Call Us: 423 661-4734 | Email: requests@comeandreason.com      
Why Did God Use Law?

Why Did God Use Law?

A theologian recently posed the following question to me:

What was the purpose of the “ceremonial law”? Why is it “changeable” (or “fulfill-able; what was “fulfilled)?

When White says “The Holy Spirit saw good not to impose the ceremonial law on the Gentile converts, and the mind of the apostles regarding this matter was as the mind of the Spirit of God,” (AA194),

that implies there was a time when it WAS imposed, with serious consequences for disobedience. How would your approach handle such situations? (I use this example as your EGW quote above specifically excludes the ceremonial). Sincere question, if you’ve the time.


Thank you for your sincere question, and one that is very reasonable, given how God HAS used imposed laws in human history, as you mention.

Keeping in mind all the previous Bible and EGW quotes about God’s law being the law of love, the simple answer is – because sin damaged the mind of mankind such that we could no longer properly comprehend God and His law, thus He stepped in and communicated in a way they could comprehend, in order to protect and lead them back to Him and His design.

As Paul states:

“We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. We also know that law is made NOT for the righteous, but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me” (1 Tim. 1:8-11, NIV).

Why? Because we needed a diagnostic instrument to inform us of the sick condition of our being, as Paul says elsewhere, we would not know what sin is if it wasn’t for the law.

 

EGW puts it this way:

“If man had kept the law of God, as given to Adam after his fall, preserved by Noah, and observed by Abraham, there would have been no necessity for the ordinance of circumcision. And if the descendants of Abraham had kept the covenant, of which circumcision was a sign, they would never have been seduced into idolatry, nor would it have been necessary for them to suffer a life of bondage in Egypt; they would have kept God’s law in mind, and there would have been no necessity for it to be proclaimed from Sinai or engraved upon the tables of stone. And had the people practiced the principles of the Ten Commandments, there would have been no need of the additional directions given to Moses.  — Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 364

And EGW states explicitly that the law that God ADDED after sin included the 10 Commandments, which is the distilled written version of the Law of Love that was always in existence:

“I am asked concerning the law in Galatians. What law is the schoolmaster to bring us to Christ? I answer: BOTH the ceremonial and the moral code of ten commandments…   “The law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Gal. 3:24). In this scripture, the Holy Spirit through the apostle is speaking ESPECIALLY of the moral law.  — 1st Selected Messages, pp. 233, 234

The Moral law of the 10 Commandments didn’t exist in that form before humanity sinned – angels didn’t have a law of sin passing down the generations, or honoring mother and father. And Sabbath didn’t exist until this earth and sun were made. But the law of love, as described earlier, being an expression of God’s character and the protocols upon which life is built, has always been in existence. The 10 Commandments were a codification of the law of love especially written for humanity in its fallen state.

Paul tells us in Hebrews 5-6 that the immature infants still on milk “are not acquainted with righteousness” and then he tells us what the elementary or infant formula is, which is not yet righteous:

“Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death…” Heb 6:1

Note, the focus on acts that lead to death (breaking the rules, law keeping) is not mature, it is childish and not righteous. We must grow up to the full statures of sons and daughters of God.

There are seven levels of understanding right and wrong (moral decision-making).  Because God is love, God speaks to each person at their level of development, just as a parent speaks to their children in different ways at various stages of development. A parent explains things differently to a 3 year old than to a 30 year old.  So does God.

The seven levels are:

1.  Reward and punishment

The most basic level of understanding whether something is right or wrong is being rewarded for doing right and being punished for doing wrong. This is a slave mentality. This is ancient Israel as slaves in Egypt, doing what the master says in order to avoid punishment.

At stage one a ruler establishes his right to rule by displays of power and vengeance upon his enemies. He rules by threat of punishment and hope of reward. Mercy, or failure to punish, is seen as evidence of weakness, not morality, by stage one mentality. People at this level see a God of mercy as a marshmallow God and insist God use His power to torture and kill the unrepentant wicked.

