I Know The Law
Dear brothers and sisters, the longing of my heart and my prayer to God is for the people of Israel to be saved. I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal. For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law. For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God. Romans 10:1-4
I may have mentioned previously that one of my favorite all-time movies is ‘A Few Good Men’ with Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson. If you’ve ever heard anyone say with conviction, “You can’t handle the truth,” you know the movie. As with many movies, there are always a few of the lines you can recite. One of them relates to when Tom Cruise’s character named Lt. Daniel Kaffee, a U.S. Naval lawyer, was challenged as to whether he had the courage and conviction to take on a difficult case. With his feathers a little ruffled, he defends his stance to not take the case stating, “It doesn’t matter what I believe. It only matters what I can prove! So please, don’t tell me what I know or don’t know. I know the law!” Having said all that, the very next day he decided to take the case to trial. Pretty strong stance, huh? The truth is he knew something deep within that even though the law might have shown to be a bad case, something was not right. Apparently, there was something he did believe in after all, and that belief was greater than the law itself.
There is always a great debate that stirs within us as to when to focus on the law above the feeling. Being that I was always the kid who tried to color inside the box, I was definitely a rule follower, and thus, I pushed to never break the law. However, both before and after being born again as a Christian, I have broken God’s laws a multitude of times. In fact, before being born again, my failures to uphold His laws drove me away from the church in as I never believed I would be good enough to be saved. However, the story many of you know and took me years to figure out is that Christ paid the price for all of our sins. Today’s verses end saying, “As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.” Just as Lt. Kaffee found it’s not just about what you can prove, salvation is about more than just following the law. There is a lot more to belief than meets the eye.
We must always remember to focus on our relationship with God above just following rules. I am reminded of one of the most misunderstood Biblical verses lies in the book of James where it says, “ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? ” (James 2:19-20 NKJV) This implies that if we do not back up our faith with action, it is as if we have no faith at all. However, the truth behind these verses is that it speaks to the condition of our heart and not our salvation. I love God just as you do, but we all fall short of God’s glory. But here is the cool thing about Him. He does not build the bridge between us and salvation, He will go as far as it takes to ensure it happens. Don’t believe me? In Luke 15, Jesus told the parable of the Lost Sheep saying:
And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away! Luke 15:5-7
It took me a minute to fully appreciate this parable. You see, the rule followers represent the ninety-nine, and God and heaven rejoices over the one sinner who repents and turns back to God. But the hidden gem is there is no such thing as the ninety-nine! They are those who believe they are without sin because they ‘follow the rules.’ There are people who God has to only extend His arm out to and others He has to go thousands of miles to reach. It does not matter to God how far He must go. He loves us more than we could ever imagine. So in essences, it is not the rules that matter. It’s our belief that Jesus Christ is our savior. That is enough.
Our love for God pales in comparison to the love He has for us. Today’s verses underline the truth of what matters to God. While reading, understanding, and following God’s law is vital in our walk of faith, it pales in comparison to what matters most to God: our heart. So, let us remove any barrier that may impede us from having a growing and robust relationship with Christ. What laws are you obsessed with that may be a barrier between your heart and God? How can remember to balance honoring God’s law while loving Him with all your heart? My prayer is we remember it is our belief in Christ above simply saying “I know the law!” Amen.