Jesus' Mistake
Copyright 1999 / Leslie A Turvey




   What a wonderful verse is Colossians 2:14. It proves God's law was nailed to the cross.
   Or does it?
   New testament Christians say it does. But Jesus said, "Don't think I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I didn't come to destroy, but to fill them to the fullest. Until heaven and earth pass, not one comma or period shall pass from the law. . .(Matthew 5:17-18)."
   Before we go further, let's look at Colossians 2:14 to see what it says. [Jesus Christ died] "blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross."
   Did David believe the law was contrary? He wrote, "The law of the Lord is perfect. . .the testimony of the Lord is sure. . . .The statutes of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure. . . .the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous. . . .More to be desired are they than gold, yes, than much fine gold. . . .by them is your servant instructed: and in keeping of them there is great reward
(Psalm 19:7-11)."
   What? Jesus nailed something that was perfect, something that brought joy, something that was true and righteous, something that was more desirable than the finest gold, to the cross? Not only that he took away our opportunity to have a great reward. Will someone please tell Jesus he made a big mistake?
   James called God's law "the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25)," and said those who do the works of the law will be blessed.
   There's so many other scriptures, in both testaments, that show God's law is for our benefit, there's not room enough in this column to list them all.
   But if God's law wasn't nailed to the cross, what was?
   Paul had been a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee (Acts 23:6). As a Pharisee he knew the pharisaical laws, and said he was blameless, according to them, in persecuting the church (Philippians 3:5-6).
   Jesus denounced the Pharisees in the bitterest language. He called them hypocrites and said they laid heavy burdens on the people, but wouldn't lift a finger to help them (Matthew 23:4).
   William Smith's Bible Dictionary states, ". . .it was the aim of Jesus to call men to the law of God as the supreme guide of life."
   But the Pharisees decided it was their right to interpret the law, and in so doing added such minuteness to it that the law of liberty became burdensome to the people. The Pharisees decided how far one might walk on the sabbath day, whether one could eat an egg laid on the sabbath, and whether Jesus Christ, according to their law, could heal the sick on the
sabbath.
   Paul said he felt fine so long as he did not understand what the law really demanded. "But when I learned the truth, I realized that I had broken the law and was a sinner, doomed to die (Romans 7:9 Living Bible)."
   Paul felt it was perfectly OK to make the peoples' lives a living hell with all the pharisaical commands and ordinances. But once converted, he realized how wrong he was.
   How would you like to live life so tightly bound by man-made additions to the law, that you wouldn't dare eat a handful of meal without carefully straining it, for fear you might eat a tiny gnat (Matthew 23:24)? Or count every step you took on the sabbath, so you wouldn't accidentally go beyond the limits prescribed by the Pharisees?
   No, Jesus didn't make a mistake. It wasn't God's perfect law, but the ordinances of the Pharisees that were nailed to the cross.

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