TABLE OF CONTENTS:
- Biblical Authorities on Why We Should Learn and Obey Biblical Law
- Personal Perspective on Why We Should Learn and Obey Biblical Law
- List of Authorities
- Exhaustive Description of Requirements that God Places upon Christians Relating to Law
- What Happens to Societies that DO NOT Learn or Obey God’s Law
- Definition of “Law” for the Purposes of this Website
1. Biblical Authorities On Why We Should Learn and Obey Biblical Law
SOURCE: Laws of the Bible, Form #13.001, Section 2
- Biblical law (Form #13.001) is a reflection of God’s Character.
- John 1:1 describes God as “the word”, or “logos”. He is, by nature, the LAW itself.
- The main reason to learn about law is so that we become closer to our Creator. Secondarily, by doing so, we maximize our blessings IN THE NEXT LIFE and minimize the curses upon collective society IN THIS LIFE as documented in Deut. 28. Deut. 28 describes curses upon societies or unbelievers rather than individuals, while blessings are upon BOTH societies and believing obedient individuals.
- God’s character is UNCHANGING and eternal, and spans both the ENTIRE Old and New Testament. God didn’t suddenly STOP caring about our obedience to His holy law in the New Testament.
- We as Christians should seek to emulate our Creator. He is our example and the absolute and unchanging and eternal standard for all human conduct.
- The purpose of following God’s law is:
6.1 NOT to achieve JUSTIFICATION or SALVATION or entry into Heaven. This in fact was among the main motivations of the Pharisees and Saducees (Form #05.047) who Jesus criticized.
6.2 To achieve SANCTIFICATION while we are here.
6.3 As a method of MEASURING the degree of our FAITH. Faith without works is dead faith. James 2:14-24. - Our obedience to God’s law DOES, however, determine our reward IN HEAVEN once we get there. The “house of many mansions” described by Jesus in John 14:2 does not purport to give EVERYONE the same mansion or room or reward IN HEAVEN. If it did, that would be the very epitome of SOCIALISM (Form #05.016) and God is NOT a socialist. God does not promise equality of RESULT, but equality of OPPORTUNITY. We discuss the difference between equality of OPPORTUNITY and equality of RESULT in What is “Justice”?, Form #05.050 and conclude that “theological justice” and “social justice” are polar opposites. More on this at:
7.1 Is God’s Love Unconditional?
7.2 Did Jesus Die to “Benefit” Everyone EQUALLY or to “Benefit” Mainly the Elect? - Even those with FAITH in God will be judged at the Bema Judgment (Rev. 22:12). Why would such a judgment be necessary if WORKS OF OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S LAW were irrelevant? They will be judged BY THEIR BEHAVIOR and therefore WORKS at this judgment. The purpose of that judgment is not to determine PUNISHMENT as in the case of UNBELIEVERS, but to determine the degree of REWARD for our works once we ENTER Heaven.
- Therefore, Christianity is NOT a “works religion” while we are here on Earth, but BECOMES a “works religion” in the sense that our reward in Heaven after we LEAVE Earth is proportional to our works. Thus, Jesus is somewhat like Santa Claus: He punishes those who are naughty and rewards those who are nice. In this sense, Heaven is capitalist, not socialist or communist. See:
Naughty or Nice, SEDM Youtube Channel - Grace and works are BOTH necessary. Effectively the middle path. Grace alone produces salvation and is never a product of works. However, our works motivated out of love and not pride are inherent in accepting the grace and doing good to all mankind. This is because by surrendering to Christ’s authority He then works through us and we become His divine agents. That is what Christ means when He says that we are “in Him”, in fact: Two become one and unity prevails in God’s temple, which is our own body according to the Apostle Paul. Direct connection without the need for intercessors, priests, rituals, popes, or physical temples. Amos 3:7. This throws out all the middle men and the hierarchies and corruption they inevitably produce that are prideful “works of men” intended to affect THIS life, rather than the more proper NEXT life. By hierarchies in the case of Latter Day Saints, we mean the THREE kingdoms in Heaven, the 12 apostles/prophets, and the prophesies, which are equally as bad as the Catholic Pope and all his vain inventions. Matt. 20:20-28. Our disdain for government franchises (Form #05.030) has the same origin as our view of man-made church authority hierarchies.
