Law is fundamental to any civilised society. From where does law originate ? Documented laws of
equality of retribution date from 3,800 years ago and more. Laws are made in particular
circumstances. Sometimes this is at the behest of a totalitarian ruler or dictator. Sometimes it is
following great popular pressure for change and sometimes it is as a reaction to external events
when it may be feared things are getting out of control. Very often civil law is the collected
wisdom of how to govern and help the nation to function in all its complexity. Clearly there are
variations in laws from one society or nation to another. Despite the inappropriateness of
particular laws in certain specific circumstances they are still legally binding. All these laws are,
generally speaking, presupposing a general standard of morality.
Moral standards vary from one society to another. But in the Western world for many centuries
these have been derived largely from the Biblical 'Ten Commandments'. Such commandments
claim God's authority and that is the basis of their lasting value and influence. God spoke to
Moses these words for his Old Testament Israelite people to live by, and he wrote them on stone
tablets.
These exacting requirements show us not only a standard to live by but, more fundamentally, the
holy character of God. He is altogether more moral than the greatest saint. It was a fearful thing
to approach the mountain in the Sinai desert when God issued these standards. Though they could
not see him, because he had no physical form, yet when they heard his voice out of the fire they
were terrified and urged Moses their leader to act as a go-between. God had delivered them out
of slavery to the Egyptian Pharaoh, who was drowned with a division of his army when pursuing
the fleeing Israelite people. This was a miraculous deliverance. Could you imagine, that had the
Jews been miraculously saved from Hitler in a great exodus, what awe would grip those people ?
In the opening expression of this law God identifies himself to the Israelites as the one who had
rescued them from slavery.
Few would quibble that we should honour our father and mother, should not steal, murder or
commit adultery. For most people these commandments, considered as a whole, are a tough
standard to have a clear conscience about. God describes himself as jealous and vengeful against
those who provoke him. Any husband would rightly be jealous of a rival for his wife's affections.
And with still greater justification God will repay any who usurp his rightful place as Lord and
Protector. All forms of idolatry are included in this prohibition. In twentieth century Britain
idolatry includes giving prior place to football or popular music as well as the more obvious love
of money. Other idols are political or philosophical views that amount in practice to atheism.
There are two very practical tests that we can make of ourselves. "Do I reserve time to worship
and serve God ?". "Do I use the name of God carelessly, without meaning and purpose ?".
Honouring father and mother may not seem a difficult task to many but in circumstances of
broken homes and family tensions these can be particularly difficult today. The true intent of these
latter commandments was expounded by Jesus in his famous Sermon on the Mount (Matthew
5:21 and onwards).
We have all failed to measure up to these standards.
Can we say we have not coveted something that belongs to another person ? People wriggled out
of these requirements in Jesus' day and he strongly challenged the watered down and legalistic
interpretations of the commandments that the religious rulers had come to. Rules about how far
you could walk on a Sabbath day had been elevated in importance over those that betrayed the
evil intents of the human heart such as covetousness and lust. By contrast with this easy,
self-justifying legalism, Jesus exalted God's character as being pure and intolerant of morally
wrong behaviour. Jesus taught, "Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect". At the same time
he himself welcomed sinners.
This was just one purpose of the law, the moral law. For the Israelite, God's law also
encompassed the civil law for the administration of their society and the ceremonial regulations
integral to their religion. Clear differentiation between these are not generally given. In God's
purpose the ceremonial law in it's symbolism pointed forward to all that Jesus Christ would
accomplish as the perfect man who offered his life as the "once-for-all-time" sacrifice to pay for
our moral failures and reconcile us to Almighty God (Heb 10:11-12). This preparation of the
people of Israel brought about a desire in some for genuine righteousness.
Jesus as an authority on the law of Moses begins his Sermon on the Mount saying, "Favoured are
those who hunger & thirst for righteousness for they will be filled". It is right that we should want
to be righteous in God's estimation. Law itself convicts us of our self-disqualification from a
welcome into God's presence. Only in the knowledge of righteousness accredited to us from Jesus
Christ is there hope for humankind with an expectation of meeting the Holy and Almighty God.
The achievement of this righteous status as a result of faith is expressed as, "The righteous shall
live by faith" (Habukkak 2:4) which is quoted several times in the New Testament (Rom 1:17, Gal
3:11, Heb 10:37-38).
Jesus Christ, by his sacrificial death, took the penalty deserved by us for breaking God's law & falling short of God's standards. When we trust in Jesus, his morally perfect life is accredited to us, the morally imperfect.
Read about God's Son
DEUTERONOMY 5:1-22
Moses summoned all Israel and said:
Hear, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them.2 The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. 3 It was not with our fathers that the Lord made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today. 4 The Lord spoke to you face to face out of the fire on the mountain.
5 (At that time I stood between the Lord and you to declare to you the word of the Lord, because you were afraid of the fire and did not go up the mountain.) And he said:
6 "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
7 "You shall have no other gods before me.
8 "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 10 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
11 "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
12 "Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labour and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.
16 "Honour your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
17 "You shall not murder.
18 "You shall not commit adultery.
19 "You shall not steal.
20 "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbour.
21 "You shall not covet your neighbour's wife. You shall not set your desire on your neighbour's house or land, his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour."
22 These are the commandments the Lord proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly
there on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and he added nothing
more. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.
MATTHEW 5:17-48
"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. 18 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. 19 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. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago,
'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'
22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
27 "You have heard that it was said,
'Do not commit adultery.'
28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
31 "It has been said,
'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.'
32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.
33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago,
'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.'
34 But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
38 "You have heard that it was said,
'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'
39 But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41 If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43 "You have heard that it was said,
'Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.'
44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?
48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.