Jesus' statement is shocking! To the devoted Jewish believer, nothing was more sacred than the Law. But Jesus comes and says he is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. In other words, he is claiming that the goal of Scripture is found in him. This incredibly audacious claim of Jesus leaves no middle ground. He is either self-deluded or he must be taken seriously. If we are to understand the heart, the character, the holiness, the righteousness, and the will of God, Jesus claims that we must look to him. He embodies and completes what the Law had as its goal. He didn't come to offer some cheapened form of grace (cf. Jude 4 & 2 Tim. 3:2-5). Instead, God wants us to look to Jesus and see what he intended in his Law—he wanted to benefit us with his righteousness and bring us closer to him!