The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses Quotes

“Jesus Christ Himself is the center of New Testament revelation. Since the New Testament completes the story begun in the Old, Christ is also the center about which the Old Testament begins to speak in its preliminary way, and to which the Old Testament points forward.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“Thus we have a threefold task. First, we must try to understand the law of Moses on its own terms, within its own historical environment. God intended it to be heard and understood by Israelites who had recently been redeemed from Egypt. Second, we must try to understand how the New Testament completes God’s story and God’s word that He began to speak in the Old Testament. Third, we must obey and apply God’s word to ourselves and our own circumstances.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“Many of us reject theonomy because we think that the Mosaic law is harsh. But the real problem is with us, not with the law (cf. Romans 7:12, 14). We have swallowed so much of the modern humanistic thinking that our own judgments and emotional reactions are corrupted. We confuse mercy with vague good will, justice with tolerance, love with sentimentality.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“An appeal to a general human sense of justice easily gets corrupted into an idea of justice apart from God and His word. It tempts people back into love of self, lust for autonomy, and lust for defining justice to suit themselves and their narrow interests instead of God.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“God’s justice, not the human sense of justice, is our ultimate standard.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“Repentance pays for sin, not because of its innate qualities, but because it unites us to Christ and to the efficacy of his death and resurrection.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“God’s authority is original and absolute, while all human authority is derivative and limited. God’s judgments are always perfectly holy and righteous, while human judgments are tainted by sin. God’s judgments are based on perfect, exhaustive knowledge of the facts of the case, while human judgments must be based on partial, imperfect knowledge”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“The famous law of punishment, “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” (Exodus 21:24), embodies the same principle in a specific juridical context. It was never intended as an excuse for personal vengeance but as a directive to judges making decisions regarding penalties in cases of injury (Exodus 21:22-25).”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“We do not like to hear about punishment because it reminds us of the seriousness of sin. But we must hear about it if we are to wake up to the true horror of our sinfulness and flee to the remedy, namely, flee to Christ.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“If we can see the true seriousness of our sin, we will no longer object to God’s supposed severity but marvel at His mercy.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“We can retrieve the correct use of the commandments only by invoking a typological analogy between redemption from Egypt and redemption from sin by Christ.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“The church is not a voluntary association to be governed as its members see fit, but a dwelling place of God. It ought to be structured according to the orders of its commander, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“God’s love for Christ also implies His hatred for Christ’s enemies and His zeal to vindicate Christ’s honor.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses

“the elimination of restitution and retribution converts the offender into an object to be manipulated rather than a person responsible for wrongdoing.”
― Vern Sheridan Poythress, The Shadow of Christ in the Law of Moses