"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." Matt. 28:19, 20.
The above words contain the great commission of our Saviour to his apostles, by the authority of which they were to go out and preach the gospel to all nations. This work they were now about to enter upon; but what shall they teach? The Master's instruction is plain touching that point. "Teaching them," says he, "to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." Thus he refers their minds back to the lessons which he had given, and to the instruction which he had imparted to them during his ministry. These they are now to remember and carry out.
It stands out as a prominent fact in the history of our Lord, that at the very beginning of his ministry he chose his twelve apostles. See Matt. 3 and 4. These he kept constantly with him, during the three years and a half of his labors. Why did he do this? He did not need them to help him. They preached but little or none themselves. The reason why he did this is evident, namely, that he might prepare them by his instruction for the great work of preaching the gospel to the nations, which work they were to enter upon immediately after his ascension to Heaven.
Christ unfolded to the people his doctrines cautiously as they were able to receive them; but to the disciples in private he expounded them more fully, that they might know what to teach in the future. "And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it. But without a parable spake he not unto them. And when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples." Mark 4:33, 34.
Paul says: "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him." Heb. 2:3. This shows that the gospel which the apostles taught was the same as that which Christ began to unfold during his ministry. Indeed, the very object of that ministry was to introduce and inculcate the principles of the gospel which was soon to be heralded to the world. Thus Luke says: "The law and the prophets were until John; since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it." Luke 16:16. The doctrine of Christ's kingdom then began to be preached from John's time. And so Peter, when he opens the gospel to the Gentiles at the house of Cornelius, says: "That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached." Acts 10:37. Where did this work begin? At the baptism which John preached. And so Luke says: "The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach." Acts 1:1. Christ, then, simply began both to do and to teach that which his disciples afterward carried out.
When Judas had fallen, and another apostle had to be chosen in his stead, Peter says, "Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection." Acts 1:21, 22. They must find a man who had been with them from the baptism of John, during the whole ministry of Christ. Why was this? The reason is evident, namely, that being acquainted with all the doctrines and truths which Christ had taught, he might be prepared to correctly teach the gospel to others.
Let us carefully examine, then, what Christ did teach his disciples. In Matt. 5:1, we read, "And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain; and when he was set, his disciples came unto him." Here the Master retires away from the multitude, as was the custom with teachers in those days, and sat down; and his disciples came and sat at his feet. There were John, Peter, James, Jude, &c., sitting before him ready to listen to his gracious words. "And he opened his mouth, and taught them saying," Verse 2. In his last commission, he tells them to go and teach all nations to observe all things which he had commanded them. Hence we shall now listen with deep interest to what he says. He begins by saying, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven." Verse 3. That these are gospel truths to be taught to every nation, no one will deny. They are not things which are simply to be taught to the Jews in the two or three remaining years of the old dispensation. Thus he goes on: "Blessed are they that mourn." "Blessed are the meek." "Blessed are the merciful." "Blessed are the pure in heart." "Blessed are the peace-makers." "Blessed are they which are persecuted." "Ye are the salt of the earth." "Ye are the light of the world." And thus he continues through this whole sermon, every sentence furnishing a good text for a gospel discourse. Indeed, we have here the very heart and essence of every gospel truth. In closing that wonderful sermon, he says, "Therefore, whosoever heareth these saying of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock." Matt. 7:24.
When a governor or president enters upon his administration, the first thing he does is to deliver his inaugural address. This is looked for with great interest because it is expected to set forth the principles upon which the new administration will be conducted. So Christ's sermon upon the mountain may be called his inaugural address for the gospel dispensation. It was delivered at the very beginning of his ministry, and delivered to those who in the future were to be the expounders of his gospel to the nations. It is the greatest summary of truth that the world ever heard. We therefore look to it with the deepest interest to ascertain what he instructs his disciples to teach concerning the law. Does he tell them that it is abolished and no longer to be regarded, or taught, and that they must teach a new law? Or does he instruct them to obey it themselves, and to teach others to do the same? This is an important question; and we should naturally expect that the great Teacher would not pass it by unnoticed.
