Uses of the Law: A Foundation for Justice and Salvation (1)

T. M. Moore

“Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and you understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’” Deuteronomy 4.6

From the beginning of God’s giving His Law He intended that His people should bear witness to the surrounding nations of the wisdom and understanding of God by their obedience to His Law (cf. vv. 7, 8). God is determined to fill the earth with the knowledge of His glory (Num. 14.21; Hab. 2.14), and it is the calling of His people to pursue that objective through their good works and faithful witness (1 Cor. 10.31; 1 Pet. 3.15). These, as we have seen, are intimately bound up in the Law of God.

Because all people are made in the image of God, with the works of the Law written on their hearts (Rom. 2.14, 15), they have an inherent sense of right and wrong, of what is good and proper, what contributes to wisdom and understanding. The Law of God is the primary locus whereby the nations may see reflected both what is written on their own souls and God’s purpose for loving and just societies. Further, because it points men to Christ, the Law of God establishes a framework and foundation on and within which the work of the Gospel must proceed.

To the extent that the Law of God is observed within any given culture, therefore, we may expect the blessings of God to be present amid that people, and the way for the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be open and free. Christians strive, in the power of the Holy Spirit and for the confirmation of their redemption, to do those good works which God has before ordained for them in His Law (Eph. 2.10). But they must not be content merely to practice and foster obedience to the Law of God within the pale of the believing community. If wisdom and understanding, and a foundation for justice and salvation, are to exist in any society, that society must be taught the virtues and benefits that accrue to it through obedience to God’s Law.

But let me be clear: Any nation which conforms its laws and statutes to the teaching of God’s Law has no grounds to expect that such statutory conformity will in any way ensure salvation for it or its people. Salvation is of the Lord, through faith in Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, God is faithful, and the blessings which men and nations may know in this life are the fruit of His grace. When a nation’s laws and statutes line up with the teaching of God’s Laws, we may expect that there His blessings will flow more freely and abundantly, and the prospects of salvation through Jesus Christ will be more readily available and apparent.

For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the life of faith, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.ailbe.org and click on our Book Store.