God’s law does not consist of abstract principles; instead, God’s law is an expression of relationship. This can be seen explicitly in the Ten Commandments. The basic principles of the Ten Commandments were in place already in the Garden of Eden, the principles of love that were to govern the relationship between God and people and between people themselves.
When the Ten Commandments proclaimed in Exodus 20 were afterward written in stone, they were given to Israel in the context of the covenant relationship. The commandments were written down after the Lord already had delivered the people from Egypt, and the commandments were based on God’s love and on His promises to the nation (see Exod. 6:7, 8 and Lev. 26:12). One can see in the two divisions of the Ten Commandments that they are aimed at the flourishing of a human relationship with God and of relationships with one another.
The first four commandments deal with people’s relationships with God, and the last six with people’s relationships among themselves. Our relationship both to God and to other people must be regulated by the principles of God’s law.
The entirety of God’s law, then, is grounded in God’s love. God’s love and law are inseparable. We often hear people say, We don’t need to keep the law, we just need to love God and to love others. Why does that idea not make sense?
Sabbath School Lesson, Sunday, March 23, 2025
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