We are back to our series we were in before Advent… the big picture of the bible. And we come to a really important, central subject in the bible - God’s law. There are four books dedicated to expounding God’s law. Large books. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It’s pretty important. Not only that, but the godly in the OT and the NT revered the law of God. The four verses read just a bit ago from Psalm 119 is just a sampling from that chapter. The longest chapter in the bible, 176 verses, all extolling God’s law. 

There are two ditches we need to stay out of regarding the relationship between the law and the gospel. The first is legalism. Legalism says that we are accepted by God through law keeping… by being good. It says we are accepted by keeping the ten commandments or even just the two love commandments (love God and neighbor). No one ever has or ever will be accepted by God on the basis of their keeping of the law. EVER. In the OT nobody was saved by keeping the law! If you would be saved by the law, you must be perfect. And only Christ was perfect! It is tempting to think this way though… and most people are born legalists. But it is devastating to be caught in this ditch (swing from pride to depression based on how good you think you are). 

The other ditch is called antinomianism (against law). Antinomianism says that God no longer requires Christians to obey His moral law… because we are under grace. It goes on… since we have the Spirit and can be led by the Spirit, what need is there for commands to direct our conduct. There are some extreme versions that would go so far as to permit sin because of the leniency of God’s grace. I’ve known people who embraced this extreme version… and it was devastating to them and their families. 

These are two errors that can have grave consequences. So this morning, my aim is to give an overview of the law given through Moses, how it applies and it what ways it no longer applies… and help us stay on this road. Out of the ditches. And if you discover you are in one of the ditches, I hope to help you out this morning. 

My plan to give an overview of the law and show its goodness this week. And then next Sunday, tackle the ten commandments (briefly). 

After God delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt, God gave them His law through Moses, beginning with the ten commandments. The words of the law came from the very mouth of God. Here is where the Law of God fits into the big idea of the bible: Human beings are not created autonomous - as a law unto themselves. We were created to live under God’s rule… under His law. As you read through the scriptures, from beginning to end, God’s covenant people are called to live according to His commands. The law was given initially to the nation of Israel through Moses. The law is often called the Law of Moses. These laws were given for their good. Living under God’s rule would bring great blessing to Israel… and it certainly does to us as well. Deuteronomy 6:18, “You shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you.“ God expected obedience… and the result was that His people, Israel, would be blessed in their obedience. Obedience was never the means of their salvation… but as the people of God, living under His rule, obedience was to be a marker that they belonged to God. And obedience should mark followers of Christ today. 

God’s law was to govern Israel broadly in three ways… and this will help us discern in what ways the law applies to us today. 

The first is the ceremonial and purity laws. These were laws concerning the levitical priesthood and their rituals, sacrifices, and offerings in the tabernacle/temple. This also would include dietary laws and “holiness code” requirements that were put in place to separate the people of Israel from the other nations. These laws were temporary and for the purpose of instruction. These laws, pertaining to ceremony and purity have been done away with or have been fulfilled in Christ. Jesus declared all foods clean (Mark 7:19), to which all of us lovers of bacon and all things pork say a hearty “AMEN!” And what need is there for continuing sin and peace sacrifices since Christ has offered himself once for all time (Hebrews 1:2, 7:27). 

This is one of the enormous themes in the book of Hebrews. Jesus Christ is our High Priest. And he offered himself once to take away our sins. The entire sacrificial system was a type and shadow… Christ is the substance. These laws have been made obsolete.

Then you have the civil laws. These were laws for a just society. These were moral laws in nature with penalties attached to them. There were laws dealing with a whole variety of items like stealing, murder, accidental death, restitution if you injured someone or harmed their livestock, and property rights, railing around the roof of your house. How would this apply today? Well, as Christians we should want just laws. And what should be our standard of justice? God’s law. Remember, there are really only two options: Autonomy or God’s law. 

