{"id":15595,"date":"2025-04-25T13:46:06","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T18:46:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/?p=15595"},"modified":"2025-04-25T14:00:07","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T19:00:07","slug":"blog-fulfilled","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/15595\/blog-fulfilled\/","title":{"rendered":"blog “Fulfilled”"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fulfilled<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDo not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I DID NOT COME TO DESTROY, BUT TO FULFILL.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Matthew 5:17<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There is at the present a rise in anti-Paul sentiment on the internet, specifically, against his teaching that the New Testament does not include keeping the law of Moses. It is good that some people can see that Paul taught his Gentile converts not to submit to Moses\u2019 law, but it is not good that they oppose that teaching. To understand Paul, we must understand what it means to fulfill a thing, for Jesus fulfilled the law, as he said. But what does it mean to fulfill something? Considering how the Bible uses the word<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cfulfill\u201d will help us understand what it means.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Let\u2019s begin by looking at the one of the first times the Hebrew word for \u201cfulfill\u201d is used. This has to do with Isaac\u2019s wife, Rebekah:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Genesis 25<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. And when her days to deliver were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rebekah\u2019s time of pregnancy ended when she gave birth to her twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Their birth fulfilled the purpose of her pregnancy. It did not mean that her pregnancy had been worthless; rather, that fulfillment meant that the purpose for her pregnancy was complete, that its usefulness was ended and the pregnancy was over.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

    \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Another example of what it means to fulfill something is from Solomon\u2019s prayer of thanksgiving to God concerning His promise to give David a son who would build a temple in Jerusalem:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

    \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0“1Kings 8:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. The King turned his face about, and blessed all the Assembly of Israel, and the \u00a0whole Assembly of Israel stood up.<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n
    2. And he said, \u201cBlessed be Jehovah, God of Israel, who spoke by His mouth to David my father, and by His hand has fulfilled it.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 By \u201cfulfilled it\u201d, Solomon meant that since God\u2019s promise to David had come to pass, there was no longer any need for God to keep promising David that it would happen. What would be the point of God continuing to promise that He would give David a son who would build His temple, when it was already done? As Solomon said (v. 20): \u201cJehovah caused His word to stand which He spoke, for I have risen up in the place of my father David, and I sit on the throne of Israel, as Jehovah said, and I have built the house for the name of Jehovah, God of Israel.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Jesus\u2019 revelation to Paul was that his fulfilling the law meant there was no longer a reason to continue in it. Jesus did not destroy the law or condemn it as worthless. On the contrary, his fulfilling the law proved beyond all question that it was from God. Paul honored the law of Moses by honoring Jesus and receiving his baptism of life, which was the law\u2019s entire purpose. \u201cThe love of God\u201d, wrote Paul, \u201cis poured out within our hearts by the holy Spirit which is given to us,\u201d and \u201clove is the fulfillment of the law, [for] love does not do wrong to a neighbor\u201d (Rom. 5:5b; 13:10).<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It is as impossible now for people to continue in the law as it would have been for Rebekah to continue to be pregnant after she gave birth to Jacob and Esau. And what use would there have been for God to continue promising David a son who would build His temple after David was long dead and Solomon had done it? Just so, it is useless for anyone now to try to keep Moses\u2019 law after the law\u2019s purpose has been fulfilled.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Dear friends, do not believe those who are saying Paul was wrong. It is my sincere prayer that God will open the eyes of your understanding, as He opened Paul\u2019s, to see the surpassing glory of what Jesus accomplished for us all! The law of God is now written on our hearts by the Spirit, and because that is done, Paul rejoiced that<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

      \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Romans 8:<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

        \n
      1. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death!<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n
      2. For what the law could not do, in that it was powerless because it was of the flesh, God did, after He had sent His Son in the form of sinful flesh to deal with sin. He condemned sin in the flesh<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n
      3. so that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk after the flesh but after the Spirit.<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Let us rejoice with Paul that because of Jesus, \u201cwe are released from the law so that we now serve God in newness of spirit, and not in oldness of a document\u201d (Rom. 7:6).<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

        Pastor John D. Clark<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/span><\/p>\n

        What a wonderful way to explain the law, Pastor John. I feel like people can understand this! Its purpose was fulfilled.( and now their is life!)\u00a0 I really like this blog!<\/span><\/p>\n

        “Genesis 25<\/span>
        \n24. And when her days to deliver were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.<\/span>
        \nRebekah\u2019s time of pregnancy ended when she gave birth to her twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Their<\/span>
        \nbirth fulfilled the purpose of her pregnancy. It did not mean that her pregnancy had been worthless;<\/span>
        \nrather, that fulfillment meant that the purpose for her pregnancy was complete, that its usefulness was<\/span>
        \nended and the pregnancy was over.”<\/span><\/p>\n

