Tuesday, August 23, 2022

That Blotting Out in Colossians

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; Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Colossians 2:14,16,17

"The second chapter of Colossians teaches that the hand-
writing of ordinances has been blotted out and nailed to the cross-----many produce this scripture as proof that the ten commandments are abolished.  
We inquire, therefore, Is the hand-writing of ordinances the ten commandments?  
Let the following facts answer:-
1. The hand-writing of ordinances is here represented as having
been blotted out by the shedding of Christ's blood. 
----If this hand-writing of ordinances is the ten commandments, it follows that the blood of Christ was shed to blot out the prohibition against other gods; the prohibition of graven images; the prohibition of blasphemy; the commandment to hallow the sanctified Rest-day of the Lord; the first commandment with promise; and the
prohibitions of murder, adultery, theft, false witness and
covetousness! 
Q: Would the Infinite Law-giver give His own Son to die for such a purpose?
 
2. But to teach that Christ died to blot out the moral law, is to
deny the plainest facts. 
Because that the law of God which was holy, just and good,
condemned the whole human family, and
showed that all mankind were sinners, and under its just sentence, God provided a method of redemption by which he could be just, and yet could justify him that believeth in Jesus. 
This did not consist in sending His Son to destroy the law of the Father; but it consisted in this, that the Son of God should take upon Himself human nature, and offer up His own life a ransom for many; thus making the great propitiation through which guilty man may come to God and find pardon for the transgression of His holy law.
 
3. But what is it that is abolished in consequence of the hand-
writing of ordinances being nailed to the cross? 
We answer, Meats, drinks, feast-days, (for this is the literal rendering of the word,) new-moons and Sabbaths, (plural.) Thus upon the very face of this text is found the most decisive evidence that Paul was not referring to the ten commandments." RFC