The
Law of God
Lesson 40
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Blessed
are they whose ways are blameless, who walk
according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are
they who keep his statutes and who seek him with
all their heart. They do nothing wrong; they walk
in his ways. You have laid down precepts that are
to be fully obeyed. Oh, that my ways were
steadfast in obeying your decree! Then I would
not be put to shame when I consider all your
commands. I will praise you with an upright heart
as I learn your righteous laws. I will obey your
decrees; do not utterly forsake me.
-Psalm 119: 1-8
Introductory
Can a person who lives
today in the 21st century, obey all of
Gods laws? The answer is a resounding yes!
When Jesus was on Earth about 2,000 years ago, He
proved that a human being could live a perfect
life. Jesus told His disciples, You
are my friends if you do what I
command
whoever has my commands and obeys
them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me
will be loved by my Father, and I too will love
him and show myself to him. (John 15:14; 14:21)
This study will show you what Gods laws
really say and how to interrupt them in our
everyday lives.
NATURE OF GODS LAW
What is the nature of
Gods law?
Wherefore the law is
holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and
good. For we know the law is
spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
Romans 7:12,14. Note - Christ demonstrated the
spiritual nature of the law, showing that it
relates not merely to the outwards actions, but
also to the thought and intents of the heart.
(See Hebrews 4:12) Obedience to this law
therefore, requires not merely an outward
compliance but genuine heart service. This can be
rendered only by a regenerated soul. Psalm
19:7. Is there such a thing as a
perfect law? Everything that comes from God is
perfect. The law of which we are thinking comes
from Him. It becomes defiled in our hands. We
take from it and try to add to it, and in that
way it becomes less than perfect. In a very real
sense the law of God is the manifestation of the
nature of the Lord. It could no more be imperfect
that He is.
How comprehensive are these
commandments?
Fear God, and keep
his commandments: for this is the whole duty of
man. Ecclesiastes 12:13. Note
No human lawgiver could have given forth
such a law as that which we find in the Ten
Commandments. It is a perfect law; for all human
laws that are right are to be found in that brief
and weighed together of all that is good and
excellent toward God, or between man an
man.
Gods Law
1
You shall have no other
gods before me.
2
You shall not make unto
thee any graven image, or any likeness of any
thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the
earth beneath, or that is in the water under the
earth, you shall not bow down thyself to them,
nor serve them, for I am the Lord thy God am a
jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers
upon the children unto the third and fourth
generations of them that hate me, and showing
mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and
keep my commandments.
3
You shall not misuse the
name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not
hold him guiltless who misuses his name.
4
Remember the Sabbath day,
to keep it holy. Six days shall you labor, and do
all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath
of the Lord your God, On it you shall not do any
work, neither you, nor thy son or daughter, nor
your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals,
nor the alien within thy gates: for in six days
the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all
that in them is, and rested the seventh day,
Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and
hallowed it.
5
Honor your father and your
mother, so that you may live long in the land
which the Lord your God is giving you.
6
You shall not murder.
7
You shall not commit
adultery.
8
You shall not steal.
9
You shall not give false
testimony against your neighbor.
10
You shall not covet your
neighbors house; you shall not covet your
neighbors wife, or his manservant, or his
maidservant, or his ox, or donkey, or any thing
that belongs to your neighbor.
Exodus 20:3-17.
What is the essential
principle of the law of God?
Love does no harm to
its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment
of the law. Romans 13:10.
What two commandments sum
up the law of God?
Love the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your mind. This is the first and
greatest commandment And the second is like it:
Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and
the Prophets hang on these two
commandments. Matthew 22:37-40. Note
If you love God with all your heart, you will
keep the first table; if you love your neighbor
as yourself, you will keep the second.
PURPOSE OF LAW
Why should we fear God and
keep His commandments?
Now all has been
heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear
God and keep his commandments, for this is the
whole duty of man, For God will bring every deed
into judgment, including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil. Ecclesiastes
12:13,14.
What will be the standard
in the judgment?
Speak and act as those who
are going to be judged by the law that gives
freedom, because judgment without mercy will be
shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy
triumphs over judgment! James 2:12,13.
What is sin declared to be?
Everyone who sins
breaks the law; in fact, sin is
lawlessness. 1 John 3:4.
DISOBEDIENCE TO LAW
How many of the
commandments is it necessary to break in order to
become a transgressor of the law?
For whoever keeps the
whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is
guilty of breaking all of it. For He [Jesus] who
said, Do not commit adultery, also
said, Do not murder. If you do not
commit adultery but do commit murder, you have
become a lawbreaker. James 2:10,11.
Note The Ten
Commandments are not ten different laws; they are
one law. If I am being held up in the air by a
chain with ten links and I break one of them,
down I come, just as surely as if I break the
whole ten.
Can one know God and not
keep His commandments?
The man that says,
I know him, but does not what he
commands is a liar, and the truth is not in
him. 1 John 2:4.
NECESSITY OF OBEDIENCE
What was Christs
attitude toward Gods will, or law?
Then I said,
Here I am, I have come- it is written about
me in the scroll. I desire to do your will, O my
God; your law is within my heart Psalms
40:7,8.
Who did say would enter the
kingdom of heaven?
Jesus said, Not
everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will
enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does
the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 7:21
How will men be rated in
relation to Gods commandments?
Anyone who breaks one
of the least of these commandments and teaches
others to do the same will be called the least in
the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and
teaches these commands will be called great in
the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:19.
Note The Ten
Commandments constitute a summary of the duties
God requires of men. These commandments are the
foundation that lies beneath the ethical life of
humanity. They are as binding upon Christians
today as they were upon the Hebrews who first
received them.
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