The Law of
God
Lesson
40
page
l 1 l 2 l
- 1 -
“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 God’s 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 God’s laws really
say and how to interrupt them in our
everyday lives.
NATURE OF GOD’S
LAW
What is the nature of
God’s 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.”
God’s
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 neighbor’s house; you
shall not covet your neighbor’s
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 Christ’s
attitude toward God’s 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 God’s
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.
HOW CAN MAN OBEY?
Why is the carnal mind
enmity against God?
“The sinful mind
is hostile to God. It does not submit
to God’s law, nor can it do so.
Those controlled by the sinful nature
cannot please God.” Romans 8:7.
Can man of himself
unaided by Christ keep the law?
“I am the vine,
you are the branches, if a man
remains in me and I in him, he will
bear much fruit; apart from me you
can do nothing.” John
15:5.
What provisions has
been made by which we are enabled to
keep God’s law?
“For what the law
was powerless to do in that it was
weakened by the sinful nature, God
did by sending his own Son in the
likeness of sinful man to be a sin
offering. And so he condemned sin in
sinful man, in order that the
righteous requirements of the law
might be fully met in us, who do not
live according to the sinful nature
but according to the Spirit.”
Romans 8:3,4.
How does the renewed
heart regard God’s law?
“This is love for
God: to obey his commands. And his
commands are not burdensome, for
everyone born of God overcomes the
world. This is the victory that has
overcome the world, even our
faith.” 1 John 5:3,4.
BLESSINGS OF WILLING
OBEDIENCE
What blessing attends
those who keep God’s
commandments?
“By them is your
servant warned; in keeping them there
is great reward.” Psalm 19:11.
What other blessings
attends commandment keeping?
“The fear of the
Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all
who follow his precepts have good
understanding.” Psalm
111:10.
What promise is made
to the willing and obedient?
“If you are
willing and obedient, you will eat
the best from the land.” Isaiah
1:19.
God’s law is
eternal in the universe and cannot be
changed and the devil is trying to
challenge God’s eternal law by
saying that man cannot keep it
perfectly. Will attempt to show you
each individual law that God gave all
of us in the Ten Commandments and
what they really mean:
1.
“You shall have no other gods
before me.” Exodus 20:3
·
We are to put God first in our lives.
2.
“You shall not make for yourself
an idol in the form of anything in
heaven above or the earth beneath or
in the waters below. You shall not
bow down to them or worship them; for
I, the Lord your God, am a jealous
God, punishing the children for the
sin of the fathers to the third and
fourth generation of those that hate
me, but showing love to a thousand
generations of those who love me and
keep my commandments”. Exodus
20: 4-6
·
God will permit no rival to share our
adoration. Therefore we must shun
idolatry in all of its forms. We must
not bow down to images, pictures,
people, money, or any worldly
possession. Our worship must be
reserved for God alone.
3.
“You shall not misuse the name
of the Lord your God, for the Lord
will not hold anyone guiltless who
misuses his name.” Exodus
20:7
·
We are to be reverent in all matters
concerning God. To use His name as an
idle swearword is a grievous sin in
His sight.
4.
“Remember the Sabbath day by
keeping it holy. Six days you shall
labor and do all your work, but the
seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord
your God. On it you shall not do any
work, neither you, nor your son or
daughter, nor your manservant, nor
your maidservant, nor the alien
within your gates. For in six days
the Lord made the heavens and the
earth, the sea, and all that is in
them, but he rested on the seventh
day. Therefore the Lord blessed the
Sabbath day and made it holy.”
Exodus 20:8-11
·
This, the longest of the Ten
Commandments, bids us remember the
day and worship that God set apart in
the beginning for man’s highest
spiritual good. The seventh day of
the week is to regarded as a holy
day, God’s day, a day of special
fellowship and communion with Him.
5.
“Honor your father and your
mother, so that you may live long in
the land the Lord God is giving
you.” Exodus 20:12
·
We are to be respectful to our
parents, with all that this implies
of law and order in the house.
6.
“You shall not murder.”
Exodus 20:13
·
We are to value the lives of others
as our own, and have no hateful
thought toward a single soul. There
must be no murder in our hearts.
7.
“You shall not commit
adultery.” Exodus 20:14
·
We are to be pure in our thoughts and
actions, avoiding even the appearance
of evil.
8.
“You shall not steal.”
Exodus 20:15
·
We are to be honest in all our
relationships with our fellow men, in
our business affairs, our money
matters, and our service to God and
man.
9.
“You shall not give false
testimony against your
neighbor.” Exodus 20:16
·
We are to be truthful at all times
and under all circumstances, albeit
“speaking the truth in
love.” (Ephesians 4:15)
10.
“You shall not covet your
neighbor’s house. You shall not
covet your neighbor’s wife, or
his manservant or maidservant, his ox
or donkey, or anything that belongs
to your neighbor.” Exodus
20:17
·
We are to be content with what God
has given us, without envy toward
those who may be better off than
ourselves. We are to be generous, not
greedy; considerate, not selfish.
page l 1 l 2 l
- 1 -
