The Law of Moses Is Wisdom for the Christian Life

Among the many tensions that emerge in Christian theology, few are as complex or as misunderstood as how believers today should relate to the law of Moses. For centuries, scholars and faithful Christians alike have wrestled with the Apostle Paul's words about the law. At times, Paul seems to celebrate it: calling it “holy and righteous and good” (Romans 7:12) and referring to it as a divine gift (Romans 9:4). At other moments, he warns that the law can be an enslaving force, one that multiplies transgression and leads to death (Galatians 4:1–10; Romans 7:5).

How do we reconcile this apparent contradiction? The answer is not found in separating the law into ceremonial, civil, and moral categories an approach that, while popular, has little basis in either ancient Jewish tradition or Paul’s own writings. Instead, we must ask a different kind of question: In what way are Christians meant to read the law?

Paul’s letters reveal the answer Christians are to read the law not as a legal code, but as wisdom. We are not “under law” (Romans 6:14), but we are still invited to engage with it as moral instruction. And in doing so, we join a tradition deeply rooted in the Psalms, the teachings of Jesus, and the catechisms of the Reformation.

The Law as a Guide to Wisdom

Moses himself laid the foundation for this understanding. In Deuteronomy 4:6, he declared that keeping God’s statutes would demonstrate wisdom to the nations. The Psalms echo this theme: “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul” (Psalm 19:7); “Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies” (Psalm 119:98). Proverbs adds, “The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding” (Proverbs 28:7).

This perspective sees the law as rooted in God’s creation order. The moral guidance it offers aligns with how God designed the world to function a concept supported by theologians like Christopher Wright and Oliver O’Donovan. According to them, the law reveals not only God's covenantal expectations but also the very shape of moral reality woven into creation itself.

Paul and the Law as Wisdom

When Paul speaks of the law in his letters, especially in Romans, Galatians, and 1 Corinthians, he is not issuing a blanket rejection. Rather, he reframes the conversation. In Romans 13:8–10 and Galatians 5:14, Paul shows that love fulfills the law not by abolishing it but by transcending its minimum requirements. This aligns with Jesus’ own teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, where He deepens the meaning of commands like “do not murder” to include internal attitudes like anger and hatred.

Paul treats the law as instruction (nouthesia) and teaching (didaskalia) terms that carry strong associations with wisdom in both Jewish and Greco-Roman thought. For Paul, the law trains believers in righteousness not by its letter, but through its spirit (2 Timothy 3:16–17).

Practical Examples: Tithing, Stealing, and Murder

• Tithing: Paul doesn’t command a tithe in the new covenant, but he does advocate for generous, proportionate giving (1 Corinthians 16:2). His words reflect a principle rooted in the law but transformed by Christ’s liberating love (2 Corinthians 9:7). The giving is no longer under compulsion but becomes a cheerful, Spirit-led act.

• Stealing: Paul alludes to the commandment against stealing in Romans and Ephesians but reframes it with a positive ethic. “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather labor so that he may have something to share” (Ephesians 4:28). This is not just about refraining from theft it’s about becoming a generous person who meets others’ needs.

• Murder: While Paul rarely cites the murder commandment directly, the concept permeates his writing. He warns against behaviors like envy, slander, and hatred all of which were seen by Jews as forms of murder in spirit. Romans 14 even equates spiritual negligence with destroying a brother or sister in Christ. Like Jesus, Paul extends the commandment from outward behavior to inward disposition.

Historical Support: Psalms and Catechisms

The Psalms richly develop the commandments with wisdom-based reflection. They connect theft to exploitation and murder to social injustice broadening their ethical scope beyond the legalistic minimum. Similarly, the Heidelberg and Luther’s Small Catechism reflect a wisdom approach. They don’t just forbid theft and murder; they encourage working to help the poor and promoting others’ welfare.

This expansive interpretation seeing God’s commands as the floor, not the ceiling is a hallmark of reading the law as wisdom.

A Higher Moral Calling

Far from lowering the bar, reading the law as wisdom raises it. It challenges believers to internalize God's instructions (Jeremiah 31:33), reflect on them expansively, and ground their application in the character of God and the created order. This is a more mature, Spirit-empowered way of living not checking off commandments, but embodying God’s heart for righteousness, mercy, and justice.

Recent surveys show that 61% of practicing Christians read the Old Testament less frequently than the New, often due to confusion about the law's relevance. And yet, understanding the law as wisdom can open up these texts in fresh, life-giving ways. It invites Christians to see these ancient words not as obsolete rules but as timeless moral insight meant to shape their character.

Believers today are not under the old covenant, but the law still speaks. It speaks not as a master demanding obedience, but as a teacher guiding us into the fullness of Christlikeness. And this wisdom, as Paul reminds us, was written "for our instruction" (Romans 15:4).

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