“Understanding
is a Wellspring of Life to him that has it.” (Proverbs. 16:22)
Occasional papers by Arthur & Rosalind Eedle
How I Love
Your Law! (Psalm 119:97)
Arthur has asked me to
write something more on my studies of the Law. There have been a few responses
to the first article and important points have been raised which we know need
answering. First of all I would like to explain something of my own walk with
the Lord. I was raised in the understanding that 'the law was nailed to the
cross', that not only did the law of the OT not apply today but also
many other things, e.g breaking of bread and baptism. I held to these
teachings tenaciously until my early 20s. From then until now my understanding
of God and His word have changed continuously as He has opened my mind and
expanded my thinking. This has of course been the result of our joint walk with
the Lord and our many investigations and discussions. In the 1980s we were
exercised concerning the verse in Peter which clearly indicates that our
conduct can hasten the return of our Lord. This led me to think on our life and
how we conducted ourselves. Then the Lord urged me to study the subject
of the Sabbath which inevitably caused me to read much of the OT Law. My
overwhelming reaction then was to worship the Lord for His incredible
graciousness, mercy, love and compassion for His creation. I had never realised
before that the Law was so full of understanding for humankind, that He did
indeed, to quote David, 'Know our frame, He remembers we are dust.'
So I began to love and cherish God's law with a passion, the more I read the
more I came to understand many of the perplexities which arise from not
meditating on His law. From there I wondered whether our previous belief
that the law was nailed to the cross, was in fact wrong. And so began a long
study on the commandments and law in the New Testament. I wrote out every
occurrence and read the contexts. Again I was absolutely convinced that the Law
of God continued to be held in high esteem and was loved by those who loved
Him.
In Deut. 6:5-9 God's heart reaches out to the children of Israel "You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with
all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be in your
heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them
when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and
when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be
as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your
house and on your gates". This is clearly the basis on which the
people of God were intended to live - a love-relationship with their Maker, a
relationship which, because it was based on love, would enable them to immerse
themselves, daily, in God and yes, keep and guard His commandments.
When two people love
each other in a marriage, to please the other is paramount - love is the basis.
Sometimes there are hard things to do to please the other, but because of love
we want to and try to. So with the Lord and His relationship with His people.
However, because of the fall of mankind even that love from God does not always
persuade us that we should obey. So the law shows us that we fall short and are
sinners. This, I know, is elementary but bears repeating. So that man would
realise just how fallen we are, and how a holy God feels about disobedience and
the awful effect that has on us, He gave penalties for disobedience. As I wrote
in the last article, those penalties were intended to be administered
righteously, with God's hand, not man's.
So we come to the New
Testament. 'And you, being dead in your trespasses and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having
forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements
that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the
way, having nailed it to the cross.' As I pondered on this verse,
wanting to face it, wanting to be made to feel uncomfortable by it so that I
would not be untrue, I asked myself, who was nailed to the cross? Jesus. Jesus
became sin, He carried the sins of the whole world away, He expunged them from
the universe. Then it dawned on me. The handwriting of requirements which
no-one, save Jesus, has been able to obey completely, had penalties. It was the
penalties, the requirement for breaking those laws, which were nailed to the
cross. There is now NO CONDEMNATION for those in Christ because Jesus took them
and they were nailed to the cross in Him.
Paul said in Rom.3:31 'Do
we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary we
establish the law'. And in Rom.7:12 'Therefore the law is holy
and the commandment holy and just and good'. But, he says in verse 14 'For
we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin'.
Then in Rom.8:7 'The carnal mind in enmity against God; for it is not
subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be'. Therefore it is when we walk in the
spirit that we are subject to the law which is spiritual as Rom 8:2,3&4
says - 'The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free
from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was
weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous
requirements of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to
the flesh but according to the Spirit'. This does not condemn the law
itself as weak, but we are weak when trying to keep the law. It is the sinful
flesh and the results that required the penalties that Jesus nailed to the
cross in Himself.
