“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
Matthew 5:17, ESV
Christ fulfilled the Law. This does not mean that we can do all that we want in life because of what Jesus did. It means that we no longer must make the required sacrifices to receive forgiveness as had been required prior to Christ. We are a forgiven people because of the act of a forgiving God. The Law still stands, and so does the judgment. As followers of Christ, we no longer have to fear judgment but confess and repent. To repent, we are called to turn away from the wrong and not return to it. In Christ, we are given new clothing and new life. We are not meant to return to our old ways but to walk in the redemptive promises of our Lord. Christ’s death on the Cross for our sins was not a license to sin, but a promise that He would cover our errors and failures. When we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will cleanse us of all unrighteousness. Outside of Christ, the punishment for sin is the same: eternal death. In Christ, we are given the promise of eternal life. In Christ, we are to leave behind the old, sinful ways and follow a new path that is filled with hope and promise, not sin and shame.
Let us pray. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you to protect me this day also from sin and every evil, that in all I do today, I may please you. For into your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel watch over me, that the wicked foe have no power over me. Amen.