Leviticus 19:26-29 NKJV, Leviticus 21:1-5 NKJV, Matthew 5:17-20 NKJV, Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV, Matthew 22:36-40 NKJV, Galatians 5:21-23 NKJV and Jude 1:16-19 NKJV

“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven." [Matthew 5:17-20 NKJV]

President Barack Obama stated in 2006, "Which passages of Scripture should guide our public policy? Should we go with Leviticus, which suggests slavery is Ok and that eating shellfish is abomination? How about Deuteronomy, which suggests stoning your child if he strays from the faith? Or should we just stick to the Sermon on the Mount--a passage that is so radical that it's doubtful that our own Defense Department would survive its application? So before we get carried away, let's read our Bibles." He along with the majority of Americans attack the scripture and denounce the truth of God's will. The common denominator seems to be ignorance of the O.T. scripture, which leaves most rejecting the protective love that God provides with His Law. And it is clear, the laws are so foreign to people today that even church attenders and Christians give the same arguments that Obama gives, and concludes no one needs to follow the Law today, just love God and do what you generally want, as long as you don't feel guilty and feel good about yourself.

For example, recently on a Christian radio station the subject of tatoos was brought up with a sad story of a young Christian not liking a Bible teacher rebuking her for having one. The announcer renounced the hypocritical teacher, encouraging others that in the same context the Bible covered cutting the edges of their beards and gave the impression that since that was stupid, the tatoo law must also be stupid. The problem is, if you actually go to this portion of scripture you find other laws sandwiched there. Leviticus 19:26-29 states: "Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times. [27] Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. [28] Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord. [29] Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness." According to their line of reasoning, the context includes magic and prostitution, should these also be ignored? Don't misunderstand, they did not mention these obvious sins, nor condemn or approve them, but only picked out of the context and focused on the tats and beards.

Here is the problem, this same argument and line of reasoning is raised against every Christian leader that appears on national television, as they are discredited and mocked by news interviewers and ungodly people who, for example, think they have destroyed all arguments that call homosexuality a sin. You see, this also is covered in context with these other "worthless" biblical laws. Ignorance breeds mockery! We were warned in the last days, "These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage. But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit." [Jude 1:16-19] Please change the word "lust" to desire, and then you see the warning. People will do what they desire and ignore the law. Christ clarified this by saying, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’" [Matthew 7:21-23] This means they will not obey God's law!

Let's look carefully at what the Lord Jesus teaches. "Don't ever think that I came to set aside Moses' Teachings or the Prophets. I didn't come to set them aside but to make them come true. [18] I can guarantee this truth: Until the earth and the heavens disappear, neither a period nor a comma will disappear from Moses' Teachings before everything has come true. [19] So whoever sets aside any command that seems unimportant and teaches others to do the same will be unimportant in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does and teaches what the commands say will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5:17-19 GW] The Law and the Prophets is what we call the Old Testament. This Bible version helps in some ways, but is soft by translating "entole" as Moses' Teachings instead of commands, as Strong's Concordance clearly defines the word. But hear the Lord, he did not come "to loosen down (disintegrate), i.e. (by implication) to demolish (literal or figurative); specially [compare Greek 2646 (kataluma)] to halt for the night :- destroy, dissolve, be guest, lodge, come to nought, overthrow, throw down." Without argument, He demands the law will remain until the final judgment when He destroys the earth, and replaces it with a new heaven and earth.

Don't forget our Savior is God! If you contradict Him, you have joined the antichrists who raise themselves above Christ by contradicting and claiming they know more than Him. "Whoever sets aside any command that seems unimportant and teaches others to do the same will be unimportant in the kingdom of heaven." Well this is a problem, everybody I know says we do not have to follow God's laws from the Old Testament because that was for the Jews and we are Christians. Everyone also demands that Christ died to free us from such bondage, and also this is legalism! Well who is right, Jesus or modern teachers? Remember in Acts and other New Testament verses we find Christians are not to become Jews, that was a major battle between false Jewish teachers and Paul and other godly church leaders.

