accept that it intrinsically means giving up what you want, and going God's way instead. And the joy of being a Christian is that God's way is so much better!!! As Paul writes, those things (sexual immorality included) lead to death. Why would we want to go back to them? (Romans 6:21)

Ultimately, we need to realise that God loves us far more than we comprehend. He loved us enough to send Jesus to die for us. Won't He give us anything that's good for us? Would He with hold the best from us? Of course not. (see Romans 8).

Therefore the Bible's teaching on sex and marriage is there to help us. God is FOR sex (he invented it!!!) and He has such a high value on it that he reserves it for those who are married. People who sleep with others before marriage are de-valuing sex. God's way is best because it preserves society and the family unit- look at the result of people sleeping together outside marriage: STDs, AIDS, broken homes, kids without fathers... And I hate to say it, but usually the girl in the relationship is the one with everything to lose and nothing to gain. A guy can sleep with someone and walk away; the girl ends up way more emotionally scarred and potentially with a baby to look after.

I think if a guy really loves you, he'd be willing to wait : Christian OR non Christian. But the real sticking point about Christians going out with non Christians is that they can't be a gospel team, working together to serve Jesus. One serves Jesus; the other belongs basically to the devil and is spiritually dead. I think one of the greatest blessings of Christian marriage is that you keep each other going with Jesus, pick each other up when you're down, lead each other back to the cross. However attracted you are to each other, it's the spiritual bond you share that will keep you going in the tough times.

Creation

There is no doubt in my mind that someone can be a sincere Christian and not be a creationist. Many people view Genesis 1-2 as a poetic account explaining the purpose of humanity, and see no conflict between this and the Big Bang theory. Perhaps God created a Big Bang. Either that, or Christians feel unsure what to think, how to reconcile the Bible account of creation with scientific theory.

I want to suggest that the creation controversy has many far-reaching implications in a Christian's worldview and life, and encourage Christians to prioritise what the Bible teaches above what men theorize.

Firstly, the whole apprach of marrying evolution and the Bible shows our human tendency to patronise our ancestors and believe that future = progress = better. We like to smile and say knowingly, "Yes but the people who wrote the Bible were unscientific. They didn't know all that we know now." I think it's a mistake to dismiss the intellect of people from Bible times. Cain built a city with no precedent! (Gen 4:17) If humans are inventive and intelligent now, they certainly were from the beginning- after all, we were made in the image of God and He is the ultimate Inventor and intelligent One.

Secondly I think it's dangerous to bring human ideas to the Bible, and try to squash the Bible to fit them- or worse, ignore what the Bible says, in favour of a human idea. The Bible was certainly written by men at a specific time in history where they didn't have space travel and electric power etc, but it was ultimately God-breathed (2 Tim 3:16). It is God's book about Himself and the world He created. It is His gracious revelation to us. It defines wisdom.

We, as flawed and sinful human beings, are not smarter than God. We weren't there when the universe was created. God was. Our puny human ideas don't touch a smidgen of the immense capacity of God's mind. He has NO LIMITATIONS!

Many people cling to evolution because they have rejected God and want to find a way of explaining the universe without Him in the picture. Many non-Christians scoff at a creationist: 'How can you believer that the universe was created in six days?' Their worldview does not include a God who is all-powerful, all-knowing and 100% good.

The crux of the matter is this: if you are a Christian and believe in a God who can raise from the dead, then you believe in a God who is the author and giver of life, who is perfectly capable of creating a universe in six days. And if you believe in this God, what exactly is so ludicrous about creationism? If you believe that God IS capable of a six day creation (which Genesis 1 asserts that He is), and yet choose to believe that He chose instead to form the world over millions of years from tiny cells, why exactly are you making that decision? What motivates you? If it's social acceptance, then surely you're valuing the theories of men above the Word of God?

Wayne Grudem in Systematic Theology points out that there are a number of problems with being a theistic evolutionary:

• Randomness vs God's clear purpose. 'after three hundred eighty-seven million four hundred ninety-two thousand eight hundred seventy-one attempts, God finally made a mouse that worked'.
• Scripture says God's word has immediate response
• Scripture says God made different species
• Adam and Eve were specially created to be different from other animals
• The New Testament affirms the historicity of Adam and Eve as real people (Rom 5, 1 Cor 15, Lk 3:38 etc)
  

Christians who support evolution have some seriously tricky issues and questions to grapple with, such as:

1. When did humans first exist? When did a Neanderthal become a human being with a soul?

2. Who were Adam and Eve? Two of many people who had all evolved at the same time? Mythological characters? If so, how much else of the Bible is mere mythology?

