When Truth Gets Twisted: Understanding Jesus's Mission to Restore God's Word

Jesus and the Law: What Did He Really Come to Do? | Bible Study | Feb 23, 2025

Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to issue a "disclaimer" before teaching about God's law? His words in Matthew 5:17 - "Think not that I am come to destroy the law..." - reveal something profound about both His mission and our modern religious challenges.

The Problem of Perverted Truth

Throughout history, humans have shown a consistent pattern: taking God's pure truth and filtering it through human traditions and interpretations until it becomes something God never intended. This happened before the Tower of Babel with Noah's sacrificial system. It happened with the religious leaders of Jesus's day. And it continues happening in modern Christianity.

When truth becomes perverted, it can no longer accomplish its original purpose. Just as the people at Babel took God's intended worship and twisted it into idolatry (Romans 1:21-23), the religious leaders of Jesus's time had taken God's law and buried it under human traditions.

Why Jesus Needed a Disclaimer

When Jesus says "Think not that I am come to destroy the law..." (Matthew 5:17), He's addressing a crucial misconception. His audience - primarily Jewish people who believed in the law of Moses - had been taught a distorted version of God's word. Their understanding came filtered through the mental processes and traditions of the Pharisees and other religious sects.

Jesus knew His teaching would sound radical - not because it contradicted Scripture, but because it contradicted their traditions. He wasn't coming to destroy God's law but to restore its original intent and expand its application.

The Pattern of Divine Restoration

Consider this pattern in Scripture: 1. God establishes truth 2. Humans pervert it through traditions and misinterpretation 3. God sends restoration through divine intervention

This happened when God gave the law at Mount Sinai - restoring true worship after the perversions following Babel. Now Jesus comes as God incarnate to restore the law's true meaning after centuries of religious distortion.

The Modern Application

Today's Christians face a similar challenge. We have unprecedented access to Scripture, yet we often view it through denominational filters and inherited traditions. This makes us more accountable than Jesus's original audience, who relied solely on synagogue teachings.

Second Timothy 2:15 commands: "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." Unlike those in Jesus's time who had limited access to Scripture, we have no excuse for accepting distorted teaching without verification.

Three Critical Lessons for Today

1. Question Your Filters: What religious traditions or assumptions might be coloring your understanding of Scripture?

2. Seek Original Intent: When studying God's word, ask what God originally intended, not just what you've been taught it means.

3. Verify Everything: Even while respecting teachers and preachers (Ephesians 4:11-12), never accept teaching without confirming it in Scripture.

The Call to Restoration

Jesus came not to abolish truth but to restore and expand it. His mission continues today through the work of the Holy Spirit, calling believers back to God's original intent while moving them forward into deeper understanding.

The question isn't whether you need to unlearn some things - we all do. The question is whether you're willing to let God's word challenge your assumptions and restore His truth in your life.

Will you accept the challenge to move beyond traditional interpretations and seek God's original intent? The journey may feel uncomfortable, but it leads to the truth that sets us free.

Remember: When something becomes perverted, it can never accomplish what it was originally intended to do. Let's pursue God's pure truth, allowing Him to strip away human traditions and restore His word to its full power in our lives.