Moses is the most important figure in the Old Testament because he brought the Law. Abraham is the father of God’s grace; Moses is the father of God’s law. We New Testament Christians know that God’s grace is greater than God’s law. But the fullness of God’s grace could not be known until the fullness of God’s law had run its course. That’s the story of the Bible.
God’s grace cannot be fully known apart from God’s law, and God’s law cannot be observed known apart from God’s grace. The story from Abraham to Moses is the story of God’s grace. …
Thus the story of Abraham—God’s grace—ended in slavery in Egypt, and the story of Moses—God’s law—ended in Babylonian captivity. God then freed Israel from Babylonian captivity and set them again in the Promised Land, where the civil war between the two branches of Israel—the wealthy Jews who rebuilt the Temple and the poor Jews who had been left in Israel, the Samaritans—continued to fester.
It was at this point in the long story of Israel that Jesus stepped into history. …
Abraham was called to be a blessing to all of the nations of the world, not just the Jews. Moses was called to reveal the limitations of God’s law; and Jesus was called to reestablish God’s original mission, which includes both God’s law and His grace. It also includes the Jews and the Gentiles. …
