This Is Life! – The Rule of Law: Government of the Soul (7)

This Is Life!

The Rule of Law: Government of the Soul (7)

This is the way we’re meant to live.

“You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the LORD.” Leviticus 18:5

“Keeping” or, more literally, “guarding” the Law of God begins in the soul, as we daily strive, in the Word and by God’s Spirit, to keep our affections, thoughts, and values subordinate to God’s revealed will, beginning in His Law. Such constant vigilance can be arduous, it’s true. Thus, the Scriptures refer to living this way as work, warfare, running a race, doing battle, and so forth. But though life on God’s terms is difficult, it is not onerous (Matt. 11:30).

Only God is able to define life on the most blessed and beneficial of terms, life in the fullness of joy and with pleasures forevermore (Ps. 16:11). All our vain attempts to find our way in life apart from God will only leave us disappointed, or worse (Prov. 14:12).  Real life is through faith in Jesus Christ, by dying through Jesus to the wrath of God’s Law, and living in Him unto the righteousness of that Law (1 John 2:1-6). Jesus is the life we seek, and we know His life through faith and obedience, from the inside-out.

So let us guard our hearts, minds, and consciences against the destructive influences of the world, the flesh, and the devil, by filling our souls with the Law of God, leaning on the Spirit to search, teach, and form us into the image of Jesus Christ, walking in daily obedience to God’s Law, and exhorting all around us to do the same. Thus we will know the greatness of God’s Kingdom and fullness of life in Jesus Christ (Matt. 5:17-19).

For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the life of faith, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.ailbe.org and click on our Bookstore, then Church Issues.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.