The End

The past couple days have been extremely frustrating for me. I am a cyclist. I love to watch bike races, and while there are some exciting times of strategic maneuvering, aggressive attacks or unexpected crashes during the race, most of the excitement is usually reserved for the end of the race, the last kilometer or so.

Consequently, on Tuesday when I watched the Tour of California I cannot express my degree of indignation when just a couple of kilometers (about 2 minutes worth of riding) from the end of the race Versus switched over to the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Arghhhh!) I didn't get to see whether the peloton was able to catch the breakaway of the three top riders, Dave Zabriskie, Michael Rogers and Levi Leipheimer, or who won the stage. Then last night I was watching the race on my DVR when the recording ended just one kilometer from the finish in Modesto. This time, I actually screamed in frustration at not being able to see if any of the other sprinters would be able to beat the fastest man in the world, Mark Cavendish.

Why is the end of the race most important? It's obvious. If you want to win, you must finish the course first. In Romans 10:4 Paul writes: "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." When we hear those words we might be tempted to think that they mean Christ has done away with God's Law, declared it null and void, or thrown it out. Actually, what Paul means is much closer to the end of a race, than to something being removed.

The Greek word "telos" is the first word in Paul's sentence, showing us that the emphasis is on that word. Although it is translated "end" in the NIV, telos actually has a much deeper meaning. "Telos" means end or goal, and includes the idea of fulfiillment, completion, even perfection.

What Paul means to tell us then, is not that Christ has done away with the Law, but rather that he has completed or fulfilled it on our behalf. He did what we cannot do. He ran the perfect race, fulfilling every command of God without fault or defect. His fulfillment of the Law even included taking the punishment decreed by the Law (death) on our behalf.

As a result, we are no longer under the Law's condemnation. We can now look to God's Law for guidance and direction as to how to live righteous lives that will please God and honor Him. Since we have been declared righteous, through faith in Christ Jesus, we now have his power and strength to fulfill the Law in our own lives. But we don't have to worry about being perfect. Jesus already achieved perfection for us. He won the race in our place. When it came to "the end" he was perfect!