The true Christian has been set free from the penalty and power of sin so that he might live to the glory of God in a life of good works. Liberated from sin, the believer is liberated unto righteousness, and unto a life of walking in God’s Law, as Jesus did (1 Jn. 2.1-6).

The reason is simple, as James explained. The Law of God is a liberating moral code. It does not encumber us with man-made obligations and traditions, like the Pharisees in Jesus’ day tried to do. Rather, it liberates us from merely human protocols and priorities into the clear light of divinely-revealed Truth. It sets us free from the confusion and uncertainty of our own best guesses into the unchanging reliability of God-given standards. It frees us from relativism and pragmatism into the light of life and Truth. It shatters the bonds of guilt and the allure of sin, bringing us to the forgiveness of Christ and the sweet attractiveness of the divine presence.

The Law of God liberates us from folly into glory; all who live and teach the Law of God discover the course of Christ’s Kingdom and walk the path of good works that Jesus walked.

We are not talking about the laws of sacrifice, diet, and cleansing, all of which pertained to the ancient priesthood of Israel. Those laws ceased when Jesus assumed the eternal priesthood from the tribe of Judah, rather than Levi (Heb. 7-10). There is still much to learn from these laws, but they are not our primary focus.

And we’re not auguring for believers to take each statute of the civil code of Old Testament Israel and carry it out on their own authority.

What we’re saying, echoing the apostles and the Lord, is that the Law of God is of enduring value for those who believe in Jesus – indeed, for all men – in learning to walk the path of holiness, righteousness, goodness, and love, the path of Christian discipleship (Rom. 7.12; 1 Jn. 5.1-3).

We are unable to walk that path on our own strength, as we shall see; and we cannot walk that path in order to earn our salvation. However, if we have come to know Jesus as Savior and Lord, and have been born again into the light of His Truth, then taking up the Law of God to obey and teach it will lead us into the freedom of the sons and daughters of God.

The psalmist says that the righteous person meditates day and night in God’s Law (Ps. 1). Would like to get started in this discipline? Order a copy of The Ground for Christian Ethics and The Law of God. The first will explain the importance3 of God’s Law, and guide you in taking up the practice of daily reading and meditation. The second provides all the statutes, precepts, and rules of God’s Law organized under their proper number of the Ten Commandments.