Deuteronomy 22:12 "Thou shalt make thee fringes upon the four quarters of thy vesture, wherewith thou coverest thyself."
As I read the first twelve verses of Deuteronomy 22, my mind is
overwhelmed. I find myself becoming more and more grateful that I am not
under the penalty of the law. Just in case, I might be tempted to want to think
myself okay concerning the keeping of the law, I am reminded of James
2:10, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one
point, he is guilty of all." God does not allow us to "pick and
choose" that which we think to be adequate in order to be righteous before
Him.
As I read the first twelve verses, I find myself having to say, "I am
guilty" on so many counts. Have you ever been riding down the road
and saw someone's cattle out of the pasture? Did you stop to tell them
their cattle were out? Did you help them put their cattle back inside the
fence? Have you ever found money laying on the sidewalk? Did you
try to find the rightful owner? (oh, but it was only a penny, or a nickel, or a
dime.) Do you have a fence around the roof of your house to keep anyone
from falling off? Here is one that always gets me. It is unlawful
to wear a garment of mixed fabric. Very few garments worn today are 100%
cotton or 100% of any material. Most of our garments are mixed fabrics. And
then we have the law concerning men's and women's garments. Men are not to wear
women's garments and women are not to wear men's garments. This one carries the
statement that it is an abomination unto the Lord.
These are just twelve verses of the law. There were over six hundred separate
commandments contained in the law of Moses; yet, there were so many in the day
of Jesus who felt this to be adequate for their righteousness. Paul tells
us if there had been a law that could make us righteous, verily it would have
been the law of God. Though we might tend to categorize the law, (yes,
there are the categories of the law concerning moral, civil, and ceremonial)
God did not specify one to be more important than the other. But again, I
think of the words of James, "Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet
offend in one point, he is guilty of all."
Our text verse today deals with an aspect that I want to leave you with today.
"Thou shalt make thee fringes upon the four quarters of thy vesture,
wherewith thou coverest thyself." These fringes are thought to be
the same as the "ribbands of blue" that were to be attached to the
garments as a reminder of the Word of God. They were to be visible reminders of
the importance of the Word of God and the people were to wear them wherever
they went. The Word of God was to be the directive that was ever before
their eyes, their minds, and their hearts. Even this was taken to the
extreme by the Pharisees in the day of Jesus. They "made broad their
phylacteries." The phylactery was a box that was attached to the
forearm of the individual. It was attached by the ribbands, or fringes, and was
intended to impress others as to how much of the law had been committed to
memory. Even the very law of God was distorted to try to cause others to be
impressed by one's own ability.
In this, I see the ever present need for the Saviour. If there had been a
law given that was able to make a man righteous, it would have been the law of
God. But because the flesh was weak, God sent His Son in the likeness of sinful
flesh to condemn sin in the flesh. The law was our schoolmaster, showing
our need for the Saviour! Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus is our blessed
Redeemer!!