3. When did the Fall happen? There has to be a Fall, because even if you don't believe God created the world in six days, you have to believe that God created the world good-unless ou have God create something imperfect which throws open a whole other can of worms.

4. When did death enter the world? Evolutionary theory is based upon survival of the fittest, and the development of species over generations. The Bible teaches that death is a consequence of sin. No sin = no death. God HATES death. It is the antithesis of who He is- the life-giver. It makes no sense that He would create death as part of His perfect world. Any thinking which suggests death is necessary is only based on the world we see today- we cannot imagine a world without death. Yet that is what Jesus came to save us from, and the future we have to look forward to in heaven.

There are many things I don't understand about the world, the universe and the Bible. But I believe that God created everything and knows best:

'By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.' Hebrews 11:3

I don't want to bury my head in the sand and ignore science completely. But I feel happier taking God at His word and waiting for heaven where I'll understand much better! I'd rather stand before God and have Him say, 'You fool, Sophie, for taking Genesis 1 literally!' than to have Him say, 'Why did you believe what men said above what My word revealed to you?' And judging on Jesus' reaction to His contemporaries ('for they loved praise from men more than praise from God' Jn 12:43; 'You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men' Mk 7:8), I think the latter is more likely than the former.

Do Christians have to keep the Law?

Recently I've been studying the first five books of the Old Testament (the Pentateuch) for an exam. One of the past questions was concerned with how the 10 Commandments relate to the New Covenant, which Christians are under. I've always found this issue really hard to get my head around, so this post is very much my current musings.

Covenant: Old and New

The concept of covenant is very prominent in the Pentateuch. By creating the world, God committed Himself to it. But after the rebellion of mankind and the Flood, God chose to make a covenant with Noah to never again destroy the world by flooding. (Gen 9:11) After the building of the tower at Babel, and God's subsequent scattering of mankind and confusion of languages, God chose to make a covenant with Abraham:
'I will make you into a great nation... I will make your name great... all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.' (Gen 12:2-3)

This covenant was eventually fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He was a descendant of Abraham (Matt 1:1), and through His death on the cross and resurrection, He offers all people on earth the blessing of being reconciled with God, and an eternity in heaven. Paul explains this in the book of Galatians:
'Consider Abraham: "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.' Gal 3:7-9

430 years after God made His covenant with Abraham, Moses led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt (by this time they had indeed become a 'great nation' as God had promised), and at Mount Sinai God made a covenant with Israel as a nation. He gave them the 10 Commandments and a covenant code to follow (these are detailed in Exodus and Leviticus). In Deuteronomy, just as Israel are poised to enter the promised land after 40 years of rebellion in the wilderness, Moses gives three speeches which outline to Israel the options laid before them:

• Obey God's commands and be blessed and stay in the land (Deut 4:40)
  
• Disobey God's commands and be cursed and exiled from the land (Deut 4:26-27)
  

The problem was, and this is really what the rest of the Old Testament is about, that Israel could not obey God's commands. They repeatedly turned against God, and so they were indeed sent into exile. Even when a remnant returned, the same mistakes were made, and the latter prophets such as Malachi preached about the rebellion of the people and urged them to turn back to God.

This, then, is where the concept of the New Covenant comes in. Jeremiah prophesies that there will come a time when God will put His laws into men's minds and hearts, and remember their sins no more (Jer 31). The writer of Hebrews explains that this time has now come: it was inaugurated through Jesus Christ's ministry.

Jesus fulfilled the law of Moses by sacrificing Himself once, for all. His innocent death was the high price necessary to pay for our sins. His blood was shed to cleanse mankind from past, present and future sins, if men claim it for themselves through faith.