- The fact that God works THROUGH us as His divine agents executing His holy law does NOT always make us synonymous with God. The office of “Christian” and the sinful and imperfect human officer are not equivalent. The two can only become connected by consent and absolute surrender to His omnipotent authority by baptism. To the extent that we imperfectly ABANDON that office by either doing things God expressly forbids or not doing things He commands is the extent to which He “hides His face” biblically and withdraws the divine protection that can come only from His law and word. God’s holy law and word is our delegation of authority order and all of our sovereignty as His divine agent comes from never violating that delegation of authority order. See:
11.1 Sovereign Citizens and Self Divinity, SEDM
11.2 Delegation of Authority Order from God to Christians, Form #13.007 - The word “dwell” in the Bible is equivalent to the secular word “domicile”. We literally DWELL within the Kingdom of Heaven as citizens and officers of Heaven and not Earth (Phil. 3:20-21) by surrendering to His divine authority and the law which implements it. See Psalm 15, which talks about “dwelling” in God’s kingdom instead of Caesar’s kingdom. According to Jesus, we can only serve one master, meaning God, and therefore can never have a civil domicile in Caesar’s kingdom. See:
12.1. Matt. 6:24 and Luke 16:3.
12.2 Why Domicile and Becoming a “Taxpayer” Require Your Consent, Form #05.002
For how all of the above variables fit together, read our Statement of Faith in the About->Statement of Faith menu.
Law is the foundation of the Old Covenant – Blessed if you obey, cursed if you disobey (Deut. 28). Israel felt the curse in 722 and 605 B.C. in the Assyrian and Babylonian Captivity . . . but the surviving exiles were not appointed to the curses – (Isaiah 54:16, 17).
The curses of Deuteronomy are STILL applicable to GOVERNMENTS, and never were applicable to specific individual people and especially not applicable to NT covenant people, the true church. See:
God’s Commandment to NATIONS and Political RULERS-SEDM Blog
https://sedm.org/gods-commandment-to-nations/
Jesus is our Representative / Mediator. He obeyed the Covenant, and therefore inherited the blessings. Because of our faith in Him, we are the recipients of ALL its blessings (Ephesians 1:3) in a firstfruits way. At the cross, He took the curses on Himself (Galatians 3:10-14). Therefore, there are NO curses that remain for covenant people. Discipline, yes; curses, no (See Hebrews 12). Curses are reserved for the unbelieving goy (2 Peter 2:14; Hebrews 6:8).
There is all the difference in the world between obeying God’s law for salvation (Justification), and being saved in order to keep God’s law (sanctification). We disavow the first, but contend for the second premise.
God’s law is good and holy (Romans 7). This is what most Christians do not understand.
- The law is a reflection of God’s character — Psalm 119:137. Want to know what God is like, GO TO THE LAW: “Righteous are you, O Lord, and righteous are your judgments (law).”
- Therefore, because God is eternal, God’s law is absolute with continuity for the Christian era, and cannot be nullified by the theological man: Psalm 119:142, 143 – ” Your righteousness is righteous forever. . . your testimonies (law) are forever”
- The law (Form #13.001, and Ten Commandments, et al.) is the OBJECTIVE reflection of God’s character; Jesus is the SUBJECTIVE reflection of God’s character; that is to look at Jesus is to look at God’s law in action.
The position that a person is saved by grace and not law-based righteousness should be unmistakably clear from our work. We emphasize that we do not want to alienate dispensational Christians who believe in salvation by grace and not works:
- The correct doctrinal position on this subject is:
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from [works by] yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” [Ephesians 2:8-9, Bible, NKJV] - Modern Evangelicals in promoting grace or even hyper-grace inadvertently promote antinomianism . . . even hostility to the place of God’s law in the Christian life.
- The proposition that one is saved by keeping the law is altogether different than the proposition that one is saved in order to keep the law. We believe in the latter.
- The purpose of our work is therefore to:
4.1 Correct the horrible damage to society resulting from dispensational-antinomian thinking that leaves no room for Old Testament biblical law in the life of the Christian or the church.
4.2 Present a case for the restoration of the importance of biblical law to the Christian life.
4.3 Show the many ways in which biblical law would fix all of the major problems that plague our modern society.
4.4 Show how God’s law, the First Amendment, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), and the prudent use of our consent can be used to remove oneself from the hazards and perils and pitfalls of modern secular civil statutory law (Form #05.037).
