"A Love for the Law" by Chris Crane

One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Psalm 119, where King David celebrates the Law of God. For David, the Law was not something dreadful to him, but something delightful. He found joy in God’s commands. 

We see this kind of language just by a cursory overview of the chapter:

“In the way of your testimonies I delight, as much as in all riches.” (v. 14)

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” (v. 18)

“My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times.” (v. 20)

“Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.” (v. 35)

“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.” (v. 103)

I am drawn again and again to this text because, often times, when we think of the Law, we don’t use words like sweet, wondrous, or delight. More often than not, words we might deem more appropriate to use would be boring, legalistic, dry, or cold, yet these are the exact opposite of how David looked at the Law. 

He saw it as a gift from God to be savored. Unfortunately, this is not the consensus view among Christians.  In fact, many Christians are often guilty of what is called antinomianism, which is a belief that God has no moral law that he expects Christians to obey. 

Not only does this give us a misunderstanding of the Law, it gives us a false view of our present pursuit of holiness as followers of Christ. There are delightful demands that give evidence of persevering faith. As Jesus himself said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” So, how should we view the Law? What can we learn from David in Psalm 119?

1) The Law Should Be Received with Joy

First, we should recognize that we did not discover God. God chose to reveal himself to us. It would be perfectly just and good for God to not reveal himself to us. We do not deserve to know him, but instead deserve to be the recipients of his wrath because of our sin. This is sheer grace that he shows us. What we find in the Law is not only God’s requirements, but his character. We see his high standard of holiness and his hatred of sin (Hos. 1:1-9; Psalm 5:4-6). We see that his love is a holy love, not mere sentimentality. 

Furthermore, and of utmost importance, we see that because of his high standard of holiness in the Law and his demands of perfection, the Law points to our substitute, Jesus Christ the Messiah, who would fulfill the Law for his people, remove their guilt and set them free from the penalty that was on our heads as law-breakers (Matt. 5:17; Rom. 3:19-26; 8:2-4). We are free to receive the Law with joy because we are not trying to be justified by it and God’s people see no longer see his commandments as burdensome (see 1 John 5:3).  

Since Jesus has secured our adoption with our Father, we are free to delight in his commands as an expression of who our Father is. In other words, being free to enjoy the Law is another way we get to know our Father. It is this position we have been given through Christ that makes the Law joyful to the heart of the saint.

2) Delighting in the Law Gives Evidence We Love Jesus

As I mentioned briefly above, those who have been truly born again will give evidence that they love Jesus by keeping his commandments. Will they do this perfectly? Absolutely not. Will they do it at all? Yes. The regenerate heart has new desires and will live a life of repentance and confession, which will be a life marked by obedience. So even though they will not obey perfectly, they will no longer live in a lifestyle of slavery to sin because they have been “made alive in Christ” (Eph. 2:4). 

Notice that I am not saying we are justified, that we are made right with God, by our obedience to his commands. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone (Eph. 2:8-9). However, as Reformer Martin Luther once said, “We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.” Saving faith is evidenced by good works.

3) Loving the Law as a Weapon in Fighting Sin

In Psalm 119:9, David writes, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.” In David’s time, “your word” is a reference to the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament, which contain the Law. A couple of verses later, he writes, “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (v. 11). Putting his faith in a future Messiah (who would be Jesus of Nazareth), David was given eyes to see that God’s people are set apart unto holiness and if he was going to fight for his joy in the Lord, he could not ignore God’s will found in his revealed Word.

Like David, we must take sin seriously. The pervasiveness of sin affects all areas of our lives. Sin leaves no stone unturned in its curse upon creation, including the lives of men and women everywhere. From our friendships to how we drive, our slavery to sin taints what God originally created good. Even worse, sin is rebellion against a holy God. 

The depth of the effects sin has between us and God is profound, as Pastor John Piper once said,

“What makes sin sin is not first that it hurts people, but that it blasphemes God. This is the ultimate evil and the ultimate outrage in the universe. The glory of God is not honored. The holiness of God is not reverenced. The greatness of God is not admired. The power of God is not praised. The truth of God is not sought. The wisdom of God is not esteemed. The beauty of God is not treasured. The goodness of God is not savored. The faithfulness of God is not trusted. The promises of God are not relied upon. The commandments of God are not obeyed. The justice of God is not respected. The wrath of God is not feared. The grace of God is not cherished. The presence of God is not prized. The person of God is not loved.”[1]

Fighting sin is a declaration that we desire our joy to be in Christ above anything else. It’s warfare against lesser pleasures. It is seeing holiness as beautiful, reflecting the beauty and majesty of Jesus, who is to be valued above all else. While the Law reveals our sin and points us to our need for a Substitute to save us and stand in our place, it also is a means for the Holy Spirit to strip away disordered affections as we long for Jesus. It declares along with David, “Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways” (Ps. 119:37).

