The Fulfillment of the Law

When Jesus spoke of fulfilling the law in Matthew 5:17(NIV) Do not think that I have come
to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. He
was speaking of bringing to fulfillment both the prophecies of Scripture and Scripture, by
His coming and His ministry here on this earth. In doing this, He manifested the
accurateness of the divine authority of the Old Testament.
Bakerââ'¬â¢s Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, describes the concept of fulfillment as
being expressed chiefly by the Hebrew words mala [ael'm], fulfill, accomplish, terminate,
and kala [a'l'K], be finished, completed. The word qum [Wq], which has a wide range of
meanings, also carries the sense of accomplishment. The first of these terms is often
used of God bringing to pass, something that He has promised.
We can say that Jesus came to bring the Old Testament, including the Old Testament moral
law, to its intended goal or purpose. To cause it to be done as God had intended. Matthew
5:18 (NIV) reads For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a
stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. The word
accomplished here is not the same as the fulfill of verse 18 (used as a verb which means
to become). There is a becoming embedded in the Old Testament Scriptures. There is a
specific goal to be accomplished, this characterizes the Old Testament, the meaning, bring
to fulfillment or to reach the goal!
The idea of movement toward a destination, which mentioned previously, suggested by
Matthew 5:17- He was speaking of bringing to fulfillment both the prophecies of Scripture
and Prophecy, by His coming and His ministry here on this earth. In doing this, He
manifested the accurateness of the divine authority of the Old Testament. AMEN

Thank you Hope for breaking down the concept of fulfillment. Indeed Jesus came to fulfill the law as people from the Old Testament prophesied about Jesus and some of the things he would do. John the Baptist is a great example of preparing the way for Jesus and references the prophet Isaiah in Mathew 3:1-3 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand! 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.'