God meets people where they are and with ancient Israel in Egypt He first established His credentials to rule Israel by acts of punishment upon the Egyptian gods, and by mighty, spectacular miracles demonstrating the Egyptian gods were not gods at all. “I did this so that you might know that I am the Lord your God.” (Deut. 29:6 NIV)

This is so primitive it doesn’t even require a brain, the mind is completely sidelined. Animals, plants, bacteria can be conditioned to avoid painful stimuli and grow toward rewarding stimuli. This level of functioning is not worthy of human beings created in the image of God. It is Satan’s goal to reduce us to “brute beasts, creatures of instinct” operating on level one.

2.  Marketplace exchange

Level two morality is the quid pro quo, you do something for me in exchange for something of agreed value in return. This is ancient Israel at Sinai, “an eye for an eye and tooth for tooth”. At this level, vengeance is a moral duty. People who do evil must be paid back with an equal amount of pain and suffering. To not return pain and suffering is considered immoral. This was also ancient Israel saying at Sinai, when the law was first read, “All the Lord has said, we will do.”

3.  Social conformity

At this stage right and wrong is determined by community consensus. This is the child who says, “Everyone else is doing it.” Right is deemed right by the approval of peers.

This was ancient Israel when they wanted kings. All the other nations had kings, so it must be right and Israel demanded to have kings.

4.  Law and order

At level four right and wrong is determined by a codified system of rules, impartial judges, imposed proscribed punishments, and respect for properly elected or otherwise constituted authority. Right is getting a proper pay or reward for good work, and proscribed and inflicted punishment for breaking the rules. Authority figures are rarely questioned, “He must be right, because he is the President, the Judge, the Pope, God, etc.”

This was ancient Israel at the time of Christ – “we have a law!” they proclaimed, as they sought to stone Jesus for healing on the Sabbath.

This is much of our modern world, with its codified laws, courts, prosecutors, judges, juries, and imposed rules. Authority at this level rests in the coercive pressure of the state to bring punishment upon those who deviate from the established laws. At this level police agencies and law enforcers are required to monitor the population searching for breaches in the law in order to impose standardized penalties.

5.  Love for others

Level five morality understands right is determined by doing what is in the best interest of others, realizing people have value in who they are irrespective of the rules. Right is determined, not by a checklist of rules, but by doing what is actually helpful and beneficial for another.

Jesus demonstrated this level of functioning when he touched lepers, spoke to women, socialized with tax collectors, and healed on the Sabbath.  The Pharisees, operating at level four and below wanted to stone Him for breaking the law.

6.  Principle based living

Level six morality understands the design protocols or principles upon which life is constructed to operate and intelligently chooses to live in harmony with them. It is not doing something because a rule says to do so, but because it is understood to actually work this way.

This was Jesus living out God’s character of love in all He did, and the Apostles after Pentecost. It is understood at this level that God says what is right because it is right, because it is the way things actually are. It isn’t right simply because God said it

7. Enlightened Friend of God

At level seven a person not only has love for God and others, not only understand God’s design protocols for life, but also understands God’s purposes and intelligently chooses to cooperate in fulfilling their role in His purposes.

Jesus said to His disciples in John 15:15 “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

Person’s functioning at this level understand the truth about God’s character of love, His nature and design for life, the origin of evil, the nature of sin, the weapons of Satan, the original purpose for the creation of humanity, the fall of humanity into sin, God’s working through human history, the purpose of the Cross, and the ultimate cleansing of the universe from sin.  Jesus operated at this level, as will all those who are ready for translation when Jesus comes again.

Thus the NT church didn’t put the ceremonial law upon the Gentiles, because they understood its purpose was a theater, with script, costumes, and stage designed to act out God’s plan of salvation. As such, they understood there was no need for the continuation of the “little drama” now that Christ had come. But they still enjoined the principles of healthful living, because the laws of health were still operational.

Generally, in normal human development, one can only get their mind around one developmental level above the one they are currently operate at. Those operating at level four and below generally persecute and attack those operating at level six and seven, as demonstrated throughout history.

Christ wants to return for His Bride, but He doesn’t want a child bride – He wants a mature bride, a people who have grown up to be like Him. This is my passion, to help people grow in God’s grace to be like Him, so He will come and take us home!

Finally, those operating at level four and below are not trustworthy, because they require some external threat to do what is right. Only level five and above can be trusted, because those levels are where the law is written on the heart, when we actually love God and others, understand and value His methods and willingly participate in His purposes. 