Now listen to his words: "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Matt. 5:17, 18. Of what law is he speaking? Evidently not some new law of his which he was about to give; but an old law with which they were all familiar—the one associated with the prophets. I am not come to destroy the law, he says. Manifestly the law already existing; for it would be nonsense to say that he had not come to destroy his own law which he was then about to give. It was the law already written, and one written with jots and tittles. But jots and tittles were a part of the Hebrew language, and of no other. The old law, the decalogue, was written at that time in the Hebrew language, and contained jots and tittles; but none of the teachings of Christ were written at that time; and when they were, it was in the Greek language, which contains neither jots nor tittles. Hence, beyond a doubt, he is speaking of the law which existed in the old dispensation. Of this fact we have positive proof. To leave no doubt about what law he is speaking, Christ quotes the sixth and seventh commandments of the decalogue. "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill." Verse 21. "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery." Verse 27.
The law under consideration, then, is that of the ten commandments. As this was given from Heaven in such a solemn manner by his Father, and occupied so important a place under the old dispensation, it was expected that Christ would particularly instruct his disciples what to teach concerning it in the gospel dispensation. Now we listen carefully. "Think not," says he, "that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets." Peter, James, John, do not get the idea now that I design to destroy either the law or the prophets, because I have set aside the traditions of the Pharisees, and have disregarded their false doctrines, and have introduced many new truths. Do not, therefore, conclude that I mean to set aside the law of my Father. That this is his meaning, his words plainly show. He says, "I am not come to destroy." To destroy is thus defined by Webster. 1. "To unbuild, to pull down. 2. To ruin, to bring to an end, to put an end to, to annihilate." Christ says, he is not come to destroy the law, that is, to unbuild it, to pull it down, or to put an end to it; for that is what destroy means. The Greek word here rendered, "to destroy" is kata lusia, and is defined by Greenfield thus: "To loose, to dissolve; that is, to destroy, demolish, overthrow, throw down, Matt. 24:2; 26:61, met, to render vain or annul, abrogate, to unloose one's girdle, &c., for the night." This gives the exact meaning of the word. It means, to dissolve, to abrogate, to render null, to loose the binding force of, as one would unloose his girdle. Now Christ says he has not come to do any of these things to the law; to abrogate it, to render it null, nor unloose its claims. This idea is brought out more forcibly in other transactions. Thus Norton translates it, "Think not that I am come to annul the law or the prophets, I am not come to annul but to perfect." Dickinson renders it, "Imagine not that I have appeared to subvert the law or the prophets, I am not come to subvert but to establish." Murdock's Syriac Testament says, "Do not suppose that I have come to subvert the law or the prophets." The Emphatic Diaglott, "Think not that I have come to subvert the law or the prophets, I am come not to subvert but to ratify." And so many other translations. No language could have more plainly expressed the idea that Christ had not come to abolish the law.
Having told his disciples what he had not come to do, he next tells them what his object was touching the law and the prophets. He says, I am come to fulfill them. To fulfill, Webster says, is to "accomplish, or carry into effect." To fulfill the law was to do what the law requires. That this is the meaning of fulfill is evident from the Bible itself. Jesus said to John, "It becometh us to fulfill all righteousness." Matt. 3:15; that is to do everything that is right. Is a thing ended when it is fulfilled? Then Christ taught John that it became them to end all-righteousness. How absurd! But does not a law end when it is fulfilled? We answer, No. Read Galatians 6:2. "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ." Did the law of Christ end when it was fulfilled? If so, it was abolished in the days of the apostles. Rom. 2:25-27, is a good illustration of the meaning of the word fulfill. "For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law; but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision." Verse 25. Here keeping the law is contrasted with the breaking of the law. "And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfill the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law?" Verse 27. And here fulfilling the law is contrasted with transgressing the law; so that to fulfill a law is to keep that law, instead of transgressing it.
A little thought will show that keeping a moral law cannot possibly bring it to an end. To illustrate: The law said, "Honor thy father and thy mother." Christ fulfilled this law by honoring his parents. The first time he honored his parents, he fulfilled this law, did he not? Certainly. Well, did that law end then? Was he under no farther obligations to honor his parents? Or after he had fulfilled that law all his life in honoring them, did that terminate that law so that others are under no obligations to honor their parents? How absurd. Or, take the Sabbath commandment. It required the sacred observance of the seventh day. When Christ had kept one Sabbath he had fulfilled that law. Did the law end there and then, so that he was not bound to keep the next Sabbath? If so, the law ended, not at the cross, but thirty years before, the very moment that Christ had once kept it. Who believes this? Can we not see that to obey a moral precept once, twice, or a thousand times, does not lessen our obligation to continue to do so.
Fulfilling a prophecy is quite a different thing. The prophecy said that Christ should be born in Bethlehem. The moment he was born there, that prophecy was fulfilled, and never had to be fulfilled again; and so of all prophecies; but not so of the law. Obeying it once does not end the obligation.
