Topical Bible: Righteousness: Christ is the End of the Law For

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The concept of righteousness in the Christian faith is deeply intertwined with the person and work of Jesus Christ. According to the New Testament, Christ is the culmination and fulfillment of the Law, bringing about a new understanding of righteousness for believers. This entry explores the theological implications of this truth, drawing from scriptural references and traditional Christian teachings.

Biblical Foundation

The Apostle Paul, in his epistle to the Romans, articulates the relationship between Christ and the Law. Romans 10:4 states, "Christ is the end of the Law, in order to bring righteousness to everyone who believes." This verse encapsulates the transformative shift from the Old Covenant, based on adherence to the Mosaic Law, to the New Covenant, centered on faith in Christ.

The Law and Its Purpose

The Law, given through Moses, served as a guide and a standard of holiness for the people of Israel. It was intended to reveal God's righteous character and to highlight humanity's inability to achieve righteousness through their own efforts. As Paul explains in Galatians 3:24 , "So the Law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

Christ's Fulfillment of the Law

Jesus Christ, in His life, death, and resurrection, fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law. He lived a sinless life, perfectly adhering to the Law's demands, and through His sacrificial death, He atoned for the sins of humanity. In Matthew 5:17 , Jesus declares, "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."

Righteousness Through Faith

With Christ as the end of the Law, righteousness is no longer attained through legalistic observance but through faith in Him. This righteousness is imputed to believers, meaning it is credited to their account, not based on their works but on their faith in Christ's finished work. As Paul writes in Philippians 3:9 , believers are found "not having a righteousness of my own from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God on the basis of faith."

Implications for Believers

The understanding that Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness has profound implications for Christian living. It liberates believers from the burden of trying to earn God's favor through their own efforts and invites them into a relationship based on grace. This grace empowers them to live righteously, not out of obligation, but out of gratitude and love for the One who fulfilled the Law on their behalf.

Conclusion

The doctrine that Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness underscores the centrality of faith in the Christian life. It affirms that righteousness is a gift from God, accessible to all who believe in Jesus Christ, and it calls believers to live in the freedom and joy of this new covenant relationship.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Romans 10:4
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believes.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Christ the End of the Law
... CH SPURGEON,. At the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington. "For Christ is the end
of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.""Romans 10:4. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 22 1876/christ the end of the.htm

Argument. --But There was a Limit to the Use of These Shadows or ...
... But now Christ, the end of the law ... The apostle cries out: "The kingdom of God is
not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and joy." [5326] Also ...
/.../novatian/on the jewish meats/chapter v argument but there was.htm

"That the Righteousness of the Law Might be Fulfilled in Us,"
... If we had reckoned alone with the law, we had ... it is but introductive to a further
end; that so a ... the wide and broad skirt of Christ's righteousness, which he ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xv that the righteousness.htm

It Clearly Appears that There was but one Author of Both the Old ...
... For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth."
[3943] And how is Christ the end of the law, if He be not also the final cause ...
/.../irenaeus/against heresies/chapter xii it clearly appears that.htm

The Righteousness of Faith
... 3. They were ignorant that "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every
one that believeth;" " that, by the oblation of himself once offered, he ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 6 the righteousness of.htm

The Divine Power Shown in Christ's Incarnation Meaning of St. ...
... to establish their own righteousness, they have not submitted themselves unto the
righteousness of God; for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to ...
/.../the five books against marcion/chapter xiv the divine power shown.htm

The Law Given, not to Retain a People for Itself, but to Keep ...
... In regard to the Ten Commandments, we must, in like manner, attend to the statement
of Paul, that "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 7 the law given.htm

"Now the End of the Commandment is Charity Out of a Pure Heart ...
... places, Romans 10:4, "The end of the law is Christ for righteousness, unto them
that believe." This is most principally intended, and even before love. ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xi now the end.htm

"And if Christ be in You, the Body is Dead Because of Sin: but the ...
... of leprosy were taken down under the law, that so ... the body, and all this is purchased
by Christ's righteousness. As man's disobedience made an end of his life ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xxviii and if christ.htm

"That the Righteousness of the Law Might be Fulfilled in Us. "
... in the sinner's place, to the end that all ... and the most lively demonstration of holiness
and righteousness. Christ's flesh bare the marks of both,"holiness ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xiv that the righteousness.htm