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The Rule of Law: Government of the Mind (1)
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” Exodus 20.2
We have said that the rule of Law God intends for His people must begin in their souls – heart, mind, and conscience – and that primary among these is the government of the heart, our desires and affections. But the government of the heart cannot be achieved apart from the government of the mind. God intends that His Law should shape not only what we desire but what and how we think. The Law of God is crucial to the proper government of the mind.
And this is rooted in understanding Who God is and knowing Him. The Law thus begins with God’s declaration of His Name (LORD), His status (“your God”), and His gracious covenant faithfulness (“brought you out”). The people of God must know that their God stands back of His Law, and that, as God, LORD, and Redeemer, He has every right to expect of them that they should obey Him.
The Law of God further explains that God is Creator of all things in heaven and earth and sovereign over all peoples, nations, events, and powers. We learn from the Law that this God is holy and righteous and good; that He is just and true; and that He is jealous for His honor and His righteousness. He is the only God and is thus alone worthy of our worship and devotion. He is capable of great compassion and of great wrath. He will never fail nor forsake those who continue to look to Him in faith.
We should expect our reading and study of God’s Law – including the religious and sacrificial laws – to give us an increasingly large and clear picture of God and ultimately to point us to Jesus Christ, God incarnate, Who came to fulfill all the righteous requirements of God’s Law and to bear all its wrath for our deliverance (Heb. 7-10).
We are learning the Law aright when it fills our understanding with the knowledge of God, and when our minds, thus filled, teach our hearts to fear and love this God above all else.
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.