Email me the blog whenever a new one is published.

Donate online, securely via PayPal using your credit or debit card (no PayPal account needed, unless you want to set up a monthly, recurring payment).


cancel recurring payment

 

Want to use zelle instead?
See how on our
Support and Donations page.

Upcoming Events

calendar

Testimonial Post Slider

Testimony 42

I am just writing to say that I have been so blessed by the teachings of Come And Reason Minitries recently. I watched last week’s bible study lesson on Youtube and am thankful that the error in the printed lesson guide you use was pointed out and this week’s study was of equal benefit, if not more so. My understanding of God’s nature has been very confused of late and I am so grateful for clarity in this matter. I have never really fully understood previously how a good God can cause bad things to happen and now I realise that He doesn’t, it’s a natural consequence of sin. May the almighty Father and His Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, continue to bless your ministry.

Laura P., United Kingdom

 

Testimony 19

I truly believe that to know who God really is the first step to understand ourselves in a balanced and kind way, so the healing can take place. Your approach really makes sense – Thank you for your ministry!

A.M., Pittsburg, PA, USA

Testimony 40

I was brought up in a different faith and have been petrified my whole life of God. I believed that I would burn in hell for eternity. When I was 12 I started pursuing the things of this world, but for the next 45 years the Spirit was always calling me, as I knew there was a God through nature. I could see the vast sea of stars in the universe and knew there was something bigger out there. Five years ago, through a Revelation seminar, I was blessed to learn about God’s character and government.

Then I found Come and Reason Ministries and have come under some extreme pressure when I speak about the ministry. One time a member sent me an internet article titled “Whats wrong with Tim Jennings?” I asked her what she thought of it and she said “I don’t know, I didn’t read it.”

I have always wanted to find out for myself the truth about God, so I stayed with the Design Law construct and have been liberated to understand the big picture. Once we consider Design Law, all other Bible stories and prophecies seem to fit perfectly. It is truly beautiful to see people grasping how God operates this Universe of Love and the liberation it has provided in their lives. It blows my mind to see how consistent Design law is with what our founders believed. I hear statements like “This makes so much sense.”

Tom W., Mt. Pleasant, MI, USA

 

Testimony 43

Two years ago I stumbled upon your book, “Could It Be This Simple,” and then found “The God-Shaped Brain” videos on YouTube, your bible study class, and the ‘Come And Reason’ mobile app. I shared your book with a friend and after nine months of showing love, patience, and kindness this person has been changed by the love of God, too. The same love that healed me, I now express to other women in tangible ways, such as to a Baptist woman with high anxiety and childhood trauma. She was extremely happy and relieved when I shared about the so-called “judgment of God” and burning in hell. She had no desire to serve a God that was so harsh. I have repeated the phrase dozens of times to her. “What we believe has power over us, but we have power over what we believe…”

This message that you are sharing has changed my life. I will continue to serve other women and bring this message of God’s healing love to their lives by sharing your books, YouTube videos, and The Remedy Bible app. Keep up the good work. Don’t be discouraged. God is doing a mighty work in and through this ministry!

Jill L., Midwest, USA

 

Testimony 30

God lead me to your book “The God-Shaped Brain” while I was searching for another book about the brain and then to your interview about your book on HeartWise Ministries [where] I found out about [Come And Reason Ministries]. I’m now devouring the webcasts of your Bible studies. I have been so greatly blessed and I thank God so much for your courage to speak the Truth in love no matter what. Listening to you contrast the two opposing systems (laws) and digging deep to unearth the hidden treasures in the Bible makes me so incredibly happy and I feel very blessed to be part of your Bible Study Group although I live far away. I am just so excited that there is a group of people that is spreading the Truth about the character of God and it saddens me how few realize what our Father in Heaven is really like.

Kessy B., Australia

 

Testimony 24

I wanted to thank you very much for presenting your understanding of God. I’ve always been troubled by this question: Why did Jesus have to die? Since my conversion I understood that The Father & Jesus are one, I did not have issues with that. But was there not any other way to save us than for Jesus to die? I guess I actually had a question about God – if He is so wise, how come He did not find another way? I did not see the real ‘beauty’  in the cross. Only when you explained the picture in the medical context, Jesus providing medicine for my selfishness, have I started to finally ‘see the light’. Thank you so much. Your seminar, “Healing the Mind,” are absolutely marvelous & have shared them with my family and many other people, including colleagues at work. Thanks, thanks, thanks. May God bless you abundantly in your ministry.

