wondering,
I regularly use 'incorrect' terms that are not in the Bible, e.g. the Trinity, the Bible, meanings of the atonement, Lord's Supper, etc.
The Moral Law is another example. In Hebrew the
mishpatim are the moral laws that concern justice and judgment. Often in the OT they are translated as 'ordinances'. The Moral Law is based on God's holiness and so these laws are holy, unchanging and just. The intention of the Moral Law is to provide a framework for the people of God to obey God.
It should be obvious why these moral laws are needed. They don't prevent riots and murders but they provide a basis for maintaining justice in any society.
Look what has happened in the USA, Australia and Great Britain when the Moral Law has been violated with the killing of George Floyd. Bob Dylan called Floyd's death 'beyond ugly' and he hopes '
justice comes swift'. Why should that be? We live under moral laws of justice that must be implemented in any society to make it civilised.
Contemporary Protestants are divided over whether the
mishpatim applies in the church age. Jesus said: 'For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished' (Matt 5:18 NIV). So, the law will remain until the earth passes away.
However, what does the verse before, Matt 5:17 (NIV), state: 'Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them'.
Gal 6:2 (NIV) states we are 'to fulfil the law of Christ'. This is understood to refer to 'love God and love others (Matthew 22:36-40 NIV). Although many of the moral laws in the OT are found in the NT, I conclude (i.e. my view) that Christians are not bound by the
mishpatim, the OT Moral Law.
Oz