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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 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 (pbuh)
found in the . For this reason the 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
This set of laws was given to (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 to lead them to the land he had earlier promised
to give to (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
. 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 it is written,
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 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 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 . 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 . 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 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 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
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 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
(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 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?
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