Fulfillment, not Abolishment

In Matthew 5:17, Jesus corrects a dangerous misunderstanding about His mission. He did not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets, as though God's former revelation were defective or His holiness could be lowered. Rather, Christ came to fulfill the Scriptures in His person, obedience, teaching, atoning death, and kingdom work. He fulfills the promises and prophecies, completes the ceremonial shadows, obeys the moral law perfectly, bears the curse for lawbreakers, and gives His people a righteousness they could never produce. This sermon shows that grace does not weaken holiness and the gospel does not make obedience unnecessary. Christ saves sinners from the curse of the law, not so they may become lawless, but so they may be justified by His righteousness and transformed by His Spirit. The call is to flee both legalism and antinomianism and come to the King who fulfills the law.