4.5 Restore interest in the Christian community in studying and obeying God’s law and man’s law.
4.6 Establish that there is still a GUARANTEED reward and never a curse in the NEXT LIFE for OBEDIENCE to Old Testament biblical law ABOVE AND BEYOND mere salvation and entrance into Heaven. Click here for a video explaining this concept.
For an entire book that expands upon the subject of this section, see:
The Biblical Institutes of Law, Rousas John Rushdoony, Chalcedon Foundation
Lastly, for a short article on the subject of this section, see:
Law and Love: Two Edges of the Same Sword-Nike Insights (OFFSITE LINK)
https://nikeinsights.famguardian.org/forums/topic/law-and-love-two-edges-of-the-same-sword/
2. Personal Perspective on Why We Should Learn and Obey Biblical Law
Apart from the Biblical requirement to learn and obey the law, there are also personal moral considerations which also mandate this. These are that:
- All works should be considered as to their eternal value i.e. their value to God.
- Time frame is important: God is eternal, but that eternity is separated in half because of our mortality. There is what we do BEFORE we leave Earth, and what we receive or do AFTER we leave Earth and go to Heaven. The two are not synonymous, nor should we legally equivocate them to be the same.
- REWARDS are a VERY important aspect of why people will do or NOT do something.
3.1. Should these rewards be separated from God and attributed to the workman at any point, even if they were done for the glory of God?
3.2. Can we as believers and disciples of God have an identity apart from God for the purposes of reward at any point?
The answer to that above is clearly YES, which implies that REWARDS from God for doing good are ESSENTIAL to the sustenance of His law order. - As a man sows, so shall he reap. That’s how it is in this life. The rewards in Heaven are based on the value of how one used the gifts, time and opportunity God provided to you (as in the parable of the talents given to the three servants while the master was abroad).
- Even GOOD works will be judged. See the end of the Book of Ecclesiastes. Ecc. 12:14.
- There are TWO judgments, one to determine punishment for nonbelievers, and one to determine REWARD for believers. Its called the Bema Seat judgment in the case of the believers.
- The “house of many mansions” mentioned by Jesus has many rooms, and not everyone gets the penthouse, nor are all the rooms the same.
- God is like Santa Claus in that sense: He punishes the naughty and rewards the nice:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpmitlCJ53E - We are not rewarded for our WORKS in this life, but we WILL be after we leave here and go to Heaven.
- Because of the above, God is a capitalist, not a socialist.
- If God IS a socialist, there is NO REASON to want to go to Heaven because it leaves no room for private property, ownership, or personal responsibility that is the FOUNDATION of the approach to law, government, and taxes on this site. See:
Separation Between Public and Private Course, Form #12.025
https://sedm.org/LibertyU/SeparatingPublicPrivate.pdf - Because being motivated to do good works and thereby obey God’s law for a greater reward IN THE THE NEXT LIFE can be DIVISIVE, pastors seldom discuss it. They don’t want to start a feud with the sheep. So they focus on HYPERGRACE, which is also sinful. In order to make pursuing the REWARDS in Heaven less divisive, it is important to NOT brag about or even speak about your good works in public. Your father in Heaven who sees in secret will reward you openly IF AND ONLY IF you do. The basis for this approach is the most fundamental virtue of Christianity, which is HUMILITY and the AVOIDANCE of pride, which is one of the seven deadly sins:
https://sedm.org/secular-praise-of-the-main-virtue-of-christianity-humility/
3. List of Authorities
The following authorities from the Holy Bible and secular sources describe why everyone, and especially Christians, must learn and follow the law.
“Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature.”
[1 Cor. 14:20, Bible, NKJV]
The Whole Duty of Man
And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yes, he pondered and sought out and set in order many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find acceptable words; and what was written was upright—words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails, given by one Shepherd. And further, my son, be admonished by these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh.
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God and keep His commandments [LAWS],
For this is man’s all.
For God will bring every work into judgment,
Including every secret thing,
Whether good or evil [GOVERNMENT CORRUPTION, Form #11.401].
