What does EGW write about...
Ellen Gould White über: "Difference between moral and ceremonial law"
Answer
The difference between the moral and the ceremonial law is fundamental: The moral law (the Ten Commandments) was spoken by God Himself, written on stone tablets, and as an expression of His character is eternal and unchanging. The ceremonial law, on the other hand, consisted of symbols and sacrifices that point to the coming and sacrificial death of Christ. While the ceremonial law ended with the death of Jesus on the cross (“nailed to the cross”), the moral law remains binding for all people in all ages.
The Unchangeability of the Moral Law in Contrast to the Ceremonies
»There are many who try to mix these two systems and use the texts that speak of the ceremonial law to prove that the moral law has been abolished; but that is a distortion of Scripture. The difference between the two systems is vast and clear. The ceremonial system consisted of symbols that pointed to Christ, to His sacrifice, and to His priesthood. This ritual law with its sacrifices and ordinances was to be observed by the Hebrews until the pattern in Christ’s death, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, met its antitype. Then all offerings were to cease. It is this law that Christ “removed from the way by nailing it to His cross.”«
Two Different Origins and Writings
»The ceremonial law was given to Moses and written by him in a book. But the law of the Ten Commandments, which was spoken from Sinai, was written by God Himself on the stone tablets and was kept holy in the Ark.«
Validity for All People and All Times
»The moral law is not exclusively Jewish. The ceremonial, social, and political laws that were handed to Moses... were for Israel; but the moral law, which was spoken in awesome majesty from the smoking mountain before the ears of the whole people and written on stone tablets, was intended for all people who would live on earth until the end of time.«
The Purpose of the Sacrificial System
»The ritual system was of a completely different character and symbolized Christ’s death as a sacrifice for the transgressed commandments of the moral law.«
Freedom from Customs, Yet Faithfulness to the Law
»What they had shadowily predicted has come to pass, and those who lived under the salvation time of the Gospel were freed from its observance. Yet Paul still upheld God’s unchanging law of the Ten Commandments both in spirit and in letter.«
Proof Through the Cross
»While the death of the Redeemer ended the law of types and shadows, He made no interruption at all to the obligation of the moral law. On the contrary: The very fact that it was necessary for Christ to die to atone for the transgression of that law proves that it is unchanging.«
- Unchangeability of the moral law
- End of the ceremonial law on the cross
- Ten Commandments vs. statutes and orders
Original Sources (English)
