Purpose of God's Law
Purpose of God’s Law
Harmony
Christians are confused about the purpose of the law. This is not surprising as even the people who received the Ten Commandments did not understand its role. The first table of the law can be summed up in the command to love God. The second table of the law can be summed up in Jesus' command to love our neighbours. The second five commandments are all about our relationships with the people living around us.
God gave the law to Moses at a time when Israel was moving to live in a defined area of land. He gave the law to enable them to live together harmoniously. This is the reason why it focuses on preventing adultery, theft, slander and murder. These four sins are the ones that disrupt the relationships between the people living together in a community. If I am proud and arrogant, my neighbours may not like me, but they are not harmed. If I steal from other people, those I steal from do suffer. A good society needs protection from theft.
There are four ways that another person can harm me. They can steal my possessions, assault my body, lie about my character, or break up my family. Lies, theft, assault and adultery are sins that directly harm other people. The last five commandments deal with these sins. They were given to prevent these sins from breaking down the structure of society.
The context of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 21-23 makes their purpose clear. The case laws that follow the Ten Commandments do not refer to personal holiness. They describe things that happen when people harm those living around them. Solutions are provided for problems between people and disputes over property. The Law of Moses was designed to deal with the issues that arise when people live together in close proximity. This is the sole purpose of the law.
The LORD commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear the LORD our God, so that we might always prosper and be kept alive, as is the case today (Deut 6:24).
God provided the law so that people could live together in harmony. In the modern world, people still have problems with each other and disputes over property, so this need has not disappeared. We still need the Law of Moses.
For the Unrighteous
Paul understood the purpose of the law. He knew that it was directed towards those who would disrupt the peace of society.
We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers (1 Tim 1:7-9).
Paul says the law is not for the righteous. The law is for thieves, murderers, adulterers and perjurers. These are the people who disrupt the peace and harmony of society. The righteousness of Jesus cannot deal with these people, as they are hostile to him. Until they are transformed by the love of Jesus, society will need laws that prevent them from harming other people. Law provides a solution to the problem caused by people who are willing to harm others. It is the only way to deal with them.
Restraining Wickedness
The prophet Habakkuk also understood the purpose of the law.
Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted (Hab 1:3,4).
When God’s law is ignored, strife and violence abound. Without God’s law, justice is perverted, and the wicked prevail. God’s law reduces strife and violence, even in a society that has rejected God.
The consequence of our failure to understand the purpose of the law is prophesied in Proverbs.
Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law resist them. Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it fully (Prov 28:4,5).
When God’s people forsake his law, wicked people benefit. In the last century, Christians have rejected God’s law. The result is evil run rampant. Our failure to understand justice has allowed lawlessness to prevail.
The law deals with people who do not respect their neighbours. Nothing more, nothing less.
Not Righteousness
Several false understandings of the law have been prevalent since the law was given. The most common error is the view that we can be made righteous by keeping the law. The Jews believed that they were special because they had the law. They also believed that they could gain righteousness by keeping the law.
Paul spent a large part of his ministry debunking this myth. Here are two statements that make his position clear.
If righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing (Gal 2:21)!
Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith" (Gal 3:11).
The law cannot make us righteous. Only the ministry of Jesus can accomplish that goal.
Paul had assumed that he was seeking God's righteousness because he was studying the Torah, but he had actually only found his own standard of righteousness, which is actually self-righteousness, and of no value to God or man.
I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ (Phil 3:8).
However, although Paul was very hostile to those who claimed righteousness through the law, he was careful not to denigrate the law itself. He was clever enough not to throw the baby out with the bath water.
Paul said the law is spiritual, holy, just and good (Rom 7). The reason he could say this was that he understood that law is good when used for the correct purpose (1 Tim 1:7-9). It only becomes a problem when used as a basis for righteousness, something that it was not designed to do. True righteousness can only be obtained through Jesus, and we appropriate his righteousness through faith.
Many Christians assume that Paul taught that there is something wrong with God's law, but this is not true. Paul taught that using the law as a way to righteousness is wrong because that is not its purpose. When the law is used for the wrong purpose, it is useless. However, when it is used for the correct purpose, it is still holy and just.
Great for the Right Use
Many Christians see the law as a system of righteousness that failed. That does not make sense, because God does not make mistakes. The problem is that the law was never intended to make us righteous.
Paul is very negative about our ability to be saved by works of the law, but he is positive about the law itself.
Therefore the law is holy... and just and good (Rom 7:12).
What could be better for the functioning of society than a set of laws that are holy, just and good? Any other set of laws will be suboptimal. They will be partly unjust and not always good. Why would any society want to have suboptimal laws? God’s law must be the best, because he is God.