'When Christ came as high priest... He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.' (Hebrews 8:11-15)

The 'new covenant', then, is the promise of God that all who believe in Jesus can receive forgiveness through His blood. (see Rev 7:15) Christians do not have to offer up animal sacrifices as the Israelites did, because Jesus' sacrifice was enough. The animal sacrifices of the law of Moses were a shadow of the greater reality of Christ that was to come. For believers before Christ came, sacrifices were a God-given means of forgiveness through His covenant with Israel. They were made valid before God on the basis of Christ's future sacrifice (note that the Old Testament itself recognises that the blood of bulls did not take away sin; God graciously forgave the one who offered the sacrifice if their heart was genuinely repentant and seeking Him -see Ps 51:16 and Hosea 6:6).

The essence of the Gospel

The Christian message is this: that everyone has sinned and turned against God in their heart, and consequently is under God's judgement. So God sent His Son Jesus to earth, to live a perfectly obedient life, and to die an innocent death, so that the price for our redemption could be paid. If we want to escape God's punishment, we need to believe in Jesus and trust that He took our punishment for us. We can be credited with His righteousness through faith in Him.

The Gospel in the Old Testament

Now that message wasn't really 'new' with Jesus' coming to earth. In fact, as Paul points out in Romans and Galatians, God's people have always been saved through faith rather than works. Abraham believed and it was credited as righteousness to him. (Gen 15:6) Also, the prophets looked towards Jesus' coming and Isaiah famously predicted that God's Servant would take on Himself the punishment for our sins:

'But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.' (Isaiah 53:5-6)

What, then, was the point of the law?

The law had two purposes:
1. To guide God's people in how they should live, at a time when believers did not have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them
2. To expose the fact that men can never perfectly live up to God's standards

The problem with the law, as James explains, was that if you kept all of it except one point, you were guilty of all of it and condemned (James 2:10). Jesus said that the most important commandments were 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength' and 'Love your neighbor as yourself' (Mark 12:29-31, quoting Deut 6:5-6). No one can ever keep these perfectly- hence why Jesus challenged the rich ruler who claimed he had kept all the commandments to:

'Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.' (Luke 18:22)

It was obvious that the ruler was not loving God and his neighbour with all his heart, because he walked away with sadness, unable to relinquish his great wealth.

The law then, as Paul writes, 'was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.' (Gal 3:24-25)

So do Christians have to keep the Law?

Finally I'm coming round to this crucial question. The answer is that Christians do not have to keep the Law in order to be saved.

'All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." ...Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.' (Gal 3:10-14)

We are justified through Jesus Christ, not the things that we do. Jesus Christ was the only man to ever keep the law perfectly. He kept it perfectly FOR us. When we have faith in Him, His perfect righteousness becomes ours (see 1 Cor 1:30). God chooses not to see our filthy sins, but Christ's perfection, and that is how we can be accepted into heaven.

The Law has no power to save us, because it cannot give us the strength we need to obey it. It is not life-giving, but brings death and condemnation because we cannot keep it.
'the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life' (2 Cor 3:6)

But, as Christians who are saved by grace and given God's Holy Spirit, the Law and the Old Testament are helpful to us in revealing God's character and how He wants us to live.

'Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.' (Gal 3:21)

It is important to stress that the law is in no way morally deficient. It is not primitive as some may suggest, but it perfectly reveals God's standards and holiness. The ceremonial laws (concerning food to eat and clothes to wear and sacrifices to be made etc) clearly do not apply to Christians, because the New Testament explains that these were fulfilled in Christ and Christians are not like Israel, a physical nation in one physical place separate from other peoples. (see Acts 10) Israel was chosen to be 'a kingdom of priests and a holy nation' (Ex 19:6) in the physical region of Palestine, whereas Christians are 'a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God' (1 Pet 2:9) who are sent out into all the world to make disciples of all nations (Matt 28).

The 10 Commandments, as TD Alexander suggests, are fundamental principles of life in covenant with God, universal and timeless. Whilst our salvation does not depend on how well we can obey God, Christians should desire to please God by living to glorify Him. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus expounded what keeping the 10 Commandments really means: not looking at someone lustfully, not feeling angry with your brother in your heart... It's much more than simply not sleeping with another man's wife, or stabbing someone in the chest. The Pharisees tended to do the bare minimum when it came to the law and think they were right with God, but actually Jesus said that the Tax Collector who declares his sinfulness and repents is more in the right with God than a self-righteous religious man. (see Luke 18:13)

If we strive to bring all areas of our life under God's rule, and stay humble to realise that we will never be acceptable to God through the things that we do, then we shall respond rightly to God's grace to us in Jesus.

