Should We Observe the Torah?

Should We, As Christians, Observe the Torah?

First of all, just before we get into it, what does it mean to Observe the Torah/to be Torah Observant? In the most basic of definitions, it is a person who follows the old testament law as the Jews did. So, should Christians do this..?

Now, I wouldn't go as far as to call it a sin, but we don't have to. It kind of is just optional. Why would I claim this? Well, we are living with the new covenant, not the old one(The old covenant was made for the Jews to separate them from other people of the time). We learn about this concept in the book of Jeremiah. "...declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt...“For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord: “I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people" (Jeremiah 31:31-33).

Now one may ask the question, how do we know we are under this new covenant? Well, the Bible tells us so on many occasions! "Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you also were put to death in regard to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might belong to another, to Him who was raised from the dead... But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter" (Romans 7:4-6).

More Verses/Passages That Prove We Live In The New Covenant:

"The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John came; since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it" (Luke 16:16).

"When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is about to disappear" (Hebrews 8:13).

"But the Scripture has confined everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the Law, being confined for the faith that was destined to be revealed. 24 Therefore the Law has become our guardian to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith" (Galatians 3:22-24).

According to Jesus himself, "After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, “Hear and understand. 11 It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man” (Matthew 15:10-11 NASB1995). Jesus, in the passage, is stating what we eat will not defile us. This claim would contradict Leviticus where it has several dietary restrictions if we were not in a new covenant.

"For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes," (Romans 10:4 KJV). As Paul states, Jesus is the end of the law, the end of the old covenant.

It Should Be Noted:

If God says he hates it or dislikes it, it likely still applies as unallowed. As God does not change, what he dislikes will stay the same, except of course if he was merely hating one who does not follow the old law.

The Categories of Laws:

In the Bible, there are thousands of instructions provided by God. These categories were made to help us categorize the laws in the Bible. Some laws are a part of both groups, for example, the condemnation of homosexuality. 

The Moral Law:

The moral law still applies. These are laws that are on our morals, like thou shall not lie or thou shall not kill. If God hates something, like adultery for example, they are breaking the moral law. As God does not change(Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6, & Psalm 102:27), if God hates something, this distaste will always remain.

The Ceremonial Law:

As one can assume, ceremonial laws pertain to the religious customs of the Jews(ceremonial laws are from the Old Covenant(Testament). For example, circumcision, sacrifice, restrictions on certain foods, et cetera. These laws take up most of Leviticus.