Christians say that they live under grace and not under law. They then jump out of the frying pan into the fire by choosing to live under human laws. And very few see a problem with this strange attitude to human law. I cannot understand why Christians living under grace want to live under human law.
God’s law is good. It cannot provide peace with God; only the cross can achieve that, but it is still the best basis for a harmonious and just society.
Right on Time
Some Christians assume that the law was given as a temporary way of righteousness until Christ came. The problem with this view is that at least three thousand years had gone when God gave the law. If a temporary system of righteousness was needed, why did God wait for so long to give it?
Nearly 400 years before the law was given, Abraham understood righteousness through faith in God (Rom 4:9). Moses was also accepted by faith, before God gave him the law (Heb 11:24, 25). If righteousness through faith was already available, why would God give a system of righteousness by law? Why would God replace a superior righteousness with an inferior law?
The answer is that God gave the law just when it was needed. Up until the time of Abraham, there was plenty of room in the world, so people did not need to live in close proximity. When people had disputes, they could just move away from each other. By the time of Jacob, people were starting to live closer together, and disputes over property were becoming prevalent (Jacob and Esau, Jacob and Laban). A system for resolving disputes was needed.
Then they went down to Egypt to live as slaves, with no choice but to accept the Egyptian system of justice. This changed when they escaped. With a million people living in a small country, disputes would be bound to occur. God gave the law to deal with the problem. He gave it just when it was needed.
The law was a system of justice for dealing with disputes over property and violence towards people. God gave the law to restrain crime. It never had any other purpose, and that purpose has not changed. It was given when it was needed, because God’s timing is always perfect.
Package Job
The law came as part of a package. At the same time as he gave the law, God gave a system of priests and sacrifices to deal with sin. These sacrifices were a constant reminder to the people of their sin. As part of the package, God also gave some other external distinctives, like the Sabbath and circumcision, to separate them from the nations around them.
God no longer works through a nation, so these external distinctives are no long longer needed. Our agape love should distinguish us from the people of the world. The perfect sacrifice of Jesus ended the need for Old Testament sacrifices. Jesus became the great high priest, ending the need for priests.
However, a method of restraining wickedness is still needed. Everyone understands this. Even nations that reject God have laws against theft and violence. They might mess up God's law by adding human accretions, but they generally understand the need for laws against these crimes. Everyone understands that law is essential for a peaceful society.
Not Holiness
Another common misconception about the Law of Moses is that it is a standard for righteousness containing a complete list of all sins. This is just not true.
God gave the law revealed to Moses to provide a way for people to live in harmony. It was not intended to be a list of all sins. Pride is not mentioned in the Ten Commandments. Neither is presumption or gluttony. We should not be surprised at these omissions, because this is not the purpose of the law.
God’s full standard of righteousness was not spelt out clearly until the Fruit of the Spirit were listed in the New Testament. The fruit describe God’s standard, but it seems that God knew that it would be impossible for humans prior to the cross and fullness of the Holy Spirit, so he did not bother setting them out systematically until after the Spirit had been poured out. The fruit are the outcome of a spirit-filled life, not a standard of righteousness that we must struggle to comply with.
Moses understood this well. He was the most humble man on the earth, even though humility is not one of the Ten Commandments. He was humble because he loved God, not because the law required it. He understood that the law was not given to define sin, but to provide a way for people to live in peace.
Jesus corrected this error in the Sermon on the Mount by giving a true standard of righteousness. He then explained that keeping the law was not sufficient for a holy life. There are plenty of people who have never committed adultery, murdered someone, stolen from their neighbour or perjured themselves before a court, but that does not make them holy. Jesus explained that anger and lust are sins, even though they are not forbidden by the law.
Our righteousness must surpass the standard required by the law (Matt 5:20).
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matt 5:48).
Keeping the law makes us peaceful citizens, but it does not make us holy. God’s holiness requires a much higher standard than the law.
Some Christians assume that Jesus was changing the law and setting a higher standard. This is not correct. He confirmed the law.
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished (Matt 5:17-18).
Jesus was not changing the law. He was explaining the difference between the laws needed for the harmonious working of society and the standard of holiness of righteousness required by holiness. The law is sufficient for people to live in harmony, because that is its purpose. It is not our standard of righteousness.
Surprise
Jesus has a strong warning for those who teach people to ignore the law. Those in the modern church who despise the law should take note.
Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven (Matt 5:19).