[Eccl. 12:9-14, Bible, NKJV]
“It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes [laws] which the LORD [God] has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”
[Lev. 10:9-11, Bible, NKJV]
The Leaven [statutes, civil franchises] of the Pharisees and Sadducees [lawyers]
Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”
And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.”
But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?—but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine [Litigation Tool #10.020] of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
[Matt. 16:5-12, Bible, NKJV; The “doctrine” Jesus is speaking of is the legal publications, rules, teachings, and beliefs of the lawyers at that time under a theocracy, who were abusing the law and legal process to turn a “society of law” into a “society of men”]
“And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws [of both God and man], and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work [of obedience to God] that they must do.”
[Exodus 18:20, Bible, NKJV]
“Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this law [God’s Law or Caesar’s law] to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen.”
[Deu 27:26, Bible, NKJV]
“My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word [LAWS] of God and do it.”
[Luke 8:21, Bible, NKJV]
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
[Jesus in Matt. 7:21, Bible, NKJV]
“Now by this we know that we know Him [God], if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him [His fiduciaries and “straw men”]. He who says he abides in Him [as God’s fiduciary] ought himself also to walk just as He [Jesus] walked.”
[1 John 2:3-6, Bible, NKJV]
“Here [in Heaven] is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.”
[Rev. 14:12, Bible, NKJV]
“One who turns his ear from hearing [or learning] the law [
God’s law or man’s law], even his prayer is an abomination.”
[Prov. 28:9, Bible, NKJV]
“But this crowd that does not know [and quote and follow and use] the law is accursed.”
[John 7:49, Bible, NKJV]
“Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but such as keep the law contend with them.”
[Prov. 28:4, Bible, NKJV]
“Ye shall do My judgments, and keep Mine ordinances, to walk therein: I [am] the LORD your God.”
[Leviticus 18:4, Bible, NKJV]
“And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.”
[2 Kings 17:37, Bible, NKJV]
“And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.”
[Ezekiah 11:19-20, Bible]
“Salvation is far from the wicked, For they do not seek Your [God’s] statutes.”
[Psalm 119:155, Bible, NKJV]
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
[Joshua 1:8-9, Bible, NKJV,
IMPLICATION: If you aren’t reading and trying to obey God’s law daily, then you’re not doing God’s will and you will not prosper]
“Every man is supposed to know the law. A party who makes a contract [or enters into a franchise, which is also a contract] with an officer [of the government] without having it reduced to writing is knowingly accessory to a violation of duty on his part. Such a party aids in the violation of the law.”
[Clark v. United States, 95 U.S. 539 (1877)]
“Thus it happened, when the king [America is the Land of the Kings/Sovereigns] heard the words of the Law, that he tore his clothes. Then the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king, saying, “Go, inquire of the LORD for me, [. . .] concerning the words of the book [of the Law] that is found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word [Law] of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”
[. . .] “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, “Tell the man who sent you to Me, “Thus says the LORD: “Behold, I will bring calamity on this place and on its inhabitants, all the curses [Deut. 28:15-68] that are written in the book [of the Law] which they have read before the king of Judah, because they have forsaken Me and burned incense to [idolatry towards] other [government] gods, that they might provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands. Therefore My wrath will be poured out on this place, and not be quenched.””
[2 Chron. 34:19-25, Bible, NKJV]
“I [God] brought you up from Egypt [government slavery] and brought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you. And you shall make no covenant [contract or franchise or agreement of ANY kind] with the inhabitants of this [corrupt pagan] land; you shall tear down their [man/government worshipping socialist] altars.‘ But you have not obeyed Me. Why have you done this?
“Therefore I also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you; but they will become as thorns [terrorists and persecutors] in your side and their gods will be a snare [slavery!] to you.'”
So it was, when the Angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voices and wept.
[Judges 2:1-4, Bible, NKJV]
The Way of the Righteous and the End of the Ungodly
1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.4 The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
[Psalm 1:1-6, Bible, NKJV]
A Roman statesman, Cicero, upon whom the Founding Fathers based the writing of the Constitution, summarized the above as follows:
“Power and law are not synonymous. In truth, they are frequently in opposition and irreconcilable. There is God‘s Law from which all equitable laws of man emerge and by which men must live if they are not to die in oppression, chaos and despair. Divorced from God‘s eternal and immutable Law, established before the founding of the suns, man‘s power is evil no matter the noble words with which it is employed or the motives urged when enforcing it. Men of good will, mindful therefore of the Law laid down by God, will oppose governments whose rule is by men, and if they wish to survive as a nation they will destroy the [de facto] government which attempts to adjudicate by the whim of venal judges.”
