Thinking back to last week's tour in the Land of Abundant Living, do you recall that I said I'd discuss the Law further this week?
What sort of thoughts come to the forefront of your mind when you hear the word "Law?" Please mentally list three words. Here are mine: obey, punishment, justice.
I have a high respect for the law of my country and the men and women who enforce it. Not that I wouldn't like to see some changes made, but my intention is to work within the framework and structure in place to being about those changes. I grew up living next door to a deputy sheriff. He and his wife were terrific neighbors and friends whom I highly respected. And it was comforting to know that the Law lived right next door to us in case we had trouble and needed help!
Last week, I talked about how the Love of Christ sets me free from false guilt. And the week before how the Love of God working through the blood of Christ sets me free from real guilt. So how do I reconcile the Law with Love? There is an easy answer for that. Yes, a simple answer that even a child can understand. Everyone is guilty of sin of wrongdoing. Someone has to pay for that sin. God loves us so much that He was willing to give His very own, precious Son to suffer and die on the cross to pay for that sin in our place. If we accept that payment for ourselves, God will adopt us as His child and will take care of us in this life and in the next! Period.
So why do we make it so complicated? Because of our feelings and our self-centeredness. Our feelings of uncertainty, fear and selfishness often conflict with the truth. So to bring my feelings into alignment with the truth, I remind myself that my Law is God's Love. Jesus is not only my Savior but my Lord. Jesus is my King! He is the One who deserves my total allegiance. He is the One I must focus on honoring and obeying.
And because of my self-centeredness, I want to put myself above the Law! When I am confronted with the enemy's accusations (see last week's blog), and I instinctively question my thoughts or actions, the eyes of my mind need to turn to the One whom I serve and honor. It is because of my allegiance to my Lord that I choose to obey the Law of the Land. When I choose to obey my Lord Jesus, everything else falls into place. When I decide to obey the highest Law of God, doing the right thing will be automatic. If I try to push Him off the throne of my heart so I can occupy it, even for a moment in time, I will fail . . . fall into sin. When I keep my eyes on Him, I succeed. Maybe not in the ways that I wish success for my own purposes, but in the ways that will succeed for Eternity . . . for lasting purposes that go far beyond my own desires . . . goals that are so much more important than my own petty wishes. And one day, those purposes will result in the Eternal Law of the Land of Heaven and I will find myself totally in line with them and grateful that I made the decision to abide by the Law of my Lord, the Law of Love, in this temporary world.
Copyright 2012 Linda Ruth Stai, Author and Inspirational Speaker
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