"Thou shalt not kill." Refraining from murder one day, fulfills what the law requires. Can we then murder the next day? No, it must be fulfilled just the same the next day, and so on forever. Men do not consider what they are saying, when they argue that the law died by limitation, because it was fulfilled by Christ.
That Christ here teaches, not the abolition of the law, but its perpetuity, is manifest from what follows. Thus he continues: "For verily I say unto you," For implies that he is to give the reason for what he had previously stated, viz., that he had not come to destroy the law. Why had he not to destroy it? Because, verily I say unto you, that is, emphatically, I tell you, "Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." Verse 18. Notice that there are two tills in this verse. 1. Till heaven and earth pass; and 2. Till all be fulfilled. What does this language teach? Our opponents claim that it simply means this: That no part of the law was to pass away till it was all fulfilled, which was accomplished when Christ died upon the cross, about three years after he uttered these words. But this would be an absurd and an unnatural use of language. He first says, till heaven and earth pass. Well, 1,800 years have gone since then, and heaven and earth have not passed yet. So he virtually said, according to that view, for 1,800 years, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till three year from now. In two comparative statements the strongest statement is always placed last. Thus, I say, I will not preach here again for three weeks; no, not for three months. Now how unnatural for me to reverse this and say, I will not preach here for three months; no, not for three weeks. No speaker ever uses language in that manner. But our opponents' position represents Christ as saying, for 1,800 years not a jot or tittle shall pass from the law till three years from now! Can we suppose that our Lord talked such nonsense? No, indeed; this is not his meaning. The second till is stronger and reaches beyond the first one. First, The law shall not pass away till heaven and earth pass; but that is not passed yet. Second, It shall not pass till all be fulfilled. All what? Of what is he speaking? The law and the prophets. I have not come to destroy the law or the prophets, but to fulfill. To fulfill what? Both the law and the prophets. Hence the term fulfill applies to the prophets. The law shall not pass till these are all fulfilled. Were the prophets all fulfilled at the death of Christ? No, indeed. Will they be all fulfilled when heaven and earth passes away? Of course not. For there are many of the prophecies which relate to the new earth, to the eternal world, and hence beyond the passing away of the heavens and earth. See Isa. 66:22, 23; Dan. 12:2, 3, and many others.
That Christ's language does include the prophecies none can doubt, who will look a moment at the original. Christ says nothing shall pass from the law till all be fulfilled. Does the word all refer to the law, meaning all the law? Law is a noun, and all is an adjective. If the word all qualifies law, then, according to the laws of grammar, the adjective must agree with its noun in number, gender and case. The Greek word rendered law is nomon, a noun in the singular number, masculine gender, genitive case. The Greek word for all is panta, an adjective in the plural number, neutre gender, nominative case. Hence it will be seen that all cannot possibly refer to the law, because it agrees with it neither in number, gender, or case. Probably it should be translated all things, and so several translations give it.
Norton's translation renders it thus: "Not till heaven and earth pass away, shall the smallest letter or stroke pass away from the law, no, not till all things are ended." This gives the Greek idea. It shall not pass away while heaven and earth stand—no, not even till all things spoken of by the prophets have been fulfilled, which will take us far into the eternal world.
The emphatic Diaglott renders it, "One tip of a letter shall by no means pass from the law till all be accomplished." On this phrase John Wesley makes the following just criticism:—
"'One jot or tittle shall in no wise pass, till heaven and earth pass;' or as it is expressed immediately after, EOS AN PANTA GENETAI, till all (or rather all things) be fulfilled, till the consummation of all things. Here is therefore no room for that poor evasion (with which some have delighted themselves greatly) that 'no part of the law was to pass away, till all the law was fulfilled; but it has been fulfilled by Christ; and therefore now must pass for the gospel to be established.' Not so; the word all does not mean all the law, but all things in the universe; as neither has the term fulfilled, any reference to the law but to all things in heaven and earth."
Panta here rendered all, is translated all things one hundred and fifty-six times in the New Testament. Here are one or two examples: "Believing all things which are written in the law, and in the prophets." Acts 24:14. "Whom the heavens must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his prophets since the world began." All of which prove beyond a doubt that the meaning of Christ's language was this: Not one jot or tittle shall pass from the law, till heaven and earth pass away, no, not till all things written by them in the law and in the prophets are fulfilled; which carries the law entire, through and beyond the gospel dispensation.