The Way of Truth
Study 5: THE LAW
In the last lesson we looked at sin and its terrible results in the world. In this lesson we shall be examining one of the means by which Allah determined to control sin. That means was through the giving of his law.
Allah Gave His Law to Guide Men’s Lives
What do we mean by the word law? It simply means rules or commands given by Allah to man. Such rules are to regulate man’s relationship with Allah and to reveal Allah’s desire for man’s life. Let us look first at a brief history of the law. As we have already seen, the first command or law that Allah ever gave was that given to Adam and Hawa not to eat the forbidden fruit. Led by Satan into greed, they did not obey Allah’s command but followed their own desires and sinned. From then on Allah, at various times through the prophets gave mankind various laws to guide them in their relationship with Allah. One of the most well-known of these laws is that given to Prophet Musa (pbuh) found in the Taurat. For this reason the Taurat is often simply called “the Law” or “Law of Moses”. Let us look a little more closely at this Law.
Allah’s Law as Given to Prophet Musa
This set of laws was given to Musa (pbuh) at a crucial time in the history of the children of Israel (Bani-Israel). They had just been rescued from slavery in the land of Egypt and now Allah had told Musa to lead them to the land he had earlier promised to give to Ibrahim (pbuh) and his descendants. However, the inhabitants of that land were very wicked people who worshipped idols and committed every sort of injustice and wickedness. Allah knew that Bani-Israel would be very tempted to follow the wicked practices of the people of that land, therefore he gave his Law to Prophet Musa. This Law was intended to prevent them from doing the same wicked things the other inhabitants of the land did. It included the following laws, commonly known as “The Ten Commandments”:
And Allah spoke all these words: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
(LAW #1) “You shall have no other gods before me.
(LAW #2) “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
(LAW #3) “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
(LAW #4) “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
(LAW #5) “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.
(LAW #6) “You shall not murder.
(LAW #7) “You shall not commit adultery.
(LAW #8) “You shall not steal.
(LAW #9) “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
(LAW #10) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:1-17)
Also given at that time was a series of rules to govern their dietary and worship practices. For example, the eating of such things as snakes, crabs, turtles, and pork was strictly forbidden (haram). Also, the people were commanded to set aside the time from Friday evening to Saturday evening as a special day. It was called the Sabbath. On that day no work was to be done, people were to rest and to worship Allah.
No One Can Keep Allah’s Holy Law
Let us look next at why the Law was given. Allah gave it to reveal his perfect standards for man. If a man were able to obey this divine Law then he would be acceptable before Allah through his obedience. Thus, in the Injil it is written,
Musa describes in this way the righteousness that is by the Law: “The man who does these things will live by them.” (Romans 10:5)
Yet, there is a serious problem with this because no man is able to keep Allah’s perfect laws. We saw before that not even prophets were able to live up to the perfect and holy standards the Law of Allah demands. If a man could keep the Law perfectly, Allah would be pleased with him. However, no man can keep it and therefore no one stand before Allah as righteous through the Law. As the Injil says,
For it is not those who hear the Law who are righteous in Allah’s sight, but it is those who obey the Law who will be declared righteous. (Romans 2:13)
We may agree that the Law is good and right, and even try to obey it. Yet, unless we keep it perfectly, we cannot gain the benefits from it. No one however, can keep it perfectly. As the Injil says, “all have sinned” (Romans 3:23). Allah looks on us as breakers of his holy Law. Thus, instead of being saved by the Law we are only shown to be lawbreakers. As lawbreakers, we face Allah’s judgment.
Every Law Carries a Punishment for Disobedience
It is a known fact that when any law is given there is also at the same time given the punishment for disobedience. Thus, for example, in most every country it is forbidden to steal or to murder. Yet, these laws do not stand alone. If you ask any judge he will be able to tell you what the penalty for stealing is according to the law. He will know the penalty for murder. We find the same thing true with the Law of Allah. Those who do not obey it perfectly and completely fall under its penalty and curse. We see the first example of this in the case of Adam and Hawa. They were not able to keep the one command of Allah and consequently fell under Allah’s curse. As sons of Adam we also do not obey Allah’s perfect law. Like Adam, we also fall under the curse of Allah. Those who try to please Allah through obeying the Law only fall under its curse, since they are not able to keep it. It is written,
All who rely on observing the Law are under a curse, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Clearly no one is justified before Allah by the Law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.” The Law is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The man who does these things will live by them.” Al-Masih redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” (Galatians 3:10-13)
Thus, if man were able to obey the Law he would be proven righteous by it, but since he cannot perfectly obey the Law the only thing he obtains from his efforts is the curse of Allah. As we saw earlier,
For it is not those who hear the Law who are righteous in Allah’s sight, but it is those who obey the Law who will be declared righteous. (Romans 2:13)
A mere knowledge of the Law will not clear us before Allah, nor will a partial obedience of the Law. The holy and righteous Allah demands total and perfect obedience to his Law. Nothing else is acceptable. Anything short of perfect obedience brings down the curse of Allah.