God is love and His commands are the same as parental commands. "There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.” Compared to Israelites, the Egyptians had shorter life spans and chronic diseases according to modern scientific discovery. Love always is shown by protecting and providing for those in your care. And the all knowing Creator protected Israel with laws of diet to protect them from disease. He gave sanitation laws to protect them from spreading disease. He gave quarantine laws to stop the rapid spread of plagues. Preventive medicine was practiced by people who did not know about germs, virues, and air born pathogins. The Lord gave other precepts to teach them how to love Him, and how to love their neighbors. The Lord Jesus explains this as He answers His critics. "Teacher, which commandment is the greatest in Moses' Teachings?" Jesus answered him, " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and most important commandment. [39] The second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.' All of Moses' Teachings and the Prophets depend on these two commandments." [Matthew 22:36-40 GW]

So what do we do with all those laws from the Old Testament? The key to answer this question is in what Christ proclaimed! "I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." We know that Christ fulfilled the Law by becoming the sacrificial lamb and shedding His blood, completing the ceremonial law forever. There is no need for any sacrifices for sin, these laws are fulfilled by Jesus! No need for a temple or tabernacle for worship, nor any of its practices. No need for anointing oils, candles, shew bread, and animal sacrifies. No priests, robes, or ark of the covenant. This is why Paul argues that being circumcised no longer has any spiritual meaning [1 Cor. 7:19; Gal. 5:21-23]. The New Testament or New Covenant was paid once and for all by Christ Himslef dying on the cross, being buried, and rising again from the dead! With this in mind, we must understand God’s Word and see that eating certain foods will not make us right before God, but protect us from disease. Circumcision will not make God let us into heaven, but has healthy benefits. Nor will any other act such as baptism or any spiritual duty we can practice.

There must be a clear understanding between the Law that convicts of sin and drives sinners to see their need of forgiveness and the liberating power of the Holy Spirit indwelling a Christian empowering them to desire and fulfill God’s will. As believers we are not free to live by breaking God’s moral law. John clearly states, “Now by this we know that we know him, if we keep His commandments” [1 John 2:3]. I hope you are starting to understand the ceremonial law is what the Jews were freed from. The Messiah took care of that, and now the moral law can be obeyed because of the new spiritual birth produced by the shed blood of Messiah.
So what do we do with God’s old rules from Moses? Let's look at just one example of what God commanded Israel about 3500 years ago, “Whoever touches the dead body of anyone will be unclean for seven days [Numbers 19:11]. He gave no explanation and many today do not see the point. Well still in the 1800’s doctors were losing many patients without understanding why. In Vienna, Austria one out of six new mothers were dying. Doctors unknowingly spread bacteria and disease by examining recently dead patients and without washing went into the baby ward and helped with births. Dr. Ignaz Semmelweiss was concerned and started a novel idea and had all doctors under his supervision rinse their hands in water before helping a new patient. The death rate dropped to 1 in 86 mothers dying in child birth. But the medical community persecuted him for such a stupid idea and would not listen. If they would have understood God’s ancient law and followed it, the innocent mothers would have lived a normal life. What should we do with God’s law?

By the way, the beard thing has meaning! Under the ceremonial laws God orders, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: ‘None shall defile himself for the dead among his people, except for his relatives who are nearest to him: his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, and his brother; also his virgin sister who is near to him, who has had no husband, for her he may defile himself. Otherwise he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself. ‘They shall not make any bald place on their heads, nor shall they shave the edges of their beards nor make any cuttings in their flesh." [Leviticus 21:1-5]

The demon induced worship of the people around Israel was practiced by shedding their own blood. The evil spirits that possessed the false priests and worshippers whipped them into bloody frenzies. That is what Elijah the prophet witnessed. "And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.” So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them. And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention." [1 Kings 18:27-30]

God always makes sure there is a difference between false worship and true worship. He did not want his people looking like or acting like those demon possessed priests of Baal. There is always a distinction between holy and unholy. When you are ignorant of the pagan rituals and practices of these demonic false religions you will not understand some things God was commanding ancient Israel to avoid. Rather then rejecting or mocking those "old fashioned" practices it would be good to discover their purposes.