This is an amazing statement. Those who teach people to ignore the law are at the bottom of the heap. Those who teach the law will be called the greatest in the kingdom. This is one that we have not noticed. Christians should think twice before they knock God’s law.
Love
Christians have this view that the New Testament is about love and the Old Testament is about law. They see them as opposites. The words commonly used to describe the Old Testament law include harsh, cruel, severe and merciless.
Jesus had a different view of the law. When asked what is the greatest law, he said,
'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
The first part of his response is well-known, but the final sentence is fascinating. Jesus says that the law hangs on the command to love your neighbour as yourself. How can harsh laws hang on a command to love your neighbour? Jesus saw the law as being about love, so how can it be harsh and cruel?
Paul was even blunter in his statement about the law.
The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself (Gal 5:14).
The law is summed up by the word love. How can a law that is harsh and cruel be summed up by the word love? This does not make sense.
Only one conclusion can follow from these two messages. Those who believe the law is harsh and cruel have misunderstood it. If we read the law in the way that Jesus read it, we would see God’s love and the love of man, not harshness and cruelty. If we are not seeing love when we read the law, then we may need to read it again through the eyes of Jesus.
I believe that Christians who want to understand political systems need to seriously study the Old Testament law. However, we need a radically different approach. We need to approach the law in the same way as Jesus and Paul, looking for love of God and love of neighbour. We might be surprised at what we find.
Example to the Nations
The law was not just for Israel. God’s purpose was that nations would see the effectiveness of his laws and want to copy them.
See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the LORD my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people." And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today? (Deut 4:5-8).
God’s law would make Israel into a great nation. The other nations would look at their body of laws and express amazement. They would choose to follow the Israelite examples. God’s influence would not grow through the expansion of the Israelite kingdom. Rather it would spread as the nations copied the laws that God had given to Israel.
God’s system was a unique combination of law and no human king. The nations all had kings and arbitrary laws.
God’s plan failed because Israel refused to accept his system. They chose a mixture of God’s law and human kings that produced failure and not greatness. The nations never got to see the greatness of God’s system of laws.
In the Old Testament, the expectation was that the nations would copy the second table first. Once people had experienced the benefits of these laws, they would start to enquire about the God who had given them and get interested in the first table. The law came first, and loving God came second.
Since the coming of Jesus, the order has been reversed. As the gospel is preached, the nations accept Jesus as Lord. They would then be taught to obey his laws. The nations will love God first as they hear the gospel, and then apply his laws as they study his word.
What a Great System
God expected the nations to look at Israel’s laws and system of government and say, “What a great system! Why don’t we copy it!” Unfortunately, God never even got his own people to say these words. Instead, they looked at the nations with their kings and said, “What a great system. We need a King!”
Now God cannot get Christians to look at his law and say, “What wonderful laws!” Most Christians either hate his law, or are totally ignorant of its content. Instead, Christians look at democracy and say, “What a great system! We will go with that”.
This should be a wake-up call for us. God expects people to look at his law and say, “What a great system!”
Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.
Your commands make
me wiser than my enemies,
for they are ever with me.
I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.
I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.
How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path. (Psalm 119:97-104).
We must have missed something. We have not understood the greatness of God’s law. Perhaps it is time to have another look and find out what God was so excited about when he actually came down to earth and gave the law to Moses.
Highest Common Denominator
The key for a successful system of government to function is finding the "highest common denominator", to twist a mathematical expression. The highest common denominator is what most people will be committed to, or at least not object to. The aim should be to find positions that most people can agree on.
In the past, when a Christian worldview was more widespread, the highest common denominator was more Christian, but as pluralism increases, some of the things that were widely accepted in the past are no longer part of the highest common denominator.
Culture and the media shape the highest common denominator, so it is not constant, but changes over time. Prayer in schools was once part of the highest common denominator, but now it is not. Likewise, abortion once was, but now is not part of the highest common denominator.
The best common denominator is the second table of the law. It limits law to prohibiting crimes that will always be part of the highest common denominator. Almost everyone believes that murder, assault, theft and false witness are crimes. They are specified as crimes in most legal systems. Most people believe that adultery is wrong, but not everyone wants it to be a crime (Moses did not enforce the adultery laws). The second table of the law remains part of the highest common denominator, even in a wicked or pluralistic society.
The same applies to the biblical principles about the functioning of the law. Everyone accepts the principle of proportional restitution. Everyone accepts that just should be tempered by mercy.
A highest common denominator approach means that politics must remain humble. The problem is that most politicians want to do too much, so they end up going beyond the highest common denominator and start forcing significant groups of people to do things that they do not want to do, ie forcing a minority to do what the majority believe is good. God’s law is more humble.