What is the law

Soul Harvest Ministries of Minnesota

Soul Harvest : FAQ : What is the law

The Law

Why do we have laws? What do they do? Why are laws important? Well, in order to answer these questions we need to know what law is. According to Dictionary.com there are 14 different definitions for the word law. There are so many definitions because laws have applications that are virtually everywhere. For all intents and purposes of this discussion, law will be defined as: a code of principles based on morality, conscience and nature.

Essentially, a law is a statement of truth. Take Newton's second law of motion for example. Basically, it describes the motion of objects as a simple mathematical equation: F=ma. It is a law because it is known to be true under all circumstances. It doesn't matter whether you are on the moon, in Russia, or at sea level. Force will equal mass times acceleration because it has been observed to be invariably true by many scientists.

But, is truth in the law, or is truth derived from the law? F=ma is just a cryptic string of letters if it is not applied with any mathematical understanding. The equation that is able to describe virtually all types of kinetic motion is useless if it can not be transformed into a useable quantity. If the question: "How fast does this object accelerate?" can not be answered, then there is a failure in using the law to describe the truth in the world around us.

The laws of the bible describe truth about the world around us in a way that is very similar to how the laws of science describe truth around us. Take the ten commandments for example. One of the most well known commandments is not to murder: "You shall not murder." Exodus 20:3 NIV

So why shouldn't we murder other people? There are a few good reasons:

-That all people have an equal right to live
-Murder is not an acceptable punishment for wrongs that another person has done to you
-Murder comes from the desires of hatred within ones heart

So does that mean that if I have not killed anyone, I am living a righteous life and am worthy of life in Heaven? Not necessarily. One must look at the moral intent of the law. If you don't believe that everyone has an equal right to life or have feelings of anger and hatred toward another person, then you are not living according to the greater truth the law tells us about the world.

Here is another lesser known command of the ten commandments: "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving to you." Exodus 20:12 NIV

Why should we honor our father and mother? Does it mean that we give them gifts on Father's and Mother's Day? No. It means that we should be respectful and courteous to them at all times because all people deserve honor and respect.

Last and not least (which is the most fundamental command of all Christianity): "You shall have no other gods before me." Exodus 20:3 NIV

So why should we not place any other gods before God? Because as creator of all the universe, God desires that all of his creation give him honor and respect.

There is a definite theme with why we should follow these various laws. It is not the laws themselves that show the moral code but the intent of the laws that show us the way of true righteous living. Jesus summed it up best when described the greatest commandment:

"Love the lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second islike it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:37-40 NIV

So observing the law is not out of legalism, or checking off a spiritual checklist so that one can get into heaven. It is really about consistently observing a moral code that will make us more like God and it shows us our need for a savior.

The reason for the Law is to convict the entire world of their sin and show them their need for a Savior.
-Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul;

-Romans 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”

-Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

It is not our intention to cover all aspects of the "Law", but it is important to know it is not limited to the Ten-commandmends. In fact it is said we are now under "The Law of Christ". Jesus instructed His disciples by saying: Matt 28:20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. To understand what the Law of Christ is there is no substitute for reading (the Bible) and studying Jesus' life, His teaches (Sermon on the Mount), and all the bible has to teach on this matter.

To get further reading on why modern day evangelism is so in effective and why the answer to this problem is using the "Law" read: "Hell's best kept secret"