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 PrintableVersion New Covenant TheologyThe place of the LawNEW COVENANT THEOLOGY This is a gracious and winsome presentation of the relatively recent system called 'New Covenant Theology'. It speaks of the progressive revelation of the Scriptures - that the New Testament is the apex of God's revelation. It is Christ who is the fulfilment of all of God's purposes; all the Scriptures speak of him and point towards him. The Old Testament must be read in the light of Christ. So far so good. But then the argument goes further. It is suggested that the law of Moses was only a type or preparation for the coming of the Messiah, and that moral, civil and ceremonial categories together (the authors do not even admit of that distinction of types of law) are now done away with in the appearance of Christ. Hence the Old Testament law has no abiding validity for the Christian believer, except insofar as it is taken up, repeated, reinterpreted, and commanded by Christ himself. Zaspel labours to persuade us of his interpretation of what it means for Christ to 'fulfil' the law. The controversial point in all of this is the setting aside of the ten commandments. It is contended that there is nothing particularly special about these commands. They were temporary types and shadows just like the furniture in the temple or the priestly garments. They are certainly not to be understood as the moral law of God with continuing application today - rather they are merely the caterpillar which has been transformed into the butterfly of Christ. They are the shadow which has now been replaced by the reality which is the teaching of Jesus. While Wells speaks of nine of the commandments as having some sort of continuing value, he has little time for number four. Having decided that there is no such thing as a distinction between ceremonial, civil and moral law, it is relatively easy for the authors to point to all of the New Testament's negative remarks about 'law' and to tell to us that the whole teaching of Moses is swept away with the arrival of the New Covenant in Christ. In all of this there are many fragments of truth. But at last the thesis proves (to this reviewer at any rate) to be unconvincing. The Scriptures speak so plainly that there is a moral law - a reflection of the perfect and unchanging character of our holy God - which continues throughout all generations. This is the law which is written on every human heart - pricking the conscience of believer and unbeliever alike (Romans 2). And in moving from Old Covenant to New, there is not a change in the righteous requirements of God but rather a change of place - whereas once they were written on tablets of stone now they are written on the hearts of believers (Jeremiah 31). Wells acknowledges that there is such a thing as this 'moral law' but, having decided that it is not the ten commandments, is left floundering to tell us precisely what it is. In the end he despairs and acknowledges that 'no law that can be compiled by us in this age can qualify for the title "the moral law".' He goes on to admit that even the category of moral law is 'difficult to recognise with certainty' (p.166). The Scriptures have no such difficulty. The ten commandments, uniquely in the time of Moses, were spoken by the voice of God and written by his own finger. They were announced to the whole nation of Israel - this was the revelation of God's own righteous will, reflecting his character. In the New Testament Paul commends this law as 'holy, righteous and good' (Romans 7). So that while in Christ we have a fuller and more perfect revelation of God, the moral principles articulated at Sinai remain. Our obedience is certainly different - we live under a different covenant, so our response to the law is very different to a Jew living under Moses. And our response is to law written not on stone but on our hearts. But the law, in essence, is the same. As Paul teaches us, our obedience to the great love commands is expressed in our obedience to the ten commandments (Romans 13). Doubtless the arguments and counter-arguments will rumble on. We can be grateful for the contribution of this book as an attempt to present a coherent case for what is still an infant and diverse movement of 'New Covenant Theology'. We trust that the spirit of the debate will be as irenic as Wells and Zaspel's presentation. Bill James,
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