We call ourselves the Ransomed because our Master purchased our liberty from the slavery of sin with His own blood. Though He created us, in our wickedness we rebelled. What we thought would be liberating proved instead to be our shackles. The wisdom we thought we possessed was discovered to only be foolishness. Our righteousness? Mere filthy rags.

He had every right to abandon us. He could have decided to not throw good money after bad; but He didn’t. He became one of us, infiltrated enemy territory, placed Himself in jeopardy and took our punishment for us. That act of supreme mercy earned us the name “Ransomed.” It compels us to address Him as King of kings and Lord of lords. Twice bought, we owe the Lord Jesus everything. When Jesus speaks we listen.

Jesus said that much of the Old Covenant’s Law still applies to us.

• Matthew 5:17-19 HCSB  "Don't assume that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. (18)  For I assure you: Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass from the law until all things are accomplished. (19)  Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches people to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever practices and teaches these commandments will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Not only did He explicitly teach that the Law was not abolished, but He went on to raise the standard even higher! Before the illicit sexual act was adultery; now the thought counts. Before rage acted upon was murder; now arrogantly despising someone counts. I personally feel that it is precisely because the majority of Christians have effectively excised two-thirds of their Bibles under the guise of “grace” that we are in such dire moral straits. We have Christians who claim to pursue the holiness of God, directly contradicting God’s Law (both Old and New) that baldly states homosexuality is a sin! The divorce rate among Christians is no different from the unregenerate. The adultery rate is exactly the same. How is the world supposed to believe us when we say that Christ’s Spirit empowers us to overcome sin?

Jesus came to fulfill the Sinaitic Law, not to abrogate it. He expects adherence to all that was not “fulfilled”. Ah! But was has been fulfilled?

Maleh (mah-LEH – Strong’s #4390) means “to fill, or be full; to be fulfilled.” Mahleh has both an adjectival and a verbal sense. It is the verb that means “fill” or “fill up,” as well as “fulfill”. As an adjective it means “full” and occurs about sixty times in the Scriptures. Though its primary sense is literal fullness in a quantitative sense, it can also be used metaphorically with reference to non-tangible phenomena – for example, wisdom[1]; divine blessing[2]; God’s wrath[3]; justice[4]; and lies[5]. Deuteronomy 34:9 refers to Joshua being “full of the Spirit of God.”

In Adonaism, we also use it to refer to those laws and regulations that have been fulfilled[6]  and no longer are required though not necessarily forbidden. Allow me to share six broad, general principles of interpretation and application that Adonaic Christians follow. 

[1] Ezekiel 28:12
[2] Deuteronomy 33:23
[3] Psalm 75:8; Isaiah 51:20; Jeremiah 6:11
[4] Isaiah 1:21
[5] Nahum 3:1
[6] Matthew 5:17-18

Anything directly fulfilled in the New Covenant and defined as no longer applicable may include: 

a.    Vegetarianism (Genesis 1:29-30; 2:16 cp 9:3-4);
b.    Circumcision.  The directive to circumcise all believing males[1] has been specifically cancelled.[2] 
c.    Observance of special holy days[3] with the exception of Passover.[4] 
d.    The wearing of tefillin.[5]
e.    The command to make tzitzit on the corners of the tallits.[6] 

If in an effort to:

• build in reminders of God’s goodness;
  
• build structures designed to perpetuate the knowledge of God’s deliverance and expectations;
• create opportunities for God’s people to fellowship while remaining focused on biblical truths rather than Lowlander culture;
• or to live more healthful lives;

…we decide to follow some of these practices – we may. However, we may NOT regard them as sources of salvation. We may NOT require them as universal religious observances. They may at most be kabalah, traditions as passed on by our teachers, or minhag, customs or community practices that are not directly commanded by God but that have been found to be useful to tzaddikim.

Salvation. Anything directly involving sacrifice for salvation[7] has been fulfilled in the one-time perfect sacrifice of the Messiah made for all.[8] Therefore, the laws on sacrifices for sins, though still instructive, do not apply to us.

Temple worship. Anything directly involved with the ritualistic worship that was part and parcel with the Tabernacle or the Temple are not required – there IS no Temple at this time. They will become relevant at some point in the future when the Temple is rebuilt, but not at this time. This is consistent with the laws that have always been on the books that a believer who was traveling out of country was not obliged to routinely go to the Temple for worship.

Distinguishing Jews from Gentiles. Anything designed to identify the differences between genetic Jews and genetic Goyim is no longer relevant because the Lord is presently attempting to make of the two one people.[9] Besides, even if that separation were to still apply, it would not affect Goyim once they have committed themselves to worshipping Yahweh.[10]

Land laws. Those Laws uniquely tied to the land of Israel e.g.