        Sincerely,<\/span><\/p>\n

        Elizabeth<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        Whew! I feel such liberty and love while reading this blog. It makes me feel just like Barbara says, \u201cWhat a good God!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

        Donna<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        John,<\/span><\/p>\n

        These Blogs are a wonderful gift to wake up to. \u00a0 Thank you\u2026.I literally lifted my hands to God\u00a0and thanked Him for allowing me to understand (and to\u00a0love) what you have passed on to us.) \u00a0Like you said Sunday morning.\u00a0 We are so loved.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        Gary<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        Morning!\u00a0\u00a0I really like this blog on Fulfilled.\u00a0\u00a0To understand and have examples of the meaning of things and certain words or phrases in the Bible really helps put things in perspective.\u00a0 \u00a0I also like that you are explaining Paul\u2019s stance.\u00a0 I watched a video yesterday on what you were saying here about the anti-Paul sentiment.\u00a0 I sat there with my mouth open for most of it.\u00a0 It\u2019s amazing how the flesh will come up with anything to get around the truth and the men God sends to tell it.\u00a0 They were basically saying Paul was just a renegade who made himself an apostle, and it went downhill from there.\u00a0 The excuse not to believe Paul was \u201cJesus didn\u2019t say that,\u201d and \u201cPaul didn\u2019t walk with Jesus\u201d;\u00a0therefore, he could not\u00a0have been\u00a0sent from God.<\/span><\/p>\n

        One thing I noticed when watching that\u00a0video on Paul\u2019s agenda was that Christian teaching would have\u00a0us\u00a0to go backwards in time to where Jesus was.\u00a0 But with Jesus\u2019 teachings, even in following the law and then fulfilling it, he was always pointing forward.\u00a0 He was always pointing toward the goal.\u00a0\u00a0Paul was also doing that.\u00a0 And true men of God now do that,\u00a0encouraging one another in Christ that we should still be looking to fulfill our life in the Spirit to obtain a crown of life in the end.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        There is no telling what the future holds with new doctrines and phrases and word-meaning changes, but the one thing that will hold true is the Spirit that Jesus died for us all to have.\u00a0 You can trust that.\u00a0 And if you have a kinship through the Spirit with Jesus, you and Paul are in perfect agreement.<\/span><\/p>\n

        Amy B.<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        So clear!\u00a0\u00a0Pure scripture and word definition!\u00a0\u00a0No opinions!\u00a0\u00a0Thank you Jesus for John\u2019s anointing as a teacher.\u00a0\u00a0May children of God all over\u00a0the world benefit from this wisdom.<\/span><\/p>\n

        Allison<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        Pastor John,<\/span><\/p>\n

        I love this!\u00a0 You’ve made it so clear and easy to understand.\u00a0 I wish God’s children everywhere could take this in!<\/span><\/p>\n

        We are so blessed!<\/span><\/p>\n

        Michelle<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        I like the way you defined fulfilled in this blog.\u00a0 The examples you used really make it clear.\u00a0 I particularly like this one, \u201cIt did not mean that her (Rebekah) pregnancy had been worthless; rather, that fulfillment meant that the purpose for her pregnancy was complete, that its usefulness was ended and the pregnancy was over.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

        The law was not worthless, and its purpose was completed (fulfilled) by Jesus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        \u201cPaul honored the law of Moses by honoring\u00a0Jesus and receiving his baptism of life, which was the law\u2019s entire purpose.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

        I love that.<\/span><\/p>\n

        Thank you for writing this blog and sharing it with us.<\/span><\/p>\n

        Tom \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        John,<\/span><\/p>\n

        \u00a0I really love this and how you explain it.\u00a0 I love the gift Jesus has given you.\u00a0 Just the other day a man in my class, he was finally alone with me in the classroom and Jesus came up!\u00a0\u00a0He mentioned how he isn’t feeling going to church and how God wants his children to follow him.\u00a0 He’s looking for the “how”, and I spoke to him of the very same thing of the fulfillment of the law!\u00a0\u00a0I hope this gives him some understanding.\u00a0\u00a0He may or may not come to a meeting, but if he does, I hope he feels his “how”, and the fulfillment comes to life in understanding.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

        I hope all of God’s children get the understanding.<\/span><\/p>\n

        Naomi<\/span><\/p>\n

        ==========<\/p>\n

        Tell us what you think:<\/span><\/p>\n

        https:\/\/x.com\/WitnessofSpirit\/status\/1915840311567192433<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Fulfilled \u201cDo not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets. I DID NOT COME TO DESTROY, BUT TO FULFILL. Matthew 5:17 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There is at the present a rise in anti-Paul sentiment on the internet, specifically, against his teaching that the New Testament does not include keeping the law of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-netmail"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15595"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15601,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15595\/revisions\/15601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastorjohnshouse.com\/mailbag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}