Monday 20 June 2016

Regarding the rule of law


     
     How often have we heard the saying, "Rules were made to be broken?"


     
Pablo Picasso
     Pablo Picasso once said, "Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist." 


     Growing up as a child, I recall being taught a number of social behaviours or rules; to say please and thank you; to show respect for my elders, giving up my seat if an elder entered the room; to hold the door open for the person behind me; to say excuse me when passing directly in front of someone. 

     When I began attending school, I soon learned there where rules there also. I needed to respect others in my class and also what belonged to them. So many rules! 

     I began to feel adults must stay awake most of the night, thinking them up, just to make us kids feel miserable. 

     Then, as a young adult preparing for my driver's licence, I needed to become familiar with more rules — "the rules of the road." It didn't take long for me to feel grateful for each of them, appreciating their purpose. 


     Somewhere along the way, I began to learn that most rules are necessary and there is usually a consequence to rule-breaking. 


     As I matured, I learned that, as a society, we elect government that legislates proper behaviour for its citizens. I decided I would not want to live in our massive world, without the order and respect good laws bring to all of us. 

     Yet, with the mayhem we hear daily in the news, perhaps some are following the advice of Picasso (see above quote). The science of behaviour is called "ethics," (a system of morality). 


     In our western world, over the past 60 years, ethical perspectives have changed —  drastically. 


     Once it was assumed there was a universal right and wrong; today few would agree there are moral absolutes (perfection). But, we find them within the Ten Commandments, the Law that God handed down to Moses on Mount Sinai, recorded in the Bible

     They were given first of all, to show the people what God is like, because He created us to be a reflection of His moral image. 


     They were important guidelines for His people to live together in unity. 


     God's laws or commands are the core of how we were created and intended to live. 

     Sometime ago, my pastor Tim Schroeder presented a sermon on this very topic, later sharing some of his thoughts through his writings in our local newspaper. 

     
     Pause a moment to consider his words: 

     "Rather than viewing the Ten Commandments as an outdated list of prohibitions, try viewing them through this lens. 
     'Imagine,' says God, 'a world in which you and I have such a clear, intimate relationship that I am always your God. You're not confused about that, you're not off chasing after other gods trying to satisfy your cravings.'" 


     You shall have no other gods before me — no idols.
—Exodus 20:3-5 


     Imagine life with a sacred rhythm of productivity and rest and worship. (Keep the Sabbath day holy. — Ex. 20:8). 
     
     Imagine a world where life and relationships are treated as sacred. (You shall not murder. — Ex. 20:13). 
     
     Imagine a world in which family is all it can be, where parents are honoured and marriages are characterized by faithfulness and fidelity. (Honour your father and your mother. You shall not commit adultery. — Ex. 20:12, 14). 
     
     Imagine living in neighbourhoods where everyone can be trusted, and where their word is their bond. (You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbours. (Ex. —  20:15-16). 
     
     Imagine living in a world where everyone has enough because we don't live in a constant state of coveting more. (You shall not covet. — Ex. 20:17). 
     
     Just imagine life like that!" 

      Schroeder adds, "Many who want to push the Ten Commandments aside, do so in the name of freedom, resulting in paying the price of a moral vacuum." 

     
     Strangely, though given to us to reveal God's attributes, and for us to be a reflection of His image, He also knew they were humanly impossible for us to keep. 
     
     Then, along comes Jesus, the only sinless One who ever lived, with God's exact moral character, coming to fulfill the law, giving it its full meaning. (Matthew 5:17). 

     So it is —"only by His in-dwelling Holy Spirit, that Christian character is produced within," not by the mere moral discipline of trying to live by the law! 

   
     Whether it pleases us or not, Romans 13:1 reminds us... "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." 
     

     God is Sovereign! After all, He is the One we will ultimately answer to. 


     "By your grace, Lord Jesus, enable us to overcome the world (live victoriously), through faith and obedience to You." Amen.

— beulah

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