All Things Have a Right and Wrong Use
This brings us back to the question of what the purpose of the Law really is. If the Law does not save man but only brings down a curse, then why did Allah ever give the Law? This question is clearly answered in the holy Injil. It is written, “We know that the Law is good if one uses it properly” (1 Timothy 1:8). The Law was given by Allah and is good and perfect. Yet, as with everything, the Law has a certain purpose and use. When used for that purpose it is very good useful. However, if used wrongly it loses its benefits and can even prove to be harmful. This is true for all things. A banana is good for food when hungry. For that purpose it is good. If one tries to drive a nail with it however, it proves to be totally worthless. Similarly, certain medicines are very good used the right way, but used the wrong way they can be deadly. Thus, we see that the Law is good; however, if one tries to clear oneself in the eyes of Allah by supposed obedience to it, then one only brings down a curse upon oneself. What then is the real purpose of the Law? We find that answer in the Word of Allah.
The Proper Use of the Law
It is written in the Injil that “no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the Law; rather, through the Law we become conscious of sin.” (Romans 3:20). The purpose of the Law is not to make us good but to help us see our badness. One common trait of mankind is pride and unwillingness to admit sin. Rather than openly admit our sinfulness we try to hide it, to cover it up, just as Adam and Hawa did. When we read Allah’s perfect Law and attempt to obey it we are forced to see and admit our sin. In fact, the Law could be compared to a mirror. A person can walk around with dirt on his face and never know it because he does not see it. It is there, he is just unaware of its presence. However, as soon as he looks in a mirror he immediately becomes aware that there is dirt and where it is. In the same way we can often fool ourselves and think we are very good people. We are blind to our own sins. However, when we read Allah’s Law we see exactly in what areas we have disobeyed his commands and just how much we have sinned. We are no longer able to ignore our sins and blindly consider ourselves good people.
The Law Reveals Us as We Really Are
Thus, we see that the main purpose of the Law is to reveal to people who they really are-sinners before a righteous judge. Yet, despite our inability to keep the Law we are not free from our obligation to obey it, or at least to try to obey it. However, our inability to obey the Law makes it impossible for us to hope to be saved through our obedience to the Law. We ought still to seek to obey it, yet we must realize that our own efforts will not be enough to save us. Rather, the Law reveals our sin and points us to Allah’s grace.
The Law Points Us to the Grace of Allah
This is the second main purpose of the Law, to point us to the grace of Allah. If we are to be saved and allowed to be with Allah in heaven it will not be the result of our own works, but rather through the grace and mercy of Allah. Without the grace of Allah we face only an eternity in hell for our sins. As the Injil says,
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of Allah–not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8,9)
Thus, we see that if we want to be saved we shall need the grace of Allah. We shall be looking more at the grace of Allah in future studies.
QUESTIONS:
1. The Law found in the Taurat was given specifically to which people?
a. the Christians
b. all people
c. the Jews
2. According to that Law, give three things that were forbidden to eat,
3. The Law can save…
a. everyone
b. those who try to keep it
c. those who keep most of it
d. only those who keep it perfectly
4. Who can keep the Law completely?
a. anyone
b. no one
c. only those who want to
d. only very holy people
5. We know that every law includes the punishment for breaking it. What is the punishment Allah has set for sin in the Injil (Romans 6:23)?
6. Can the Law make it possible for anyone to be righteous in the sight of Allah?
a. Yes
b. No
7. According to the Injil in Romans 3:20, what is the purpose of the Law?
8. How does the Law resemble a mirror?
9. As sinners, if we cannot be saved by the Law what is our only hope of salvation?
10. What have you learned about the Law in this lesson that was most helpful to you?