What Does the Bible Say About Law?

While the Bible was written by those inspired by God, the 10 Commandments are believed by both Christians and Jews to have been directly authored by God. This document of law was introduced to Moses, who was instructed to share the stone tablets containing the commandments with the Jewish families under his leadership. Unfortunately, these commandments fell on deaf ears, and a slew of other laws followed them. The New Testament chronicles the ministry of Jesus, centuries later, when many prior laws began to be reevaluated.

God's Law

The most essential appearance of law in the Bible is God's law, stated in the form of the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20:2 to 17). New Testament writers sometimes refer to these commandments as "the law of Moses," since they were recorded by Moses. However, both Christians and Jews alike regard these commandments as sacred. The commandments themselves, although popular, are often broken by many followers. Jesus Christ suggests that God does not expect for everyone to behave perfectly in relation to the law, but rather to seek to lovingly follow its principles.

Disobedience

Disobedience is a recurring theme in the Bible. God is disobeyed by the men and women God creates almost as soon as they are created, as in the case of Adam and Eve. After God gives Moses the 10 Commandments to reveal order to the community, his followers are discovered to be worshiping a golden statue of a calf instead of God (Exodus 32:8). Although these examples illustrate the depravity of mankind, the Bible also contains many examples of commendable behavior, such as when Peter and the apostles chose to follow Jesus' commandment to share the gospel with others. "We must obey God," they declared, "rather than any human authority (Acts 5:29)."

Acknowledgement

Jesus always recommended to his disciples that they should make every attempt to respect and abide by the law of the state. Although Jesus and his fellow Jews were oppressed by Roman rule, he did not advocate insurrection. Rather, he recommended that his followers should happily pay taxes to the Roman empire. Holding a Roman coin in his hand, which bore Caesar's likeness, he said, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's (Matthew 22:21)."

Significance

The letter of the law is often confused with the law's intent. Just because a law exists doesn't mean that people should fearfully obey it under all circumstances. For example, if a man is speeding while driving his pregnant wife to the hospital, a policeman who pulls him over may decide to simply provide him with an escort rather than to write him a ticket. Jesus used the same common sense when being criticized by the Pharisees for healing a man on the Sabbath day. Although the Sabbath was intended as a day of rest rather than work, Jesus questioned, "Is it lawful and right on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to take it (Mark 3:4)?"

Fulfillment

Jesus Christ was a reformer. However, he did not intend to disrespect religious tradition as much as he desired to bring new life to it. He hoped to fulfill promises that were made prior to his arrival, rather than to simply make empty promises. While liberal in his approach, he actually called for people to become more conservative. He wanted for people to recognize the true spirit embodied within the law, rather than to simply recognize the law itself. He proclaimed, "I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose (Matthew 5:17)."

Resources

• Handbook of Bible Law
• Self Study-The Bible As Law