[Marcus Tullius Cicero, 106-43 B.C.]“True Law is right reason in agreement with Nature, it is of universal application, unchanging and everlasting; it summons to duty by its commands and averts from wrong-doing by its prohibitions. And it does not lay its commands or prohibitions upon good men in vain, although neither have any effect upon the wicked. It is a sin to try to alter this law, nor is it allowable to try to repeal a part of it, and it is impossible to abolish it entirely. We cannot be freed from its obligations by Senate or People, and we need not look outside ourselves for an expounder or interpreter of it. And there will not be different laws at Rome or at Athens, or different laws now and in the future, but one eternal and unchangeable law will be valid for all times and all nations, and there will be one master and one rule, that is God, for He is the author of this law, its promulgator, and its enforcing judge.”
[Marcus Tullius Cicero, 106-43 B.C.]
An entire chapter on studying God’s law also explains why we must study and mediate upon it continually. This chapter is our favorite chapter in the entire Bible:
4. Exhaustive Description of Requirements that God Places upon Christians Relating to Law
If you would like an exhaustive description of requirements that God places upon Christians in relation to the subject of law, see:
- The Laws of God-SEDM
- What is “law”?, Form #05.048 -the legal and biblical definition of “law” as used on this page
- Nehemiah Chapters 8-9 describes LAW as the basis for how we love our neighbor.
- Ten Commandments of Freedom, Form #13.016 -the Ten Commandments annotated and explained to make them pertinent to the real affairs of life today. Written by a pastor with over 30 years in Christian ministry.
- Bible Law Course (OFFSITE LINK) -Sheldon Emry Memorial Library
- Bible Law Course, Form #12.015 -bible law course written by a pastor with over 30 years in the ministry. We invite you to visit his website.
- Laws of the Bible, Form #13.001
- Policy Document: Corruption Within Modern Christianity, Form #08.012-talks about how the essence of being a Christian is recognizing the Bible as a Law book. Proves that those who don’t have this view as heretics and lawless and just like the Pharisees that Jesus criticized.
- Why Domicile and Becoming a “Taxpayer” Require Your Consent, Form #05.002-the mechanisms by which you consent to become connected to man’s civil statutory laws.
- The Authority and Power of the Word of God-Nike Insights
- Prager University Ten Commandments Course
5. What Happens to Societies that DO NOT Learn or Obey God’s Law
If you would like a demonstration from SATAN himself of what happens to a society that refuses to collectively and individually learn the law, see:
Devil’s Advocate: Lawyers-What We Are Up Against
Government Corruption
If you would like to know exactly what happens to people who REFUSE to read and learn and obey the law, see the following scriptures:
For a sermon on the above scripture, watch the following:
Tim Keller | Life and Prosperity, Death and Destruction | Deuteronomy 30
If you want to know what God says about how Christians should treat secular politicians and liberals who try to undermine or violate His holy laws, see:
6. Definition of “Law” for the Purposes of this Website
Lastly, for the purposes of this website “law” is defined to EXCLUDE any and all civil statutory codes, franchises, or privileges offered by any government or de facto government (Form #05.043). Civil statutory codes, franchises, or privileges are referred to on this website as “private law”, but not “law”. The word “public” precedes all uses of “law” when dealing with government, and hence, refers only to CRIMINAL law that applies equally to everyone (Form #05.033), regardless of their consent. Involvement in any and all “private law” franchises offered by any government ALWAYS undermines and threatens sovereignty, autonomy, and equality, turns government into an unconstitutional civil religion, and corrupts even the finest of people. This is explained in:
- Disclaimer, Section 4.8: Law-definition of “law” for the purposes of this website
- What is “law”?
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PDF - Legal Deception, Propaganda, and Fraud, Form #05.014, Section 8
- Government Instituted Slavery Using Franchises, Form #05.030, Section 2
- Government Franchises Course, Form #12.012
- The Law, Frederic Bastiat