Butterfly: Christians and the Law

Is a butterfly anti-caterpillar?

From the dawn of Christianity the Bible handles over and over how to understand the relationship of the Christian to the Law. Most of Romans, all of Galations, Acts chapter 15, and elsewhere, the New Testament writers are dedicated to explaining this issue. Yet, we still have many Christians to this day that are confused about it, and supposed teachers of the Law "..who understand neither what they say nor the things which they affirm" (1Tim 1:7) – like the unfortunately popular Joel Osteen explaining to us that we should not eat pork or shrimp because "...the Bible says." What incredible Biblical ignorance! I think of a brother and sister who (repeatedly) determined to eat no more shrimp believing that it displeased God, a whole denomination dedicated to the idea that we gentiles still have to observe the sabbath to have any hope, a brother who already wouldn't eat pork and who recently took to wearing a yamulke which is clearly contrary to 1 Cor 11, and a brother who took to dressing like an orthodox Jew and rocking back and forth in prayer like Jews at the Wailing Wall.

There is nothing in the world wrong with a caterpillar. God Himself created caterpillars. Caterpillars are striking, even beautiful creatures. Some of them are even powerful, which you will find out about firsthand if you pick up the wrong one. But a caterpillar is not a butterfly.

Butterflies are universally acknowledged as among God's most beautiful creatures. They are delicate and shimmering and colorful, and yet, some can fly distances of thousands of miles. A butterfly is a wonderful thing. The butterfly has been transformed beyond the caterpillar, it has ascended high above the caterpillar. The butterfly does not do the things of the caterpillar, but a butterfly is not anti-caterpillar by any means.

The practices and traditions of caterpillars are good and wholesome and given by God. There is nothing whatsoever wrong with the practices of the caterpillar. On the contrary, the things of the caterpillar are life to the caterpillar and soundness to his body, and by them the caterpillar shall live! Indeed, the butterflyiness of the butterfly rests upon the caterpillar.

But, the butterfly who tries to live by the things of the caterpillar shall die! The things of the caterpillar are left behind at the cocoon. The chewing of leaves, the climbing of trees, and the spinning of silk has no place in the life of the butterfly – and the butterfly who, having been transformed, goes back to the elementary principles of the caterpillar has fallen from the marvelous grace shown it at its transformation. Those things are good and proper to the caterpillar...but not to the butterfly.

The man under the Law is the caterpillar. But when Christ came, He put an end to the caterpillar things. When any man is renewed by the Spirit to faith in Christ he is transformed from the old caterpillar into a new butterfly. By the power of God in Christ he has ascended beyond caterpillars. He is not therefore to concern himself any longer with the things of caterpillars, but with the things of butterflies.

(As an aside, those who are under what we call Judaism have nothing for us at all. To the contrary, they, though descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, need to be instructed by us, the gentiles. It is in no way profitable to us to spend time learning, much less observing, traditions of Judaism which are not even from the Law, from God, but are traditions of men arising from 2000 years of rejecting Messiah. We don't need to learn those foolish and unbiblical things from them, they need to learn the things of God in the Bible from us. Abstaining from foods, observance of Chanukah, and wearing of yamulkes and talits is not going to bring you one inch closer to God – and stands a good chance of doing real damage.)

Brothers and sisters in Christ: We are, in Christ, through no virtue of our own, transformed into butterflies. Don't be turned aside to the chewings of leaves and climbings of trees.