What’s the purpose of the religious laws of the Old Testament?

“Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it.” Deuteronomy 12.32

It was hard for the people of Israel to live within the parameters of God’s Law, not because the Law was so demanding and difficult, but because of the sinfulness of their hearts. The Israelites faced daily temptations to transgress God’s Laws. Thus they would fail to live according to the justice and righteousness He required. But they also faced the temptation to add to His laws practices and precepts which seemed wise or appropriate for them. This they were also forbidden to do, since only God is wise and good enough to tell us how we should live before Him.

This principle applies to the laws that govern our relationship with God in its most intimate and spiritual aspect. The people of Israel were to approach the Lord in His glory only by the institutions and means He had provided. They were neither to introduce their own laws or practices nor to import any from the pagan nations they would displace in the land of Canaan. God knows how He can be properly worshiped. We must submit to, and be content with, what He has revealed to us

In our day this principle is clear enough as it relates to our coming into the household of faith: Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation for all who believe (Jn. 14.6). But this principle applies as well to maintaining and growing in our relationship with God. He has told us how to know, love, serve, and worship Him. We must not presume to approach Him in any way other than what He commands.

For a fuller study of the pattern of worship revealed in Scripture, order the book, The Highest Thing, by T. M. Moore, from our online store. These studies and brief essays will help you to see how the pattern of sound worship, which began in the Law of God, comes to complete expression in the rest of Scripture. Subscribe to Crosfigell, the devotional newsletter of The Fellowship of Ailbe.