For some reason, people seem to think that God’s law is a loonnngggg checklist of everything one must do in order to pass His test, be acceptable to Him, and earn a trip to Heaven. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
Of the many purposes that God accomplishes through the Law that He gave us, I’ll focus on three: It teaches us about His character; it shows us how to live well; and it makes us aware that we need a Savior.
It Teaches Us About His Character
God’s laws are not a random list. “Let’s see…. I’ll have them run 100 laps each morning, then spin around three times and howl at the sunrise. That would be fun to watch. Maybe then I’ll insist that they dress in a different color each day. Oh, and they could be required to count backwards from 1000 by 7’s each evening; that would be difficult enough to weed out the weak.”
No, His laws flow from who He is, from His own character. He is always faithful, so He wants us to be. He is just, so He requires justice from us. He is loving, so He expects us to love Him and to love one another. He is merciful, so He wants us to be gentle with others. He is forgiving, so He tells us to give second chances and avoid holding grudges. He is holy, so He demands that we approach Him with respect and reverence.
The only way the Law could be different would be if God changed. And He is not going to, certainly not just because those He created decide to pitch a tantrum and scream for Him to do so!
It Shows Us How To Live Well
Think about the Ten Commandments (including Jesus’ expansion of them in Matthew 5:17-48):
- Honor God…Don’t cheat with other gods; Keep His name and His day holy.
- Honor your parents.
- Don’t murder (or even be angry in a violent or demeaning way).
- Don’t commit adultery (or even look with lust, or divorce and remarry).
- Don’t steal.
- Don’t lie (or even “swear to God” that you’re telling the truth).
- Don’t covet.
- (Love even your enemies, and answer their insulting abuse with good.)
Now, look at our world where those laws are ignored or actively disobeyed:
- Rudderless lives turn to anything they can cling to for meaning, and none of it helps.
- Families are disintegrating.
- Life is treated lightly. Unwanted children are aborted; the old or sick are neglected or even euthanized.
- Civil conversation is becoming impossible as people answer disagreement with violence.
- Sexual perversion, immorality, human trafficking, and rape gangs are tolerated, even celebrated.
- Fraud is so rampart that we are no longer surprised or shocked; instead, we’re numb.
- Envy and greed drive much of our social interaction, seen in everything from commercial advertising to massive entitlement to “tax the rich” economic policies.
Which world would you rather have: One that follows God and His laws, or the one we have at the moment?
The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul;
Psalm 19:7-9
The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether.
It Makes Us Aware That We Need A Savior
Sin is a serious problem. It places a barrier between us and God, breaking the perfect relationship that we were meant to have.
Backing up though…If the definition of “sin” is “missing the mark“, failing to hit the target, then we need to know what that target is.
The Law is God’s answer to that question. In his letter to the church at Rome, the Apostle Paul tells one of the things that the Law is good for: Showing us the standard so we can see that we fall short. “I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COVET.’” (Romans 7:7) If God had not given us the Law, we would have continued in not-so-blissful ignorance. We would still have been alienated from God and our world would still be a mess, but we wouldn’t know why.
In that same letter, Paul goes into detail discussing what the Law is…and what it isn’t. He was writing to people who were tempted to think they could be right with God by following that Law. Even more, some were apparently thinking that simply knowing the Law, without even following it, was good enough (Romans 2:17-24). Sorry, but No.
Knowing the goal does not make us able to achieve it. In fact, Paul says that knowledge of the Law can even have the reverse effect. When we know that something (such as coveting) is forbidden, we then perversely want it that much more! (Romans 7:8-11)
Since God has told us the standard we were designed to meet, we now can recognize our failure. As we try to be obedient, we find that we are not capable of doing so. From Paul’s letter again: “…the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.” (Romans 7:18)
Something must be done to remove the barrier and restore the relationship, but what? We learn that we need a Savior.
Jesus Fulfills the Law
For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Romans 8:3-4
Jesus came “not to abolish, but to fulfill” the Law (Matthew 5:17-18). In His life, He perfectly showed God’s character. He demonstrated the life that results from being in alignment with God’s will. In His death and resurrection, He broke down the barrier and became the bridge that reconciles us with God. As portrayed in this scene 1 from The Chosen, He IS the Law!
Note: A similar article on this site is “Following the Rules“.