How should I approach relationships?

Personally, I've had so much grief in the area of relationships that I really want to post something about what I've learnt (the hard way). I wrote yesterday about the importance of Christians not going out with non-Christians -I can testify that this never helps your faith, and leads you down some very sticky paths. But there has to be more to a Christian perspective on relationships than this 'don't go out with a non-Christian' principle. And there is!

We have such an opportunity in our romantic relationships to show the world how different we are, now that Jesus has changed our lives. Our most important relationship in the world is with Him, and He is always faithful and will never break our hearts! Hooray for that!

If you really want to treasure Christ above all other things, then whoever you go out with needs to help you love Jesus more. The only thing that really matters when you consider whether to go out with someone or not, is this: Do they love Jesus? Could I love them?

God is amazing. He created chemistry, and He brings people together for marriage who complement each other perfectly and completely click. I'm not saying that anyone should simply pick a Christian, any Christian, and ignore their attraction (or lack of it) to that person. What I'm saying is that it's a mistake to prioritize physical attraction above how much a person loves God and wants to please Him.

There are some great books on Christian relationships out there which I have read (see bottom of page for recommendations), and three principles have emerged from all of them:

1. Don’t date for fun.
The common idea in our culture that you need to ‘have fun’ while you’re young and have one-night stands, or kiss random people in clubs, or just go out with someone ‘casually’, is all extremely opposite to God’s standards in the Bible. God cares deeply about all people, and wants us to do the same. We should never ‘use’ people for physical pleasure, or to look good to our friends, or just to combat loneliness. 1 Corinthians 16:14 says ‘Do everything in love’, and chapter 13 defines love as patient, kind, not envying, not boasting, not proud, not rude, not self-seeking, forgiving, not delighting in evil but in the truth, protective, trusting, hopeful and persevering. Therefore if Christians do have relationships, they are not to be shallow, but should follow the Bible’s definition of what real love is.

2. Guard your heart.
Proverbs 4:23 says: “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” There is a powerful demonstration of the impact of relationships on a person’s life. Whenever you have a close romantic relationship, it’s like gluing two pieces of paper together. When the relationship breaks up, it’s like trying to tear those pieces of paper apart. It’s messy, and in real life, it’s a painful experience. This is why the world’s idea about having lots of relationships before finally ‘settling down’ is a bad one. It means that by the time they finish university, the majority of people have slept with a number of people, and had several romantic involvements. This gives people a lot of emotional ‘baggage’ which then creates issues when you do want to get married.

For Christian teenagers who are nowhere near ready to get married, it’s often wisest to guard your heart and not let yourself get too involved romantically with anyone. Be careful not to spend too much time alone with someone of the opposite sex, if they are not seeking to honour God in the way that they treat you.

If you really like someone, bring it to God in prayer and talk about it with someone at church. It’s always good to get wise advice about such things.

3. Be pure
'Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.' Philippians 4:8
In the way that you think about members of the opposite sex, be pure.
In the way that you act around members of the opposite sex, be pure.
In the way that you speak to members of the opposite sex, be pure.
Whether you're in a relationship or not, your thoughts and behaviour matter! God wants you to be absolutely spotless, and He has cleansed you through the blood of Jesus from all of your sins. Don't defy your new status as purified by God, by returning to the mud again.

Lust- wanting something that does not belong to you (usually in a sexual sense)- is a very pervasive sin. It can manifest itself in X-rated thoughts, in addictions to pornography, or in hungry kissing that leads on to more.

Do what Joseph did- run away from it! Don't give yourself any opportunity to fall. Don't have an internet connection in your bedroom. Don't be alone with your boyfriend/girlfriend in a room together with the door closed.

Do what Job did- make a covenant (promise) with your eyes, not to linger on people and treat them as objects. Avoid parts of a supermarket which stock men's magazines. Bounce your eyes away from unhelpful billboards. Look away from a cinema screen if there's an unexpected sex scene.

Pray and depend on God for strength to fight this sin in your life. It CAN be beaten through the power of the Holy Spirit.

If you're not accountable to anyone in your church, find a trusted Christian there who will ask you candid questions about how you're doing in this area, and ask them to pray for you. Don't think you're the only one who struggles with this. Everyone has some form of struggle with lust in their lifetime.

Below are some books I recommend which deal with this whole area: