So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. Galatians 3:24 (NIV).
Have you ever considered that the law was good for you? I know folks who absolutely despise laws, and hate cops even more. They say that all cops are all corrupt, and that laws were put in place for elites to control other people. And I know folks who would prefer anarchy – the absence of law – over having even the most lenient of laws in place. That it would be better for the world if people were simply allowed to do anything they please, free of consequences.
What a foolish, short-sighted way to think. Simple physics says that, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Too often, those consequences go poorly. There are always consequences. Even in a world of grays, there are still right and wrong actions. Yes, nearly all things can be boiled down to binary choices.
That isn’t just me saying that: it’s part of what Paul is saying. God’s law was given to us to protect us, to show us that we need to rely fully and only on Him in a world full of sin and its corruptions. Without boundaries, we humans will drive anywhere: over someone else’s roads, over other’s property, over others’ relationships. Our boundaries – our laws – are based on morality, which is (even for secularists and so-called atheists) universally based on our knowledge of God and the boundaries He laid for us.
Until God’s salvation was fully revealed to humanity (in Jesus), we humans were made aware of our transgressions by having the law itself in our lives. Going all the way back to Hammurabi, we added to God’s natural laws with codes, regulations, and additional laws to define behaviors where God’s laws didn’t. But in nearly all cases, laws were made (or even decreed) to preserve humanity or ensure safety. Yes, there have been tyrants and despots throughout history who misused law for their own gains and controls. Yet even the most despotic of those have been the exception.
Bottom line? The law is generally good for us. God gave us His laws so we would be aware when our thoughts, words, and deeds became transgressions against holiness. Against what Satan is trying to do in our lives. The law guards us and provides us opportunities to know when we’ve wronged God or others, then to act on that (repent, prevent, even just to vent). I know there are those who’ll disagree; that’s ok. It isn’t for me or anyone to judge others, only to judge how things others say and do impact our lives…by comparing those things against God’s laws and what they mean to us.
For further reading: Galatians 3:25
Father, I give you all my praise for the laws You give us!
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