“See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the LORD my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your 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 4.5, 6

If our forebears and Founders believed that benefit could be gained from a proper understanding and use of Biblical law, should we not also expect to find such benefit for ourselves and our posterity?

God never intended that His Law should be reserved for the use of a single peculiar people, or for a single period in history. The Law of God expresses the character of God and outlines His holy and righteous and good purposes for humankind (Rom 3.31; 7.12). As we see in the passage above, on the eve of Israel’s conquest of the promised land, God was already pointing to the day when the nations would admire His people because of the wisdom and understanding Israel would evidence in her obedience to the Law of God. The prophets Isaiah and Micah foresaw a day when the Law of God would go out to the nations, and those nations would eagerly stream up to the mountain of the Lord’s house in order to learn what they could about this wise and understanding way of life (Is. 2.1-3; Mic. 4.1-5).

Governments were instituted by God, and citizens pursue and support government today, as a means of restraining evil so that people can enjoy good and peaceable lives. Government is, the words of the Apostle Paul, God’s servant for good (Rom. 13.1-4; 1 Tim. 2.1-4). Since God’s Law is good and He has instituted governments for good, it follows that the Law of God should be a useful resource for enabling people to enjoy lives of safety and goodness.

The Christian should expect that, as people enjoy the goodness marked out by the Law of God, they might be induced by the wisdom and understanding they see in that Law to “stream up” to the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is the Mountain and Temple of salvation for all who seek Him (Jn. 2.18-21; 3.16).

T. M. Moore

Visit our website, www.ailbe.org, and sign up to receive our thrice-weekly devotional, Crosfigell, featuring writers from the period of the Celtic Revival and T. M.’s reflections on Scripture and the Celtic Christian tradition. Does the Law of God still apply today? Order a copy of T. M.’s book, The Ground for Christian Ethics, and study the question for yourself.