Jesus Christ and the Fulfilment of the Law

In Matthew 5:17, Jesus declared: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfil.”

To understand this statement, it is important to consider the original language of the New Testament. The Greek verb translated as “fulfil” is plēroō (πληρόω), carrying the sense of bringing something to fullness, completion, accomplishment, or its intended purpose.

Jesus did not come to reject the Law and the Prophets. He came to bring God’s revelation to its intended fulfilment. The Law, the prophetic writings, the sacrifices, the promises, and the biblical patterns of the Old Testament ultimately direct our attention toward Christ.

After His resurrection, Jesus explained this to His disciples in Luke 24:44, saying that the things written concerning Him in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms had to be fulfilled.

Therefore, Matthew 5:17 does not teach that Jesus simply preserved every requirement of the Mosaic covenant unchanged for Christians. Rather, it teaches that He did not destroy God’s revelation: He fulfilled its purpose and brought it to its appointed goal in Himself.

Christ and the New Covenant

At the Last Supper, Jesus declared concerning the cup: “This cup is the new covenant in My blood” (Luke 22:20). Long before the cross, God had promised through Jeremiah that He would establish a New Covenant with His people and write His law upon their hearts (Jeremiah 31:31–33).

Hebrews 8:6–13 explains that Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant, established on better promises. The same passage states that, by speaking of a New Covenant, God made the former covenant old. This marks a decisive change in the way God's covenant people relate to Him.

The New Testament therefore teaches that believers are not justified by keeping the Mosaic Law, but through faith in Jesus Christ. Paul writes that we have died to the Law through the body of Christ so that we may belong to Him who was raised from the dead and serve “in the new way of the Spirit” (Romans 7:4–6). Galatians 3:23–25 likewise explains that the Law served as a guardian leading to Christ, but that, with the coming of faith, believers are no longer under that guardian.

This does not mean that Christians are free to live in sin. The New Covenant produces a deeper work of God within the believer. Through the Holy Spirit, God transforms the heart and leads His people into holiness and obedience. As Galatians 5:18 declares, “If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

Therefore, the Christian life is not based upon seeking righteousness through the Mosaic covenant, but upon union with Christ, faith, the grace of God, and the transforming work of the Holy Spirit.

What about the Sabbath?

In the Old Testament, the Sabbath was established as a special covenant sign between God and Israel. Exodus 31:13–17 identifies it as a sign between God and the children of Israel, while Exodus 20:8–11 connects Sabbath rest with creation and Deuteronomy 5:12–15 connects it with Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt.

As we turn to the New Covenant, Paul addresses the observance of sacred days in Colossians 2:16–17. He teaches that believers should not allow others to judge them concerning food, festivals, new moons, or Sabbaths, because these things were a shadow of what was to come, while the reality belongs to Christ.

Hebrews 4:1–11 develops the biblical theme of God’s rest beyond the observance of a particular day. The passage calls believers to enter God’s rest through faith and obedience, showing that the theme of Sabbath rest reaches beyond the weekly sign and directs us toward the deeper rest God provides for His people in Christ.

The New Testament also teaches liberty and mutual respect concerning the observance of particular days. In Romans 14:5–6, Paul explains that one believer may regard one day as special while another regards every day alike, and each should act according to a settled conviction before the Lord.

We therefore respect Christians who choose to observe Saturday as a day devoted to God. At the same time, according to the evangelical and Pentecostal understanding of Scripture, Sabbath observance is not a condition for justification or salvation under the New Covenant. Our salvation rests in Jesus Christ and is received through faith in Him.

A central truth of the Gospel is that salvation and justification before God come through faith in Jesus Christ, not through works of the Mosaic Law. Romans 3:20–24 teaches that no one is justified by works of the Law and that righteousness is given by the grace of God through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Galatians 2:16 likewise teaches that a person is not justified by works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ.

Galatians 3:24–25 explains that the Law served as a guardian leading to Christ, but now that faith has come, believers are no longer under that guardian. Romans 6:14 likewise declares: “You are not under law but under grace.”

Romans 10:4 declares that Christ is the telos of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes. The Greek word telos can express the idea of an end, goal, culmination, or intended destination. Christ is therefore the goal and culmination of the Law within God’s redemptive purpose.

This question became central in the early Church at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15:1–29. Some were teaching that Gentile believers had to be circumcised and keep the Law of Moses in order to be saved. The apostles and elders rejected this requirement, affirming that both Jewish and Gentile believers are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

They did not require Gentile converts to become Jews or place themselves under the Mosaic covenant as a condition of salvation. The council instead gave specific instructions concerning idolatry, sexual immorality, things strangled, and blood.

Freedom from the Mosaic covenant, however, does not mean freedom to sin. Christians belong to Christ and are called to holiness and obedience through the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5:13–14 teaches that Christian liberty must never become an opportunity for the flesh, but should lead us to serve one another through love. And Galatians 6:2 calls believers to bear one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ.

Therefore, salvation under the New Covenant is not based upon placing ourselves under the Mosaic covenant, but upon the grace of God received through faith in Jesus Christ. Our freedom in Christ leads not to lawlessness, but to a life of love, holiness, obedience, and dependence upon the Holy Spirit.

How Should Christians Live Today?

Christians are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, not by works of the Mosaic Law. Ephesians 2:8–9 makes this clear. Yet the very next verse, Ephesians 2:10, teaches that we are created in Christ Jesus for good works. Good works do not purchase salvation; they are the fruit of a life transformed by God.

Under the New Covenant, believers are called to live in holiness, love, obedience, prayer, worship, and service through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:3–4 teaches that what the Law could not accomplish because of human weakness, God accomplished through His Son, so that the righteous requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in those who walk according to the Spirit.

Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Christian obedience therefore flows from love for Christ. We do not obey in order to earn salvation; we obey because we belong to Him.

Galatians 5:16–25 teaches believers to walk by the Spirit rather than according to the desires of the flesh. The Holy Spirit produces His fruit within us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

A Spirit-filled life is therefore not merely about spiritual gifts or powerful experiences. The Holy Spirit also produces character, holiness, self-control, love, and obedience. A believer who walks with God should increasingly reflect the character of Jesus Christ.

As 1 Peter 1:15–16 teaches, those who belong to God are called to be holy in all their conduct. Grace does not lower God’s standard of holiness; grace gives us a new relationship with God and the Holy Spirit empowers us to live for Him.

Therefore, obedience is the fruit of salvation, not the price of salvation. We follow Jesus Christ, depend upon the Holy Spirit, love God and our neighbour, reject sin, pursue holiness, and allow the Gospel to transform every area of our lives.

Conclusion: Christ Is the Fulfilment

In Jesus Christ, God’s redemptive plan reaches its fulfilment and culmination. He did not come to discard the Law or the Prophets, but to bring them to their intended purpose in Himself through His life, death, and resurrection.

Under the New Covenant, believers are justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. We are not called to seek righteousness through the Mosaic covenant, but to live in union with Christ, led and transformed by the Holy Spirit.

This freedom does not lead to lawlessness. On the contrary, those who belong to Christ are called to holiness, love, obedience, faithfulness, and a life that reflects the character of Jesus.

Our confidence is therefore not in religious performance, observance of particular days, or works of the Law, but in Jesus Christ and in what He has accomplished for us.

The Law and the Prophets point us to Christ. The promises find their fulfilment in Him. The shadows direct us to the reality found in Him. And under the New Covenant, our salvation, our hope, and our rest are found in Christ alone.