The Law is good because it comes from God. He established it and, in his infinite wisdom, only makes good laws. In sending his Son to fulfill the Law, he didn’t give us a reason to toss the Law out the window. That was not his intention. He is preparing his people to be a pure Bride, adorned in the clothes of the gospel, namely, the righteousness of the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. 

I wonder, could it be that we are not living in the joy of the gospel like we desire because our view of the Law keeps us from seeing the delight of holiness? Do we really see the Law as a means to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord as we are in awe of his holiness? Or have we fallen into the error of antinomianism and think that God’s people have no moral commands to concern themselves with? As we wait upon the return of Jesus, let us have full hearts for the joy found in the Law, knowing that “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).

---

[1] John Piper, “The Greatest Thing in the World: An Overview of Romans 1-7,” Desiring God, http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/the-greatest-thing-in-the-world-an-overview-of-romans-1-7 (accessed July 30, 2013).

The snare of the flesh...

Exodus 20:14 - [14] “You shall not commit adultery.”

 

Commandment number 7 has everything to do with preserving our neighbor’s purity and the purity of ourselves.  This makes sense to believers for Proverbs 27:17 tells us that as iron sharpens iron so we are to sharpen one another.

We look out for each other's best spiritual interest at all times.  The perverse and immoral behavior that we see applauded on television daily is not new to our generation.  Man has had a propensity for sexual immorality from the fall.  Peter Hammond – “The sexual revolution is revolting in more ways than one.  It is an uprising against God Himself.  It is a rebellion against His sovereign authority and a rejection of the Law of God.”  Why?  What are the implications on society if this were not a commandment?  And how does this protect and promote liberty?  Well, the world would like you to believe that promiscuity is a private matter that doesn’t hurt anyone besides those involved.  So you shouldn’t get involved in it because it doesn’t directly affect you.  However, this is patently false.  The reality is that everyone pays for the private sins of others.  Don’t think so? 

Let me give you some statistics…

From 1973-2011 there have been over 54.5 million abortions in the United States alone.  In 2012, there were 9 abortions performed every four minutes.  That’s 1 abortion for every 26 seconds.  That’s only surgical abortions folks.  Because every birth control pill contains an abortifacient element to it, the CDC estimates that we can safely add 14 million chemical abortions done per year in the US.  From 2009-2010 Planned Parenthood received over 487 million dollars in government grants.  Where do you think that money comes from?  You and me.  The abortion debate has nothing to do with women’s rights and everything to do with sexual freedom.  People want the gratification of sex with 0 responsibilities.  What other consequences come from sexual freedom?  How about the rampant spread of STDs, AIDS, and broken homes that come from infidelity by one or both spouses. Single parents raising their children because the man who fathered them doesn’t want to be a parent.

Any pastor or counselor will tell you that adultery destroys entire families… not just marriages.  So what does Scripture say about adultery elsewhere?     

We are to flee from all forms of sexual immorality. 1 Corinthians 6:15-20
Galatians 5:19 says that sexual immorality is a deed of the flesh, not a deed of the Spirit. 
Lust, which is the core of adultery, is not limited to the physical act of adultery nor is it restricted by age.  Given the age of internet integration that we live in, pornography addiction, which is adultery of the mind, is affecting more than just the 20-30 somethings.  A recent poll revealed that men between the ages of 55-70 who use their computer to surf the web have confessed to viewing pornographic material as often as once a week.  Women in the same age bracket confessed to having used online chat rooms to flirt with internet strangers.  Half of that group said that they seek out old boyfriends on facebook and have had emotional affairs with those old flames.

So don’t think you are immune just because you have passed a certain age… Satan doesn’t care what age the sinner is, he just cares that he tempts people to sin…Although adultery is specifically mentioned here, there is a principle laid down, that believers are expected to live pure and holy lives.  Adultery resides not in the physical, but rather in the mind.  The battle for purity and holiness begins with the mind, not the flesh.

Matthew 5:27-28 - [27] “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ [28] But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Jesus says that God sees lustful thoughts as adultery.  So for those who say they look but don’t touch, the Bible labels that person an adulterer.  It is a matter of purity.  By forbidding adultery God is protecting purity.  Purity both mentally, emotionally, and physically.

I showed you some statistics on murder, I would disgust you with further stats about STDs or grieve you with stats on divorce and such… but rather than that let me give you three reasons for obeying this law as it relates to promoting Christian liberty and see if that doesn’t provide a sufficient answer to our understanding.

