Most discussions of the role of the Mosaic law in the NT orbit around Paul. Not Frank Thielman's The Law and the New Testament: The Question of Continuity (1999). I found this book to be extremely helpful. In 180 pages, he discusses 5 dominant voices in the NT on the law: Paul, Matthew, John, Hebrews, and Luke. Throughout, he is asking if these writers express deeper continuity or discontinuity regarding the Mosaic law. His conclusion is that discontinuity is the major theme.
More specficially, he argues that, among certain distinctions of emphasis (Paul and Matthew on the ethical role of the law, John and Hebrews on a wholescale replacement of the law with Christ, and Luke on salvation history), these 5 authors are united on the following 3 convictions:
1) The Mosaic law no longer regulates the lives of God's people.
2) A new "law" has taken its place
3) The Mosaic law remains valid, but in a new way. (p. 176)
1 comment:
Hi Dane, here's a theory I'd appreciate your feedback on..
http://w1sdumb.wordpress.com/2008/08/20/sabbath-burdens/
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