The law in the Old Testament is the way that God gave to the people so that they could maintain a good relationship with him – a way to holiness. When Moses gives the law to the people of Israel, he enjoins on them the importance of living the law before other nations so that they could be a sign of God’s presence, so that those nations will declare: This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.
He also enjoins on them the importance of transmitting the law and faith to the following generations, their children and grandchildren. They saw with their own eyes how God freed them from their slavery in Egypt, brought them through the Red Sea and sustained them in the desert. They could proclaim the law based on their personal experience and what they saw.
Jesus comes as the fulfillment of the law and life of holiness. The new law as expressed by Jesus’ teachings and his life is a deepening of the law of holiness from the Old Testament. He calls us today to renew our lives by deepening our holiness, our life and our form of teaching or living in the midst of our families, the children and grandchildren. Today it is so easy to leave the transmission of our faith and life to the school, the TV, religious ed programs or the Sunday mass. Jesus is very clear today in speaking to his disciples and to us. We are all called to proclaim with our words and life how we have seen God act in our lives and to conform our lives to the teaching of the Word.
whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
Image: https://www.pray.com.au/gospel_reflection/wednesday-7-march-2018/.