1.) Obeying this protects purity

It is advantageous to be pure.  We are image-bearers of God.  God is pure and thus we are to be pure as well. Matthew 5:8 - [8] “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Now, obviously sins has marred that image, but that doesn’t change the fact that we were created to be pure.  There is a speed limit on I-20 of 60mph.  I’ve hardly been on it once where people were obeying that law, should we remove all speed limits just because the majority break them?  Of course not!

Purity of heart consists of dedication to god.  At the core of the Gospel is the fact that we need to be cleansed and made pure from our sin.  So severe is the grime of our sin on our body and soul that it takes the blood of Christ to wash it off.  Pursuing purity is another way of saying that we are to pursue holiness.  After all, holiness is perfect purity.

1 Peter 1:16 - [16] …it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

The dominant reason for su to pursue holiness and purity is because God is pure and holy and as Christians we are in relationship with Him.  We are to be holy because the Holy One has identified Himself with us in a work of His glorious grace.  Matthew Henry said that the calling of a sinner to salvation is a “powerful engagement to holiness”.  Obviously, obviously sexual purity is not the only area that we are to pursue holiness in.  But is there any other sin that can so adversely affect your body and life and the bodies and lives of others as lust and fornication?

2.) Obeying this protects the sanctity of marriage.

Why is that so important?  Let me give you a reason from Ephesians 5.  Ephesians 5:1-6 - Paul sets up there how it is that we are to “walk in love”.  That, he equates to being “imitators of God”.  We are to walk as Christ walked.  What did Christ do?  Verse 1 says that He loved us and gave Himself up for us as a sacrifice and offering to God.  How would that look in my life?  Well, we might say with Christ that we are to deny ourselves and take up our cross… or with Paul that we are to die to self or Ephesians 5:22-33

Adultery, the sin of adultery, directly undermines not only the purity of marriage relationships but it also distorts the Gospel.  Our marriages are to be a living illustration of the Gospel.  The wife is to submit to her husband as to the Lord; in other words, in like manner.  That submission points at honoring them from a principle of love for them; because God has ordained the husband to be the head of the wife.  As the church is to submit to the headship of Christ, so wives submit to their husbands.  You see the Gospel illustrated here?  Likewise, husbands are to love their wives.  Love then should be seen as a choice and not an emotional feeling.  How are husbands to love their wives?  As Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her!  Did Christ or will Christ ever abandon the church?  NO!  Did Christ or will Christ ever link Himself up emotionally, mentally, or physically with another bride?  NO!  Adultery, be it through the physical act, or a lust of the mind or even through flirting… damages the purity of marriage which damages the purity of the Gospel that we preach.  God designed marriage to be a union between one man and one woman that is not to be defiled by a failure for the wife to submit, or a failure for the husband to love, or divorce or any sort of infidelity.  Why?  Because Christ will not defile His relationship to His Father or us with a failure to submit to the Father, or a failure to love us, nor will He divorce us, nor introduce any sort of impurity to us.

3.) Obeying this shows practical evidence of the new birth

Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God.  Pursuing holiness is marking sin in our life and putting it to death by the Spirit.  It is agreeing with God’s Word.  Loving what He loves and hating what He hates. 1 John 2:6; John 14:15

We must pursue purity in all areas because it most proves that we are born again children of God.  We must pursue holiness because our comfort and assurance depends on it.  “We cannot be too often reminded of this.  We are sadly apt to forget that there is a close connection between sin and sorrow, holiness and happiness, sanctification and consolation.  God has so wisely ordered it that our well-being and our well-doing are linked together.” – JC Ryle

Is there a greater comfort in this life than knowing we are secure in Christ?  I know of no such comfort!  And that is how observing this law is liberating for the believer, because as we are pursuing purity … pursuing holiness; particularly in this area of sexual purity of mind and body.  As we do that, we have a clear conscience before God, assured by the Holy Spirit.  1 John 3:21; Romans 13:5

So here do we go from here?  If you aren’t pursuing holiness, Christian, resolve afresh to chase hard after a holy life.  Or we might say, a Spirit-led life.  A life abiding in Christ.  John 15:4-5.  Abide in Christ, believer, Jesus said that if you abide in Him and Him in you that you will bear much fruit.  That will be fruit of holiness I assure you!

Do you want to attain holiness?  Are you lost?  Do you need Christ?  I assure you that if you are lost, then you certainly DO need Christ!  Along with a deep conviction of our sin comes a deep desire to be cleansed of it; that is true repentance.  Come to Christ, be forgiven and cleansed of all sin and be made holy in His sight by His blood.