Study Focus: Ezek. 28:15, Ps. 119:29, Ps. 119:41–45, Ps. 119:70, Ps. 119:92–97.
Part I: Overview
The keeper of the law has often been accused of being a legalist without soul or without intelligence, a disciple of a backward religion. This charge is unfair. The law, as it is understood in Israel, implies, on the contrary, a light that helps one’s spiritual walk and promotes progress. The psalmist compares the law to “a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105, NKJV).
This lesson is contained in the Hebrew word torah, which is related to the word or, meaning “light.” When one is walking on a path by night, the lamp at one’s feet will not only shed light on the way, but it also will drive serpents away. The image of the poet thereby translated the double function of the law: to enlighten, to teach, and therefore to help one to walk forward—and to protect from danger and to ensure the safety of the one on the walk. The prophet Isaiah brings up the same association when he says that if people are without the law, “there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). The law that is light is the expression of God’s grace for His people. This light will help us to walk and thus to survive on the dangerous and dark way. In that sense, the law is given that we may “live.”
In this lesson, we will examine the paradoxical interrelationship between the law and the grace of God.
Lesson Theme:
• Grace and the law. What is the relationship between grace and the law and how do they relate to each other in the lives of believers?
Part II: Commentary
The book of Deuteronomy is, perhaps, more than any book in the Old Testament, the book in which grace and law are wrapped together in such a way that it would be difficult to see one apart from the other. When Moses speaks about the law, he thinks essentially of grace. Law is understood in this book as the mark of the covenant. This is why law and grace are related from both divine and human perspectives. For God, the law is the way to make His will to be done on earth through human existence and history. For Israel, the law is the tangible sign of its response to God and of its covenant relationship with its Lord. In other words, the law is what makes the grace visible and concrete, in the flesh of history and life; grace is what makes the law possible, bearable, and livable.
Grace Precedes and Leads to the Law.
This process is the first message that Adam hears in God’s first commandment. The first time that the word tsawah, “command,” is used, it refers to grace: “The Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat’ ” (Gen. 2:16, NKJV). The commandment not to eat from the tree of knowledge is preceded by God’s gift of all the trees of the garden. Likewise, the book of Deuteronomy begins with God’s grace, what He did for His people, and His gift of the land. Then, from this concrete, historical reminder, God moves to the law and requires His people to observe the law. This process is visible in the covenant structure of the book of Deuteronomy, and is repeated throughout the book. The Ten Commandments begin with this affirmation: “ ‘ “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt” ’ ” (Deut. 5:6, NKJV). It is the recognition of what God did for them that leads the Israelites to obedience to God’s commandments:
“ ‘ “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant . . .” ’ ” (Exod. 19:4, 5, NKJV).
Note that the call to “obey” (shama‘), which is introduced by the word “therefore,” follows, and also is the direct consequence of, what God did for them.
In Psalm 119, the most beautiful poem on law and grace in the whole Bible, the psalmist begins with the observation of grace: “Your mercies come also to me. . . . Your salvation according to Your word” (Ps. 119:41, NKJV). Then he moves to the next step, which is the law: “So, shall I keep Your law continually” (Ps. 119:44, NKJV). The book of Deuteronomy states that it is “ ‘because the Lord loves you’ ” (Deut. 7:8, NKJV), “ ‘therefore you shall keep [His] commandment’ ” (Deut. 7:11, NKJV). On a human level, it is out of love for God that His people would enjoy keeping His commandments. The psalmist exclaims, “I delight in Your law” (Ps. 119:70, NKJV; compare Ps. 119:174), or “Oh, how I love Your law” (Ps. 119:97, NKJV).
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is obedience to God’s commandments the only logical and serious response to His grace and salvation acts? Why must action lead to action? What would you think of a politician who would campaign only upon sentimental wishes without any reference to his projects and plans to solve economic and social problems? What reasons justify the psalmist’s love of the law?
The Law and Grace
The law is defined as a gift from God. The verb natan, “give,” is used by God to refer to the law: “All this law, which I set [natan] before you this day” (Deut. 4:8). The Ten Commandments have been “given” by God (Exod. 24:12). The psalmist will literally identify the law as grace: “Grant me Your law graciously” (Ps. 119:29, NKJV). Another translation renders this “Be gracious to me and teach me your law” (NIV). So, the psalmist experiences the law of God in his life as grace, a way of freedom: “I will walk at liberty” (Ps. 119:45). In the New Testament, Jesus echoes this view when He teaches His disciples that it is in His words of truth that they will find freedom (John 8:32; compare James 1:25; James 2:12). It is interesting that the common Hebrew word to designate the law in the Old Testament is torah, which means “to show the way.” This is a word commonly associated with the way indicated by the priest. One particular example of this understanding of this word is found in Haggai 2:11, wherein the Lord instructs the prophet to ask the priest for the way, the guidance, in one particular case. The law is grace because it provides us with the way to get out of trouble, the way of life, the way of liberty.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does the identification of law with grace affect salvation? In the light of Ezekiel 28:15, 16, why do we find the law in heaven, although there is no sin there (at least after Lucifer and the fallen angels had been cast out)? Why is the law the expression of God’s character, and therefore a way to understand and to love God? Read the Ten Commandments and identify grace in each of them and explain why they constitute grace in the law.
