Fulfillment?

Matthew 5:18 “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished”

I love the emphasis in this passage – Jesus seems ‘dead sure’. So sure – even ‘heaven and earth’ would pass away before the Law was finished. Wow. But what needed to be ‘accomplished’?

One could say Jesus is pointing to passages in Torah and Prophets that talk about the messiah. I think in his time – and in ours – many people would of agreed to such a premise for the messiah (proof please?). Rabbi Singer touches on a passage from Ezekiel 37 and what it says about the messiah “In this well known chapter, the prophet clearly teaches that we can recognize the coming of the messiah when: the resurrection of the dead, the building of the final Temple that will stand forever in Jerusalem, the universal knowledge of God and obedience to His Torah, the restoration of the lost tribes (Ephraim or the Kingdom of Israel whom Assyria carried off), and the complete restoration of the Jewish people to their land all take place.” (Outreach Judiasm – the Christian Messiah?)

One can also throw in the establishment of world peace and an end to the need for weapons from Isaiah…there is lot more but these will suffice for now.

Then we have Jesus’ proof’ – the Torah would never be let go of nor pass (which Singer alludes to in Ezekiel). But then why do Christians claim it is ‘finished’? Not all of these things have happened or been accomplished – early Christian communities knew this so well they invent a 2nd coming for the messiah to finish such things (there was no theology for a 2nd coming outside certain Christian sects – Judaism never taught any such idea). It was an admission in Christianity – not all is accomplished – but someday it will be.

So does this mean the Torah is ‘ok’? Does this mean Judaism is already converted to a correct way of thinking? Is Christianity wrong for putting the law ‘down’? I think if Christianity had its way – the law would be pronounced dead. But this never occured and never will…cause along with Jesus I am going to go out on a limb…the law will never pass away. Thank you Judaism for being true!