The Law of God is Good

(A sermon preached by Rev Dr Jeffrey Khoo at True Life BPC on 14 December 2008)

“Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful” (Rom 7:12-13).

When Paul says that “the law is holy,” what law is he referring to? The context tells us very clearly that Paul is not referring to any human law, but the law of God—the Ten Commandments: (I) Thou shalt have no other gods before me, (II) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, (III) Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, (IV) Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, (V)  Honour thy father and thy mother, (VI) Thou shalt not kill, (VII) Thou shalt not commit adultery, (VIII) Thou shalt not steal, (IX) Thou shalt not bear false witness, (X) Thou shalt not covet.

Is the law of God good or bad? The libertines and the antinomians think the law of God is bad or unnecessary and can be discarded. There are those who say that since we are under God’s grace, the law is no longer needed; since we have been forgiven of our sins, we can sin all we want; the more we sin, the more we will experience the grace of God. Paul denounced such thinking and behaviour in Romans 6:1, 2, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid,” and 15, “What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.”

There are Christians who hold to a wrong view of the Bible and of salvation, who separate the Old Testament (OT) from the New Testament (NT), who say that the OT is all about law, but the NT is all about grace, who teach that salvation in the OT is by the law, but in the NT it is by grace. They go on to say that since we are in the NT, we do not need the law anymore.

Is the law obsolete, redundant and useless today? God forbid! Know that the Moral Law, being a reflection of God’s holiness, was never abrogated. The Ten Commandments function in the same way in the NT as it did in the OT. As Paul said, “Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good” (Rom 7:12). In the Bible, we learn that the law is good for the sinner, for the seeker and for the saint in these three respective ways:

The Law of God is Good as a Sword

“And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.” (Rom 7:10-11). As a sword, the law slays us in our sin, “for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23), and “the wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23). Romans 3:19-20 says, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” This is repeated in Romans 7:7 when Paul said, “Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law.” In other words, the law reveals the sinfulness of sin, and how evil, and wicked and destructive sin is. The law tells the sinner that he is utterly guilty and stands totally condemned before the thrice holy God.

If this be the case, then how can the law be good for the sinner? The law is good for the sinner because it tells him the truth, that he is very bad and no good at all. That was why Paul said in Romans 7:12-13, “Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.” The law does not deceive but is very honest with the fact that man is totally depraved and corrupted by sin, and can never be saved by the law. But if the sinner would humble himself before God—the Judge and the Law-giver Himself, and confess that he is indeed a transgressor of the law and stands condemned under the law, then there may be hope for him yet. When a sinner realises his sin and starts asking the question: “How can I be delivered from sin, from death, and from the judgement of God to come?,” then he is a step nearer to salvation for the law now takes on another role, that of a rod.

The Law of God is Good as a Rod

In a parallel exposition on the law by Paul, it is stated, “But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Gal 2:22- 24).

The judgment of God through the law functions to direct the helpless sinner to trust in Christ for his justification and salvation. The term “schoolmaster” (Greek: paidagogos, literally “a child leader”) is significant. In NT times, the schoolmaster was a trusted servant who saw to it that the boy under his charge was dressed properly and escorted to school each day. He is often depicted as an elderly man with a rod in his hand guiding the child to the right place. Thus, as a schoolmaster, the law not only heightened and intensified the awareness of the severity of sin and its eternal consequences (Gal 3:10, 19), it also points the sinner to Jesus Christ who alone can forgive sins and grant eternal life.

What did Christ do to be our Saviour and Redeemer? He did a whole lot. He did all that was required for our salvation. This He did in His life, in His death and by His life again. In His life, Jesus kept the Ten Commandments for you and for me, to earn the righteousness that we need to be accepted by God. Understand that the law was ordained unto life. It was meant for us to obtain eternal spiritual sonship through perfect obedience of its commandments, to be holy as God is holy. But man fell into sin, and being born in sin and dead in sin, man is no law-keeper but law-breaker. That is why God had to become man, to keep the law on our behalf so that we might be saved. That was why Paul said in Galatians 4:4-5, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”

But that was not all, the penalty of sin had to be paid. Jesus had to die for our sins on the cross, shedding His precious blood, for “without shedding of blood is no remission” (Heb 9:22). Then He was buried, but on the third day rose from the dead, conquering death so that we might be freed from the curse of sin. Now, “if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom 10:9-10).

Once a sinner becomes a saint, the law now takes on a different role, no longer as a sword, nor a rod, but a torch.

The Law of God is Good as a Torch

Truly, “the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good,” and the only way whereby a man can apply the law to his advantage is when he is no longer dead in sin but alive in Christ. The saint, with the Holy Spirit residing within him, has the desire and the ability to obey the law. The sinner dreads the law, but the saint delights in it. That was why the sanctified psalmist was able to say in Psalm 119:97-105, “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts. I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me. How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

When we are saved, our whole attitude to God and His Word has changed, changed for the better. In the past, we want nothing to do with God and His Word; now we cannot live without Him and His Word. We are constantly thirsting and hungering for His Word, and have the highest regard for it. “Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it” (Ps 119:140). Every true believer will desire after every one of God’s words and live by it (Matt 4:4). He who loves the Lord, will also love His Word as a whole and consider it to be 100% perfect without any mistake just like David, a man after God’s own heart, who said, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward” (Ps 19:7-11).

God’s Word is perfect and pure because it is the Truth, and God will use His Truth not only to enlighten but also to sanctity us, i.e. to make us more and more like Christ (John 17:17). Without the Light of God’s Word, we will stumble and fall in the darkness and blindness of this world which is full of dangers to both body and soul. But with the light of God’s Word we can see where the dangers are, and know how to avoid them.

Conclusion

Do not think the Law of God is bad or useless. It is very good and useful. We are the ones who are bad and useless because of our sin, but God can make us good and useful for Him if we believe in Christ, and keep His Law. The Law of God is good for the sinner to show His need of a Saviour, and points him to Christ, and when the seeker of Christ becomes sanctified in Christ, the Law gives Him the light He needs to live a victorious Christian life until the day the Lord Jesus Christ returns.