Interestingly, the American system of laws at its founding, were based on the case laws of Deuteronomy. Not that Israel’s laws were superimposed over the US. But they were applied based on the principle of the law. Penalties for lawbreaking, such as murder, laws of restitution, property rights, and so forth. It is striking that a sculpture of Moses is seen at the entrance of the US Supreme Court. [Court case concerning ten commandments Texas state capitol - irony].

Finally, there was the moral law. And this is where I want to park for the remainder of this week and next. The moral law gives us the basics of right and wrong. Good and evil. God’s moral law is summed up in the ten commandments. The commandments were spoken by the living God, engraved on tablets of stone by the finger of God. Therefore the commands carry moral weight! 

Idolatry is a moral evil, because God says you shall have no other gods before Him. Taking God’s name in vain is a moral crime against God because you use his name in a trifling way. Stealing, bearing false witness, taking the life of another person with malice and forethought is evil. Why is abortion a moral evil? Because the sixth commandment says, you shall not murder. 

This moral law of God, summed up in the ten commandments is perpetually binding. It is always relevant for us. By what standard do we judge something good or evil? Not our private intuition. Not what the cackling mob says. We judge good and evil by God’s standard. If you want to know why we live in increasingly lawless times, I think it is because God’s moral law has been diminished… even among Christians. Loving the gospel should not in any way make us anti-law. When Paul says Christians are not under the law, he is not diminishing the importance of God’s moral standards… or the ten commandments. He is saying that we can never be made right with God by trying really hard to be good and keep His commands. We are justified by faith in Jesus Christ who kept the law perfectly on our behalf… and then we seek to keep God’s commands out of love. 

So, how can the psalmist say, “The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and sliver pieces”, “Oh how I love your law!” “Your words are sweeter than honey to my mouth!”? Not the gospel… not God’s promises… but rules, instruction and commands. How should we understand the law so that we can say “it’s better than gold, sweeter than honey, I love it” without falling into the ditch of legalism?

Consider three good uses of the moral law: The law is a Mirror, Restraint, Guide. 

The Law Is A Mirror

First, the law is a mirror. They are not abstract commands and regulations, but they reflect the Lawgiver. They reflect God and His perfect righteousness. The moral law reveals to us the character of God. The law proceeds from God’s mouth… his very being and reflects His perfections. Why does God require no other gods before Him? Because He is infinitely worthy of our complete devotion and worship! Why does He command you shall not commit adultery? Because sexual purity (of all forms) reflects His purity. Why shall we not covet? Because we ought to be content with what He provides for us. The law reflects the Lawgiver. 

In revealing God’s character, the law also exposes our fallenness. The law shows us our sinfulness. Have you ever noticed Jesus’ evangelism technique is using the law to show people their sin? The Samaritan woman. She was exposed. Her immorality was exposed. The rich, young ruler (explain - he loved his god of mammon more than God). The lawyer (loving neighbor). Paul makes this point of the law revealing sin in Romans 7:7, when he says,

If it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”

And this is good! Because in showing us our sin, it reveals to us our deepest need is not self-affirmation or self-realization or self-actualization, but a Savior! Paul says the law is a tutor to bring us to Christ. 

I have a deep concern that there are people (some here perhaps) who claim to be a Christian and yet have never been confronted with their own sinfulness. So they claim to be saved… but saved from what? From sin generically. But what sin? Jesus is not a life coach. Jesus is the One who saves His people from their sins. Sins against God. Sins against God’s law. Now some may look through the ten commandments and feel pretty good about how they stack up, but Jesus goes deeper than the letter of the law and keeping them externally. In the sermon on the mount, He takes us to the heart level. He says, “You have heard it say, “You shall not commit adultery, but I say if you look on a woman with lustful intent, you have already committed adultery…” 

What is he doing? Revealing the Lawgiver. And exposing sinners to drive them to the Savior… to Himself. So that we may come to Christ by grace through faith and be forgiven, justified. The law is good because it is a mirror. 

The Law is a Restraint

Second, the law of God is good because it restrains evil. The law cannot change the heart… but it does restrain evil - especially when penalties are tied to them. Have you noticed when laws in a city, state or nation are lax, lawlessness increases? When there are lax laws on armed robbery, what do you get more of? Armed robbery. JI Packer said,

Though the law cannot change the heart, the law can to some extent inhibit lawlessness by its threats of judgment, especially when backed by a civil code that administers punishment for proven offenses. 

