INVESTIGATING ADVENTISM

QUESTION:

"Pastor Ronald, totoo po ba na hindi nagbago ang utos ng Diyos sa Hebrews 8:10 at Jeremiah 31:33, dahil isinulat ito sa puso at isipan?"

ANSWER:

Magandang tanong ‘yan at madalas itong ginagamit ng mga Sabbath-keepers para sabihing, “Oh, kita mo? Same Ten Commandments pa rin, pero isinulat na lang sa puso.” Pero teka muna kung babasahin natin nang maayos gamit ang historico-grammatical hermeneutics at Greek exegesis, makikita mong hindi ‘yan ang punto ni Jeremiah at ni author ng Hebrews.

1. “Not Like the Covenant I Made Before” — Ibang-Iba ang Context

Sabi ni Jeremiah 31:31–32,

“Not like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt.”

Question: Anong covenant ‘yung ginawa Niya nung inakay Niya sila palabas ng Egypt?

Obvious: Sinai Covenant, a.k.a. the Ten Commandments, written on stone.

So kung sinabi ni God na “hindi tulad noon,” paano mo masasabing “pareho lang, isinulat lang sa puso”? Hindi puwedeng pareho kung sabi Niya mismong “hindi tulad.” Ang Hebrew term na “lo ka-berith” ay “not of the same kind.” Ibang klase, ibang sistema, ibang covenant altogether.

2. “My Laws” ≠ The Ten Commandments

Sa Hebrews 8:10 (Greek: nomous mou) — “My laws” doesn’t automatically mean “the Decalogue.” ‘Yan ay tumutukoy sa moral will of God, hindi sa Mosaic Covenant code.

In short, ang sinusulat ni God sa puso ay hindi ang 613 laws ng Lumang Tipan o ang Ten Commandments as a covenant document, kundi ang moral essence ng Diyos na ngayon ay ipinahayag sa katauhan ni Cristo.

Kaya nga si Paul sa Galatians 6:2 nagsabi:

“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Kung Ten Commandments lang din pala, bakit tinawag ni Paul na “law of Christ,” hindi “law of Moses”?

3. Fulfillment, Not Rewriting

Sabi ni Jesus sa Matthew 5:17,

“I came not to abolish but to fulfill.”

Ang Greek word na plēroō means to fill to completion, to bring to its full meaning.

So the Law written on our hearts is not a reprint; it’s the fulfilled version embodied, explained, and empowered through Christ.

Kung fulfilled na ni Cristo, bakit kailangan pang “i-reinstall” yung lumang covenant code? Hindi ba contradictory kung ang Cross ang simbolo ng “It is finished,” pero gusto mong i-continue yung lumang sistema?

4. From Stone to Heart — Hindi Lang Location Change, Kundi Nature Change

Yes, dati sa bato nakasulat. Ngayon sa puso. Pero hindi lang ito “transfer of writing surface.” It’s transfer of covenant essence.

* Sa bato: cold command, walang power sumunod.

* Sa puso: written by the Spirit, may desire at power sumunod (Phil. 2:13).

Kaya ang New Covenant believer ay sumusunod hindi dahil natatakot, kundi dahil nagmamahal.

5. Ten Commandments = Old Covenant Symbol

Sabi ng Exodus 34:28,

“The Ten Commandments are the words of the covenant.”

Kaya nung sinabi ng Hebrews 8:13, The first covenant is obsolete, kasama doon ang covenant document, the Ten Commandments as a legal contract.

Pero ang moral values behind them (honor, truth, fidelity, love) tuloy pa rin. Na-transform lang into “the law of Christ.”

Ang bagong covenant ay hindi stone-based morality, kundi Spirit-based transformation.

Imagine mo ito:

Noong Old Covenant, binigyan ka ng printed manual puro utos, puro “thou shalt Not.” Ngayon sa New Covenant, dumating mismo ang Author ng manual para tumira sa’yo at turuan ka personally.

Same Author, same holiness, pero ibang paraan, ibang power, ibang relationship.

Kaya kapag sinasabi ng iba, “Pastor, same lang naman ang Ten Commandments, nilipat lang sa puso,” sagot natin:

> No, the Law didn’t just move — it matured.

> It didn’t just change location — it changed nature.

> It’s no longer the letter that kills, but the Spirit that gives life (2 Cor. 3:6).

Sa Old Covenant, ang kautusan ay external obligation.

Sa New Covenant, ang kautusan ay internal transformation.

Hindi na “bawal, bawal, bawal,” kundi “gusto ko, dahil mahal ko Siya.” 

Summary 

| Category   | Old Covenant      | New Covenant      |

| ---------- | ----------------- | ----------------- |

| Mediator   | Moses             | Christ            |

| Form       | Written on stone  | Written on hearts |

| Nature     | Letter of the Law | Spirit of Life    |

| Motivation | Fear & duty       | Love & grace      |

| Power      | None (fleshly)    | Indwelling Spirit |

| Result     | Condemnation      | Transformation    |

So to wrap it up:

No, Jeremiah 31 and Hebrews 8 do not teach that the Ten Commandments were merely transferred to the heart. They teach that the entire covenant dynamic changed from Mosaic Law to the Law of Christ, from stone tablets to living hearts, from external codes to internal grace.

It’s not the old law rewritten, it’s the heart reborn.

Former Adventists Philippines

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