Jehovah's Witnesses Straight Talk - Forum/Blog

1Cor.7:39 A wife is bound by law for as long as her husband lives; but if the husband is dead, she is free to be married to whoever she desires, only in the Lord. 7:40 But she is happier if she stays as she is, in my judgment, and I think that I also have God's Spirit.

Is the apostle Paul implying the Old Law was not fulfilled in Christ, because he eludes to God's standards of a woman being bound to her husband until his, and/or hers death? No! Either the law is fulfilled or it wasn't? But if your a legal minded Christian's or Jew, the law was not evil, or unrighteous, and that is not the reason it was fulfilled, no again! The Law was good and righteous God fulfilled it by the life/blood of Christ Jesus so we might have complete removal of our sins, which the law could never do by inferior animal blood year to year.

Rom. 7:1 Or don't you know, brothers{The word for "brothers" here and where context allows may also be correctly translated "brothers and sisters" or "siblings."} (for I speak to men who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man for as long as he lives? 7:2 For the woman that has a husband is bound by law to the husband while he lives, but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law of the husband. 7:3 So then if, while the husband lives, she is joined to another man, she would be called an adulteress. But if the husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is no adulteress, though she is joined to another man. 7:4 Therefore, my brothers, you also were made dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you would be joined to another, to him who was raised from the dead, that we might bring forth fruit to God.
7:5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were through the law, worked in our members to bring forth fruit to death. 7:6 But now we have been discharged from the law, having died to that in which we were held; so that we serve in newness of the spirit, and not in oldness of the letter.

Furthermore, Christ Himself stated before God gave Israel the law, at the creation of mankind God said that man and woman should be one flesh, married only to one, it was the law that stated a person could remarry if the other mate dies freeing them from adultery. But still there is more, and what is that? Adam and Eve prior to their fall into sin and death were sinless, hence, under God's own headship, and thus under the law of love, why love? Simply because they had not sinned; from sin comes all the laws convicting us of sin in our fallen flesh sold under the sins of Adam past on to all the human race. Sinless people do not need laws convicting them of sin, or future sins, they exist in love, which is present and perfect, and does not impute evil to others, as do law created in the negative past tense for people living in sin.

Matt.19:3 Pharisees came to him, testing him, and saying, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?"
19:4 He answered, "Haven't you read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female,{Genesis 1:27} 19:5 and said, 'For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall join to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh?'{Genesis 2:24} 19:6 So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, don't let man tear apart." 19:7 They asked him, "Why then did Moses command us to give her a bill of divorce, and divorce her?" 19:8 He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it has not been so. 19:9 I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and he who marries her when she is divorced commits adultery."

Those in the body of Christ are sinless, declared righteous because they are a part of Christ Jesus sinless life, which, means they have no judgments by laws for sinful people. Because Christ purchased our lives by his blood making us a part of his spiritual body we are consider sinless in God's eyes, but why? Because Christ fulfilled the law judging sinful people. Hence, God does not reused the Old Law just because we still sin, no! He has abolished our judgment by no longer judging us in the past tense, but looks at us from love, without judgment of sin. Subsequently, we no longer need laws for sin, the very act of being sinless removes laws in the past negative form for sin.

1Cor.13:7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 13:8 Love never fails.

So what does this mean in context to Paul's words here? It means if you walk in love, which would mean by Spirit, and/or in Christ we need no law telling us not, or too love or divorce our mates, but because our bodies under sin, and we still die from sin. Hence, if one die - their mate is free to remarry. But if we had never sinned, just like Adam and Eve were created without sin, or did not have the sin of Adam past onto us, then we would have never been freed from our mates through death. What Paul's words do not teach is that Christian's are still under the Old Law because he eludes to the Old Law here. Moreover, let us recall Christ forgive every sin common among mankind including the sin of adultery because Christ forgave our sins does not imply he condones sin, Neither God or Christ condones sin, instead God atones for sin by paying a great price of innocent life for remission of our sins.

Romans 7:13 Did then that which is good become death to me? May it never be! But sin, that it might be shown to be sin, by working death to me through that which is good; that through the commandment sin might become exceeding sinful.

Rom.8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who don't walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.{NU omits "who don't walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit"}
8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death.

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