1. Levirate marriages (Hebrew yibbum);[11]
2. Certain inheritance laws; as in the inheritance is not to pass from tribe to tribe,[12] and daughters are to marry only within their own tribe.[13]
3. The land must not be sold permanently.[14]  
   
4. The priests and Levites must be given cities to live in.[15]  
   
5. Do not sell the land belonging to the priests and Levites.[16]  
   
6. Do not neglect the priests and Levites.[17]  
   

…cannot be applied since we do not live in Israel and even if we did, the land is not presently divided by tribes, clans, and families. 

[1] Genesis 17:9-14; Leviticus 12:1-3 
[2] Acts 15:5-6, 19-20
[3] Colossians 2:16
[4] Exodus 12:14, 17, 24, 42; Matthew 26:17-18; Mark 14:12-14; Luke 2:41-42; 22:7-8; John 2:13; 1 Corinthians 5:8; Hebrews 11:28
[5] Numbers 15:38-39 cp Ezekiel 11:19-20; 36:26-27; Jeremiah 31:31-34
[6] Numbers 15:38-40 cp Ezekiel 11:19-20; 36:26-27; Jeremiah 31:31-34
[7] Exodus 30:10
[8] Ephesians 2:8-10; Hebrews 10:4, 10-12
[9] Ephesians 2:11-19 cp Colossians 3:11; Galatians 3:28
[10] Exodus 12:48-49; Leviticus 19:34; 24:22; Numbers 9:14; 15:30; Ezekiel 47:22
[11] Deuteronomy 25:5-10; the provision known as halizah (Deuteronomy 25:9-10) enables either party to avoid the levirate marriage.
[12] Numbers 36:7, 9, 12
[13] Numbers 36:5-12
[14] Leviticus 25:23
[15] Numbers 35:2-5
[16] Leviticus 25:34
[17] Deuteronomy 12:19

Dina d’malchuta dina. Another critical aspect of Halakha that is maleh for us would be those parts that would cause us to contradict the laws of the land in which we live. An important Hebrew concept that applies in this particular instance is “Dina d’malchuta dina”– which literally means “the law of the land is law.” This phrase is a guide to elders as they try to apply Scripture to day to day ethical, spiritual, and legal conundrums. For instance, Halakha states that witches should be killed. However, we are also told to “keep faith with the country in which we are resident aliens”,[1] “render to Caesar what is due Caesar”[2], to respectfully pray for and obey the head of government.[3]

In this society in which we temporarily reside, it is against the law to stone witches and adulterers. Therefore dina d’malchuta dina applies. The law of the land in which we live rules us as long as it does not ask us to deny God. We may act within the law as citizens, trying to bring about justice and national health, but it is not allowed to break the law in order to enforce what we feel is right – again, as long as the law is not causing us to deny God or to commit injustices (as in 1930s Germany’s demands to persecute Jews). For instance, as long as society limits its demands to the toleration of occult practitioners, that is one thing. If it dares demand we BECOME occult practitioners, then that is an entirely different kettle of fish.

God loves justice. God loves ethical behavior. God loves practical holiness.[4] Too many of the Messiah’s disciples have allowed their liberty to become an excuse to do whatever they like. That is not freedom. That is anarchy.

• Galatians 5:13 HCSB  For you are called to freedom, brothers; only don't use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.
  

The early church apparently already struggled with this issue for Paul (inspired by the Holy Spirit) found it necessary to teach:

• 1 Corinthians 6:12 HCSB  "Everything is permissible for me," but not everything is helpful. "Everything is permissible for me," but I will not be brought under the control of anything.
  
• Romans 6:9-15 HCSB  because we know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, no longer dies. Death no longer rules over Him.  (10)  For in that He died, He died to sin once for all; but in that He lives, He lives to God.  (11)  So, you too consider yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.  (12)  Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, so that you obey its desires.  (13)  And do not offer any parts of it to sin as weapons for unrighteousness. But as those who are alive from the dead, offer yourselves to God, and all the parts of yourselves to God as weapons for righteousness.  (14)  For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace.  (15)  What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not!
  

Being no longer saved through the works of the Law but by the gracious death Christ does not give us a free pass to ignore morals, ethics or the elements of the Sinaitic Law that spell what “Love God; Love your neighbor” looks like in real life.

There are whole sections of the Law that still apply. We still should not murder. We should still not generally lie. We still should be respectful of our parents. To throw out all the Law because it has been summarized for us as love would be like teaching your children etiquette and then having them throw those rules out the window when they leave the home because “now they understand the point!” 

[1] Genesis 21:23
[2] Matthew 22:21; Mark 12:17; Luke 20:25
[3] Romans 13:1-7 cp 1 Peter 2:13, 17
[4] Psalm 82:3-4; Proverbs 24:10-12; Isaiah 1:16-18; 58:6-12; Micah 6:8; James 1:27