“Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.“
Joshua 1:8
One of my favorite television dramas for many years was the show “Law & Order”. In this show the first half hour was about the police investigating a crime where someone broke the law. The second half hour was devoted to the prosecution of the suspected offender in court using the law to convict or exonerate the accused. It was an effective way of showing how our justice system works in the United States. The police are those who enforce the law (investigate and arrest lawbreakers) while the court system determines if the accused is guilty of breaking the law (evidence and testimony).
But today it seems we live in a culture of Law & Disorder. People regularly break or ignore some laws (e.g. – traffic, drug use, etc.), and some people want to limit the ability of police to enforce our laws. This has led to a rise in crime rates due to a lack of law enforcement. We are also witnessing the weaponizing of our justice system to target some people while refusing to prosecute other individuals for their crimes. This has led to a growing mistrust of the justice system as well. When there is no law enforcement and no justice there will be disorder!
To understand any justice system, we need to answer two questions. First, why do we have laws in the first place? Second, how are criminal and civil laws determined and established?
So, why do we need laws in the first place? It’s because people are flawed and broken human beings. And while one could argue that most people try to do good and do not commit crimes, the reality is that every person is capable of committing a crime and breaking the law. Criminal history reveals the truth that even people thought to be good can be pushed beyond their ability to control their behavior in given circumstances. Fortunately, most people are able to control their actions. But society needs laws to protect the vast majority of its people who obey the laws from the small minority who can’t and who commit crimes. So, laws are enacted to deter crime and to punish the lawbreakers (usually by separating them from society in prisons so they can’t harm others).
Without laws there would be no deterrent to harmful human behavior. For example, if we didn’t have traffic laws, driving would be sheer chaos because there would be no order in our driving. Everyone would go where they wanted to go, as fast as they wanted to go, and would not always yield to other drivers. Without laws, people will do whatever they think is best, and that doesn’t always work out well for everyone else (Judges 21:25).
It is also common for nations to change their laws over time according to changing governments, morals, technologies, or circumstances. We have seen a weakening of the laws in our nation today that allow stealing (theft under $950 in California) and even murder (abortion). Some laws are also being ignored (border control). When our laws are weakened or not enforced, chaos results. And chaos produces fear, mistrust, and disorder. Laws are necessary to protect innocent people, create a safe environment for all people to live in, and enable societies to function in an orderly fashion. Without effective laws or law enforcement, the result is always more chaos and disorder.
The second question is about how every nation determines its laws. In most nations, the laws are based on what each nation considers to be the negative or criminal behavior of its citizens. And often the laws are quite different in different countries. For example, in Malaysia, a person convicted of selling drugs can receive the death penalty while in countries like the Netherlands the drug laws are much more relaxed and often decriminalized. Each country’s laws are usually determined by each nation’s government. Normally laws are created to protect their citizens from other citizens or to deter actions that are harmful to society. But most of them are also based on 3 of the 10 Commandments from the Bible – don’t kill, don’t steal, and don’t lie.
God is a God of order, and He provided a set of laws for His created people too. His 10 Commandments set the rules for what He expects those He created in His image (all people) to live by. But the 10 Commandments are not for His benefit, they’re for ours! His laws are not meant to keep us out of prison, but to free us from the prison of sin and enable us to live lives that are good, fruitful, beneficial to others, and pleasing to God! Obeying God’s laws is meant to produce order in our lives and in our world. It also produces good!
But when we break God’s laws, it produces disorder and chaos in our lives as well as our world. Our sins impact those around us and can cause disorder that lasts for generations. God does not arrest us or take us to court and have us thrown into prison. Instead, He gives us the opportunity to repent of our sins and receive His mercy (2 Peter 3:9). Instead of punishing us, He forgives us and enables us to get back on the right path in our lives. However, if we don’t repent, we will ultimately face His judgment when we die (Romans 14:10). If we haven’t placed our trust in Jesus to intercede on our behalf, we will go straight to prison – otherwise known as hell – forever!
People know what might happen if they ignore or break our earthly laws. They could face prison time or even death depending upon the laws they break. People know what earthly prisons are like, either from television or personal visits, and prefer not to experience incarceration themselves! And that is often a strong enough deterrent to keep people from breaking our earthly laws.
But I believe that many people are not deterred by God’s laws or the threat of ending up in hell (a prison they cannot see). They somehow think that their sin will go unnoticed, hell isn’t real, or they will not be punished for them. But God sees everything we do and every law we break, and He will hold us accountable when we die (Romans 3:19). His Law will convict us of our sin every time (Romans 3:20). We cannot escape His judgement. All we can do is put our trust and faith in Jesus that He already paid the penalty for our sins, and that through His death on the cross, we are forgiven and reconciled to God!
Earthly laws are designed to prevent disorder and chaos. God’s laws are designed to produce right living and order among His created people. And while we can break earthly laws and sometimes get away with it, if we break God’s laws, we will always be caught (Proverbs 10:9). We will also be punished for them unless we put our faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on our behalf. Don’t be fooled into thinking God doesn’t exist or He doesn’t care. Jesus is the proof that He does!!
So, let’s stop looking for ways to get around God’s Law. Instead, let’s be obedient to His laws and commands and live a good and ordered life! If we do that, we will be blessed! “He (Jesus) replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (Luke 11:28)