M. W., Australia

 

Testimony 48

I just want to tell you how blessed I have been reading “The Remedy!” It has become a daily part of my devotional relationship with God. In it I have found a God of love and a God that loves me! The bible has come alive for me! It is the first time that I can say that I have felt hope fill my heart as I have read God’s word. This is good news I can share! Thank you, Dr Jennings! Thank you for your heart for others. I can’t put into words how this has set me free! It has strengthened my trust and love for God.

Jason H.

 

Testimony 15

I have been sharing Come And Reason Ministries Bible study lessons with several folk. You have such a beautiful view of the plan of salvation. If we had this message preached when I was young, my generation would still all be in church.

H. R., New Zealand

Testimony 68

Your message of design law vs imperial law is so uplifting and makes so much sense- it is a game changer for me. The fact that Jesus’s death is not a big payment by an angry God is , quite frankly, a relief.

Laura G., London, Ontario, Canada

 

Testimony 51

I Love This Ministry!!!!!!! I see first hand how this message is desperately needed, how erroneous beliefs about God and His Character negatively affect humanity at every level. I thank God for your ministry, as I was searching on my own and was discovering some of your same beliefs and was blown away when I found your ministry. I know you hear it all the time, but it is truly life changing. May God continue to reveal His Will to you and Bless you!

Eric S., Sanford, FL, USA

 

Testimony 26

Your teachings about our heavenly Father have changed my life. Thank you sooooooo very very much! I know He’s doing some serious healing in my heart and life and I look forward to each new day to learn something new about Him and to just hear you speak about Him. Thank you, forever.

Nancy S.

 

Testimony 31

It was very touching to hear the testimony of your class share how viewing God’s true character has changed their lives. My feelings are the same – there is so much freedom in knowing that God LOVES me – regardless of my… just, REGARDLESS! I’m still blown away by the true gospel, the fact that God is not ready to strike us when we fail. He is not arbitrary. He simply loves us and warns of the natural consequences because He can’t stand to see us suffer. I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS GOD!!!

Ceil V.,  UT, USA

 

Testimony 67

I was introduced to Come And Reason by a friend of my mother-in-law, who gave me several CD’s of Dr. Jennings. The clarity of the message and recognition that God’s is a God of love was so clear, advancing beyond Dr. Maxwell’s message. However, grappled with Maxwell saying God used emergency measures for the fallen world. Now after several years of being a regular listener of the Come And Reasoning bible study class and attending Jennings’ meetings in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX, things are becoming clearer for me. Design law versus imposed law has added so much to my personal understanding of theology. This message has really impacted my work in counseling so many people miserable because they are searching for and trusting human governments to create order and peace or believing in a God who says love Me or I will kill you. I am grateful that I have an alternative view to offer my clients that makes sense. I teach a bible study class on a semi-regular basis and I value the materials that Come And Reason so freely offers to aid me in presenting this vital message. Thank you for continuing to provide advancement in our very limited understanding of a Infinite God that is rational and believable.

Dr. Roger D, Arlington, TX, USA

 

Testimony 60

Just watched watched lesson 10 in the 1st quarter 2021 bible study classs on Isaiah. I want to thank you for your intellectual spirituality; it’s not an oxymoron! From the point of view of a teacher I also enjoy seeing how much personal pleasure you clearly take in not just tasting, but feasting on God’s word – it reminds me of Jeremiah not being able to hold it in! It makes me smile that your cup is so full and overflowing that you make it to Tuesday’s lesson (on a good day). It just goes to show the richness of God’s Word.

God bless the Come and Reason Team from our church here in Great Britain.

Andrew H., Great Britain

 

Testimony 56

I cannot thank you enough for opening my understanding to the beautiful truth of God’s Law of Love and how it applies to everything. I have been a Christian for over forty years, but I feel like I am only now seeing with my eyes open. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!

Tammy Cinzio, Australia