What will happen if I buy a car with a powerful engine in Russia and decide to test the maximum speed at which it can travel on the highway? And what if I then drive to the nearest city at a speed of 230 km/h every time? I think that if the traffic police notice this, I will be in serious trouble. The officers will want to know my name and where such a fast driver came from. I will face heavy fines or the loss of my driver’s license.
But if the same thing happens in Germany on a road with no speed limit, the police will not even look in my direction; I will be of no interest to them. Why such a contrast? It is all a matter of the law, which in one country forbids exceeding the prescribed speed, while in another country it permits people to drive at any speed if there is no posted limit. The law of any country defines personal and legal relations among its citizens within that state. All violators are declared offenders, identified, and subsequently subjected to administrative or criminal penalties.
The absence of law releases a person from responsibility. The very existence of law indicates that a state is governed by law.
The absence of law is called anarchy, which means that there is no executive authority in society and that everyone is therefore permitted to do without punishment whatever he considers right.
Every law characterizes the distinctive features of the country or society in which it has been adopted.
Sin is defined solely by the existence of God’s law, which governs human conduct and calls things by their proper names. God’s law was proclaimed quite clearly by God Himself in the presence of a great multitude of people and was twice written on tablets of stone by God’s hand as a testimony for future generations.
If a law exists but there are no representatives of the highest authority to ensure compliance with its requirements, that law ceases to function and is considered merely nominal. All existing governmental and social laws are, in one way or another, a reflection of God’s law.
At the present time, the enemy of the human soul persuades representatives of earthly authorities to adopt decrees that contradict God’s rules and to elevate to the status of law what God calls abomination and sin. But human decisions do not abolish God’s requirements, and a person who desires to know the truth can very quickly understand what God says and what contradicts His ordinances.
The law of ten words, spoken by God in the form of the Ten Commandments, is an expression of God’s character and reveals to the world the Creator’s love and care for humanity. The first four commandments govern a person’s relationship with God, while the remaining six establish the rules and boundaries of relationships among people.
Every commandment given by God is not only a rule of conduct, but also contains a promise that anyone who desires to live in obedience will receive power from above to do so. Then this law will be written not only on stone, but also in the human heart, becoming the foundation of that person’s faithfulness to God—not according to the letter, but according to the spirit. God’s law is spiritual, and when studied deeply, it reveals and condemns human desires and motives that do not conform to or that contradict God’s will.
For example, if I do not kill anyone but possess an evil spirit or speak unkind words, then in the light of the law I am an offender who violates the sixth commandment: ‘Thou shalt not kill.’
There are traditions and standards of living that have become firmly established in society but are, in their essence, sin because they contradict God’s law. Christ Himself spoke about this in Mark 7:8–9: ‘For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And He said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.’
This question remains relevant today and may be applied personally by comparing one’s life, in this light, with the requirements of the law.
If the law says, ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery,’ and Jesus says that even lustful thoughts violate God’s commandments, while society permits people to live and cohabit as they wish and with whomever they wish, approving such conduct and elevating it to the status of law, then it is worth heeding God’s will so as not to come under the curse pronounced by God’s requirements.
A person who violates God’s ordinances and knowingly lives in sin is a representative of the dark forces of evil. He is held captive by Satan and carries out the will of this spirit. Regardless of whom this person considers himself to be, his mind is under the dominion of sin, and he cannot overcome such influence by his own strength. Only God’s power called grace can rescue a sinner from under the curse of the law. This is why Christ came into our world: to become that curse for us and to satisfy the just requirement of the law, which pronounces eternal death upon anyone who has violated God’s commandment even once.
Will God’s grace save those who violate the law by justifying their sin? No. Grace saves from sin, not in sin.
God’s love for me is unconditional, and the Lord does not violate His principles in His relationship with me, but He expects me to respond with love through obedience to His law, which consists in understanding these requirements and fulfilling them in my life.
The law is holy, and the commandment is holy and good. Love is the fulfilling of the law. Those who bear the fruit of the Spirit are not under the law, for this law has been written by God’s hand in their hearts and has become part of their lives, while the fruit of the Spirit is the visible reflection, perceptible to the mind, of what the new heart contains.
Does the law save me? No, this power has not been placed in God’s commandments. The law is a mirror that clearly shows me myself when I look into it.
Salvation is a gift of grace; it cannot be earned by the works of the law, but a saved person is obedient to the commandments. In such submission the Christian character is perfected, and its result is peace with God. It testifies to love for the Lord and for our neighbors. Obedience by faith proves that Christ possesses the power to transform our lives. It serves to advance the work of the gospel.
Along with the Ten Commandments, God gave His people other laws and ordinances that explained the order of ceremonies, sacrifices, and feasts that pointed to the coming Messiah. Judicial and health laws were also given, protecting the people of Israel from corruption and disease. All these rules are sometimes referred to by the single general word ‘law.’ Therefore, when studying the Bible or examining the meaning of the law, it is important to understand which law is being discussed, which ordinances were fulfilled in Christ, and which should be observed in life. The Ten Commandments remain the unchanging standard of life for every person. To take something from them and abolish it, explaining that Christ abolished the Old Testament and gave us a new one, is not a very wise decision. Jesus came not to destroy the law, but to fulfill it, in order to give us the power and the example of how we should live. The Bible does not teach that Jesus abolished even one of the commandments; otherwise, He would not have needed to die for our sins. It would have been enough to change the requirements of the law, and then all transgressors would have become righteous, while Satan would have become an enterprising inventor.
And what would follow? Chaos.
Questions for Reflection
Please read Exodus 20:1–17; Deuteronomy 28:1–14; Psalm 19:7–14; 40:7–8; Matthew 5:17–20; 22:36–40; John 14:15; 15:7–10; Romans 8:3–4; 13:10; Ephesians 2:8–10; Hebrews 8:8–10; 1 John 2:3; 5:3; and Revelation 12:17; 14:12 in the light of this chapter. Did you learn anything new from this chapter? How is God’s love reflected in His law? How do you understand Romans 13:10: ‘Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law’? Is a person saved by the works of the law? What is the purpose of God’s law? Why does the Lord desire to write His law in my heart? Hebrews 10:16–17. Can a person be judged by a law that has been abolished? Are there any statements of God in the Bible that abolish even one of His Ten Commandments? Why can the law not cleanse my sins, but only point them out? Romans 7:12 says, ‘Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.’ How do you understand this verse in the light of this chapter?