The Graciousness of the Law
The law of God as a text is beautiful. It is a masterpiece of literature. God did not just “do” grace in giving the Ten Commandments; He also organized them in an artistic manner. The following exercise was designed to help you appreciate the graciousness of God’s commandments:
• First, read the biblical text simply to appreciate its aesthetic beauty.
• Observe the parallels between the first five commandments (1, 2, 3, 4, and 5) and the second five commandments (6, 7, 8, 9, and 10). Compare the commandments opposite each other (1 with 6 relates killing any individual human in God’s image with the uniqueness of God; 2 with 7 relates idolatry with adultery; 3 with 8 relates stealing with false oath; 4 with 9 relates Sabbath breaking with false witnessing; 5 with 10 relates honor of parents with coveting another’s spouse). What lesson do you infer from each comparison?
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is the Sabbath in the center of the Ten Commandments? What lessons do you infer from this central position of the Sabbath? How does the transgression of the fourth commandment affect the observance of the other commandments? How does the Sabbath encapsulate the relationship between law and grace? Compare the fourth and the fifth commandments. What common motifs are shared by these two commandments? What lessons do you infer from these connections?
Part III: Life Application
A committed pastor’s wife fell gravely ill. He prayed repeatedly, and yet his wife never recovered. He became angry at God and decided to leave his ministry because God did not do the miracle he was asking for.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does this true story relate to your own experience with God? What is your motivation in your obedience to God’s commandments? To what extent do you keep God’s commandments in order to be blessed by God? What is your personal experience of the relationship between law and grace in your life?
There is an old rabbinic midrash (parable) in ancient Jewish tradition that comments on the awkward geographic strategy of God when He gave the Torah. Why did God not give the Torah in the land of Israel or in the land of Rome or in the land of Greece? Each nation had all the right to think that they should have deserved that honor. The reason God chose a no-man’s-land to give the Torah was to avoid any kind of nationalist pride in regard to the law, and to allow just anyone who wants it to take it.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is the common pious confession of faith “I am proud to be a Christian” or even “I am proud to be a Seventh-day Adventist” inappropriate (read 1 Cor. 1:31; compare Ps. 34:3)? How might the pride of the respectable institution affect the efficiency of mission?
Notes
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Key Texts: Galatians 2:21, Deuteronomy 9:1–6
Study Focus: Ezek. 28:15, Ps. 119:29, Ps. 119:41–45, Ps. 119:70, Ps. 119:92–97.
Part I: Overview
The keeper of the law has often been accused of being a legalist without soul or without intelligence, a disciple of a backward religion. This charge is unfair. The law, as it is understood in Israel, implies, on the contrary, a light that helps one’s spiritual walk and promotes progress. The psalmist compares the law to “a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps. 119:105, NKJV).
This lesson is contained in the Hebrew word torah, which is related to the word or, meaning “light.” When one is walking on a path by night, the lamp at one’s feet will not only shed light on the way, but it also will drive serpents away. The image of the poet thereby translated the double function of the law: to enlighten, to teach, and therefore to help one to walk forward—and to protect from danger and to ensure the safety of the one on the walk. The prophet Isaiah brings up the same association when he says that if people are without the law, “there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). The law that is light is the expression of God’s grace for His people. This light will help us to walk and thus to survive on the dangerous and dark way. In that sense, the law is given that we may “live.”
In this lesson, we will examine the paradoxical interrelationship between the law and the grace of God.
Lesson Theme:
• Grace and the law. What is the relationship between grace and the law and how do they relate to each other in the lives of believers?
Part II: Commentary
The book of Deuteronomy is, perhaps, more than any book in the Old Testament, the book in which grace and law are wrapped together in such a way that it would be difficult to see one apart from the other. When Moses speaks about the law, he thinks essentially of grace. Law is understood in this book as the mark of the covenant. This is why law and grace are related from both divine and human perspectives. For God, the law is the way to make His will to be done on earth through human existence and history. For Israel, the law is the tangible sign of its response to God and of its covenant relationship with its Lord. In other words, the law is what makes the grace visible and concrete, in the flesh of history and life; grace is what makes the law possible, bearable, and livable.
Grace Precedes and Leads to the Law.
This process is the first message that Adam hears in God’s first commandment. The first time that the word tsawah, “command,” is used, it refers to grace: “The Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat’ ” (Gen. 2:16, NKJV). The commandment not to eat from the tree of knowledge is preceded by God’s gift of all the trees of the garden. Likewise, the book of Deuteronomy begins with God’s grace, what He did for His people, and His gift of the land. Then, from this concrete, historical reminder, God moves to the law and requires His people to observe the law. This process is visible in the covenant structure of the book of Deuteronomy, and is repeated throughout the book. The Ten Commandments begin with this affirmation: “ ‘ “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt” ’ ” (Deut. 5:6, NKJV). It is the recognition of what God did for them that leads the Israelites to obedience to God’s commandments:
“ ‘ “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant . . .” ’ ” (Exod. 19:4, 5, NKJV).