Have you ever heard someone say, “you cannot legislate morality”? I used to think that way… foolishly. All laws legislate morality. If you have lax laws for murderers, you are legislating a certain morality. If you have lax laws on property theft, you are legislating morality. If you have lax laws for libel and slander, you are legislating morality. But if God’s law is the standard, and murderers will be punished stiffly… with the death penalty, guess what? You have less murder. 

And this works on a personal level. When God’s laws and standards are understood and upheld for speaking the truth, people’s right to property, sexual purity, and so forth… though the laws do not change the heart, they do have a restraining effect. And that is good. 

The Law is a Guide 

The most wonderful function of the law is that it is a guide for God’s people. It is a pattern of how we are to live in order to please God. Watson: “The law is not a Christ to save us, but a path to lead us”. The law does not save us. But it does guide us on a path that pleases God. This is no small thing. Isn’t it wonderful to know we can actually live in such a way that we please God? Colossians 3:20 says, “children obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord.” We can live under the smile of God not only because we are in Christ but also by living in a way that He approves of and loves! In Titus 2, Paul describes the purpose of God redeeming us through Christ to make us, “zealous for good works”. Zealous for obedience. 

I think that is remarkable. The blessed man of Psalm 1 meditates on the law of God day and night, delights in it… and he is like a tree planted by streams of water and bears fruit in every season… and in all he does he prospers. All of this is connected with his meditation on and affection for God’s law and his obedience to it.

Faithfulness to Christ and pleasing Christ is not just about right beliefs in our heads and right affections in our hearts, it is about right actions. It is about obedience. Samuel in a rebuke of Saul said, “Obedience is better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22). Saul thought he was doing something great for God, but explicitly disobeyed a direct command. 

Thomas Watson wrote in his book on the ten commandments, “Obedience carries in it the life-blood of religion. Obedience without knowledge is blind. Knowledge without obedience is lame”. It is not enough to have the right thoughts and good vibes about God. Obedience to God’s commands carries in it the lifeblood of religion. Douglas Wilson says that what we believe ought to come out of our fingertips and our toes. In other words, a life of obedience that pleases God. And when we as redeemed followers of Christ, live in obedience to Christ, we live a life of blessing… under the rule of our Creator who is also our Redeemer. JC Ryle speaks of being a person of one thing:

A zealous man in religion is pre-eminently a man of one thing. It is not enough to say that he is earnest, hearty, uncompromising, thorough-going, whole-hearted, fervent in spirit. He sees one thing, he cares for one thing, he lives for one thing, he is swallowed-up in one thing — and that one thing is to please God. 

God’s commands are given to us to show us what pleases Him. Paul says, “In life and death… we make it our aim to please God” (2 Corinthians 5:11). Is this your aim? Make this your prayer for 2025: “Father, give me a zeal to please you through a life of obedience”

What are the ingredients of obedience that pleases God?

1. As a redeemed person through the perfect obedience of Jesus Christ. Your obedience will never earn salvation. Christ has earned it for you! Your obedience from the place of being a redeemed, loved child of God. JI Packer said, “The law tells God’s children what will please their heavenly Father. It could be called their family code.”

2. In the strength of the Spirit. I’m gonna come back to this next week… when we are born again, the law is written on our hearts. The Spirit gives us new desires… but we still battle the flesh. So we seek the Spirit’s help to obey God. 

3. From the heart. In other words, we care not about merely obeying externally. Well, I’ve never killed anyone. I’ve never slept with another woman. Okay good, are you looking at porn? Jesus says our righteousness must go exceed that of the pharisees. It needs to go deeper. Matthew 5:21-30

4. Out of love for Christ. Chase’s testimony - If you love me, you will obey my commands (John 14:15). ** John says that for when we love God His commands are not burdensome. 

Let’s pray.