The righteous
man who is blessed by the Lord and whose life is favored by his God, is
described in Psalm 1 as a man both of abstention and action. There are certain
things he does not do (v.1) and others things he does do (v.2). Negatively, he
does not follow the advice of the wicked or take his stand in their way or sit
comfortably among those who scoff at God. Positively, he delights in God’s law
and meditates on it night and day.
Can it be truly
said of you or of me that we delight
in the law of the Lord? Some who read the Scriptures superficially and only
grasp the gospel slightly shudder to think of God’s law. For them it is only an
instrument of death and condemnation, a cause for sin and a burden which the
Christian can gladly discard. But is this a biblical view of God’s law?
The apostle Paul
was an advocate of the divine law and its role in the Christian’s life. Does
the gospel destroy or set aside God’s law? “By no means!” Paul answers, “On the
contrary, we uphold the law” (Rom. 3:31). “The law is holy, and the commandment
is holy and righteous and good” (Rom. 7:12). No, the law cannot save (Rom. 3:20).
It was never intended to (Gal. 3:24). But Christ came to fulfill the law, not
destroy it (Matt. 5:17-20). He came to fully satisfy its prophecies and
requirements, not to nullify it (Rom. 8:1-4). He is the end of any attempt to
find justification or righteousness in keeping the law, but he does not
terminate the law (Rom. 10:4). On the contrary, Jesus consistently pointed men
to the law as a guide for belief and life (Mark 10:2-3, 17-19; Luke 10:25-28;
John 5:46-47). Yes, he fulfilled it and in so doing ended the Mosaic covenant
and removed the ceremonial and national requirements (Eph. 2:14-16; Col.
2:13-17). But this does not mean the moral requirements of God’s law have
changed (cf. Rom. 13:8-10). God’s people are still, in the New Covenant, “under
the law of Christ” (1Cor. 9:21).
God’s law is not
our enemy. While it cannot save us, it has much to teach us. So delight in the
divine law, meditate on it, and endeavor to obey it, just like the blessed man
in Psalm 1. -JME
