Law in the Kingdom Economy (7)
Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night. Psalm 1.1, 2
“Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5.19
The indispensable Law
We have seen that the Law of God is indispensable to a healthy, growing Christian life, as well as to the nurturing of a healthy, growing local church. The Law of God is integral to seeking and living the Kingdom economy of God, and it is a primary means whereby the grace of God flows through believers and the Church into the world.
The Law of God is the core curriculum of God’s Spirit (Ezek. 36.26, 27) whereby He forms the believer and the congregation into the image of Jesus Christ. The fashionable neglect—or worse, despite—afforded the Law of God by many contemporary Christians represents an unwise posture and course. Instead, we should be seeking ways to be more firmly grounded in the Law of God, until we all, as individuals and congregations, delight in that Law and in the uses the Spirit of God makes of it in our lives.
When the Law of God is our delight, and as it lights our daily path, the wisdom of God will become manifest in us to the watching world, and many in these last days will want to know more about how this wisdom can become theirs as well (Deut. 4.6; Mic. 4.1-5).
Getting the cornerstone in place
How then shall we set about to restore a proper place for the Law of God in the teaching of the Church?
First, we must understand the place of the Law in the canon of sacred Scripture. In one sense all of Scripture is the Law of God, in that all of Scripture reveals the norms and standards and guidelines whereby God intends His people to know, enjoy, and serve Him. The Law of God, given through Moses, acts rather like a cornerstone for the rest of Scripture, giving shape and direction to the life of faith and manifestation of God’s glory in love to God and neighbors. The Law is the acorn to the oak of Scripture (Deut. 32.45-47).
And at the heart of the Law of God—the nucleus of the Law, as it were—as well as its end, is our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is symbolized and foreshadowed in the Law, Who obeyed and fulfilled all the Law, and is the end toward which obedience to the Law of God carries us (Jn. 14.15; 1 Jn. 5.2, 3).
If we do not establish the Law of God in our lives and churches, we should not expect to see the full flourishing of the Kingdom economy which the Law encodes.
Restoring the place of the Law
We restore the proper place of the Law of God in the life of the Church by, first, encouraging and exhorting every believer to make meditation on God’s Law part of his or her daily devotional life. If only to spend time each morning, meditating in listening prayer, on one of the Ten Commandments, this would be a quantum leap beyond where most believers are at present.
But then we must also teach the Law of God in a thorough and systematic manner—through preaching, in Sunday schools and Bible study groups, and as part of the written communications of our church. It will not do simply to offer a series of messages on the Law from time to time. While that is a good idea, the Law of God, as the cornerstone to all of Scripture, should have some place in all our teaching and preaching.
The Law can also have a place in the morning liturgy, where a reading or unison congregational reading of the Ten Commandments would be most appropriate before a time of silent prayers of confession.
The Law and disciple-making
Then we must use the Law in the work of disciple-making, including the work of church discipline. Elders and other church leaders should devote special attention to reading and discussing the Law of God together, so that they may be equipped to deliberate situations that may arise from time to time within the church (cf. Ruth 4). Like Ezra, church leaders in particular should set their hearts to study the Law of God, and to do it and teach it in all aspects of the life of the congregation (Ez. 7.10).Church members must learn the Law, and become skilled in its various uses, in order to fulfill their roles as members in the Body of Christ for the mutual edification of one another and the building-up of the church as a whole.
Witness to the world
Finally, the Law of God must feature in the church’s witness to the surrounding community, both to individuals in need of saving grace, and to the powers-that-be concerning their duty to rule according to God’s good purposes and plan.
We must be neither afraid nor reluctant to say to the lost or to those in places of power and influence, “This is what the Lord says,” and then proceed to explain more carefully what, in their heart of hearts (Rom. 2.14, 15), they know most certainly to be true. If in our personal lives and churches we are living the Law, and manifesting its witness to the community, our task of flowing the grace of God through every available channel will be greatly facilitated (Mic. 4.1-8; Prov. 28.4).
The Law of God must become more central to the lives of believers and their churches, for we will not know the fullness of God’s blessings in Christ apart from delighting in and obeying that holy standard. The Law is a centerpiece of the Kingdom economy, a conduit of the grace of God, and a constant signpost on the path of knowing, loving, and serving our Lord and King.
For reflection
1. Why do you think the Law of God has been neglected by so many Christians?
2. Suggest some ways you might begin to become more familiar with the Law, so that it can fulfill its important role in your life.
3. “The Law of God must become more central to the lives of believers and their churches, for we will not know the fullness of God’s blessings in Christ apart from delighting in and obeying that holy standard.” Do you agree? Explain.
Next steps—Transformation: What can you do to improve your own study and practice of the Law of God? Make a plan and begin following it right away.
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest: Our daily Scriptorium study presses on in Ephesians 5. Our Read Moore podcast is working through The Gospel of the Kingdom, looking for the true Gospel of the Lord. The Crosfigell teaching letter continues our study of the life of Brigit, a contemporary of Brendan. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