Galations was written to correct the backward step some had taken in
teaching that the law was to be kept in order to be righteous. The epistle
is about faith in opposition to self-righteousness. As I read it became more
and more obvious to me that Paul was incredulous that so soon were they going
back to thinking they could be justified by keeping the law. Gal.5:4 'You
have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law, you
have fallen from grace.' He says in verse 1, 'Stand fast
therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be
entangled again with a yoke of bondage.' It was the bondage of keeping
the law in order to be righteous, the Pharisaical attitude which leads
to self-righteousness that was the bondage.
If then the law is 'holy,
just and good' how could it be sinful and nailed to the cross?
In the OT times the law was given to show forth the righteousness of God. Then
the children of Israel were asked to keep those laws to demonsrate to the
nations the character of their Maker. They, as we all would, failed. God knew
they would and provided the animal sacrifices for sin. These sacrifices covered
their sins until Jesus came to expunge them completely. Gal.3:23 says 'Before
faith came we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would
after be revealed'. So we believe that all of the NT passages that
appear to make the law of no effect or useless, are referring to being justified
by keeping it. Rom.10:4 'Christ is the end of the law FOR righteousness
to everyone who believes'. In other words in Christ
we are justified, not in keeping the law.
So many times we are
exhorted to 'Love your neighbour as yourself', 'On these two
commandments hang all the law and the Prophets', 'Love does no harm to a
neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilment of the law'. John's
epistles are full of keeping the Lord's commandments to show our love. 'This
is love that we walk according to His commandments'. Clearly, to obey
our Lord should be as a result of our love for Him. There are no
penalties for disobeying apart from our reaping what we sow, Jesus has dealt
with sin once and for all, nailed it all to the cross. Indeed this is why
Arthur and I want to observe, guard and where possible, keep God's Holy
law. It is not to be justified, because we are all condemned under the law, it
is to please the Lord, to show our love for Him and 'by our
conduct, hasten His coming again', the verse I mentioned at the
beginning. We fail, but that does not prevent us from loving the law that shows
us how far we have fallen and then throws us again on our Saviour to Whom
we owe so
much.
As I studied these things in the 1980s my heart thrilled to the ways of God
with man. As I have again studied them, I feel the same. Meditating on the laws
of God keep His absolutes near and dear. They help me love Him more, understand
Him more and help me grasp hold of His ultimate plan for the world. To think of
what He has done for us: Jesus wrenched Himself
apart from the Godhead - an agony in itself - then came here to earth as a man
and experienced life in a sinful and unhappy world. As if that wasn't enough,
He took on Himself all the penalties against us, took all the sin from
Adam to the end, into Himself and died a horrible death. He was separated from
His home, from His Father and Mother and went through unimaginable hell to
release His creation from all the wretchedness of sin and death. He did this
because of His love, His longing for us to be what He created us to be in the
beginning. He did it so that we can have the joy of NO CONDEMNATION. Even
though we remain in a fallen condition, our sins are not counted against us, we
are righteous in Him. The gratitude which this love must bring forth in us
causes me to say with David of old -
"Oh, how I
love Your law! It is my meditation all the day."
"Great peace have they who love Your law, and they shall have no
stumbling block."
"Deal with
your servant according to Your mercy, and teach me Your statutes. I am Your servant,
give me understanding that I may know Your testimonies. It is time for You to
act, O Lord, for they have regarded Your law as void. Therefore I love Your
commandments more than gold, yes, than fine gold! Therefore all Your precepts I
consider to be right, I hate every false way. Your testimones are wonderful
therefore my soul keeps them."
To read of the law in Psalm 119 and to capture David's love of it completely
prevents any nailing of it to the cross - anything or anyone nailed to that
cross was a curse. Jesus became a curse for us. But the law itself remains
holy, just and good, a constant reminder that we are a fallen people and
are in need of our Saviour ALWAYS. I have not covered so many things, it
is such a vast subject with lots of side issues worthy of much thought but I
have tried to give a few more reasons for why Arthur and I feel so strongly,
and why we love God's law so much.