Note that the call to “obey” (shama‘), which is introduced by the word “therefore,” follows, and also is the direct consequence of, what God did for them.
In Psalm 119, the most beautiful poem on law and grace in the whole Bible, the psalmist begins with the observation of grace: “Your mercies come also to me. . . . Your salvation according to Your word” (Ps. 119:41, NKJV). Then he moves to the next step, which is the law: “So, shall I keep Your law continually” (Ps. 119:44, NKJV). The book of Deuteronomy states that it is “ ‘because the Lord loves you’ ” (Deut. 7:8, NKJV), “ ‘therefore you shall keep [His] commandment’ ” (Deut. 7:11, NKJV). On a human level, it is out of love for God that His people would enjoy keeping His commandments. The psalmist exclaims, “I delight in Your law” (Ps. 119:70, NKJV; compare Ps. 119:174), or “Oh, how I love Your law” (Ps. 119:97, NKJV).
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is obedience to God’s commandments the only logical and serious response to His grace and salvation acts? Why must action lead to action? What would you think of a politician who would campaign only upon sentimental wishes without any reference to his projects and plans to solve economic and social problems? What reasons justify the psalmist’s love of the law?
The Law and Grace
The law is defined as a gift from God. The verb natan, “give,” is used by God to refer to the law: “All this law, which I set [natan] before you this day” (Deut. 4:8). The Ten Commandments have been “given” by God (Exod. 24:12). The psalmist will literally identify the law as grace: “Grant me Your law graciously” (Ps. 119:29, NKJV). Another translation renders this “Be gracious to me and teach me your law” (NIV). So, the psalmist experiences the law of God in his life as grace, a way of freedom: “I will walk at liberty” (Ps. 119:45). In the New Testament, Jesus echoes this view when He teaches His disciples that it is in His words of truth that they will find freedom (John 8:32; compare James 1:25; James 2:12). It is interesting that the common Hebrew word to designate the law in the Old Testament is torah, which means “to show the way.” This is a word commonly associated with the way indicated by the priest. One particular example of this understanding of this word is found in Haggai 2:11, wherein the Lord instructs the prophet to ask the priest for the way, the guidance, in one particular case. The law is grace because it provides us with the way to get out of trouble, the way of life, the way of liberty.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does the identification of law with grace affect salvation? In the light of Ezekiel 28:15, 16, why do we find the law in heaven, although there is no sin there (at least after Lucifer and the fallen angels had been cast out)? Why is the law the expression of God’s character, and therefore a way to understand and to love God? Read the Ten Commandments and identify grace in each of them and explain why they constitute grace in the law.
The Graciousness of the Law
The law of God as a text is beautiful. It is a masterpiece of literature. God did not just “do” grace in giving the Ten Commandments; He also organized them in an artistic manner. The following exercise was designed to help you appreciate the graciousness of God’s commandments:
• First, read the biblical text simply to appreciate its aesthetic beauty.
• Observe the parallels between the first five commandments (1, 2, 3, 4, and 5) and the second five commandments (6, 7, 8, 9, and 10). Compare the commandments opposite each other (1 with 6 relates killing any individual human in God’s image with the uniqueness of God; 2 with 7 relates idolatry with adultery; 3 with 8 relates stealing with false oath; 4 with 9 relates Sabbath breaking with false witnessing; 5 with 10 relates honor of parents with coveting another’s spouse). What lesson do you infer from each comparison?
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is the Sabbath in the center of the Ten Commandments? What lessons do you infer from this central position of the Sabbath? How does the transgression of the fourth commandment affect the observance of the other commandments? How does the Sabbath encapsulate the relationship between law and grace? Compare the fourth and the fifth commandments. What common motifs are shared by these two commandments? What lessons do you infer from these connections?
Part III: Life Application
A committed pastor’s wife fell gravely ill. He prayed repeatedly, and yet his wife never recovered. He became angry at God and decided to leave his ministry because God did not do the miracle he was asking for.
Discussion and Thought Questions: How does this true story relate to your own experience with God? What is your motivation in your obedience to God’s commandments? To what extent do you keep God’s commandments in order to be blessed by God? What is your personal experience of the relationship between law and grace in your life?
There is an old rabbinic midrash (parable) in ancient Jewish tradition that comments on the awkward geographic strategy of God when He gave the Torah. Why did God not give the Torah in the land of Israel or in the land of Rome or in the land of Greece? Each nation had all the right to think that they should have deserved that honor. The reason God chose a no-man’s-land to give the Torah was to avoid any kind of nationalist pride in regard to the law, and to allow just anyone who wants it to take it.
Discussion and Thought Questions: Why is the common pious confession of faith “I am proud to be a Christian” or even “I am proud to be a Seventh-day Adventist” inappropriate (read 1 Cor. 1:31; compare Ps. 34:3)? How might the pride of the respectable institution affect the efficiency of mission?
Notes