To Contradict the Law

There are many decisions that people make in their lives, whether it is something as simple as what to wear to school, or something as complex as “Should I save my son or that boatful of people?” When Christians are faced with a decision about their religion, they must not contradict the law of God. According to the Bible, if a Christian contradicts this law, they will be forfeiting eternal life.

Before people can make decisions, they need to have prior knowledge of the subject in order to come to a correct conclusion. Prior to knowing what to do in order not to sin or rebuke their beliefs, a person must first know what a sin is. When people sin they are going above the law of their beliefs, which in the case of Christians is the Word of God, the Bible. This means that when people sin, they are contradicting the law, which in turn means that sin can be thought of as a contradiction within life (Murray, par. 3). To rebuke is normally considered insulting, but the Grecian root of the word actually means “to give due weight or value” (Spear, David. The Confrontation). An example of making decisions about religion and rebuke is the story of Simon Peter Bajona and Jesus’ prediction in Matthew 26:31-35, when Peter disowns his teacher:  “… Peter remembered the words Jesus had spoken … and he went outside and wept bitterly” (Matt. 26:74-75). Peter makes these statements without thinking, and feels ashamed knowing he has sinned with his lies and contradictions.

Satan is the first to contradict by telling Eve to take a bite from the apple. From that spawned “free-will”, with humans disregarding the things of God and coveting the things of man (Murray, John. The Contradiction). There are many ways people can contradict and many things they can contradict. One way is to contradict oneself by saying one thing and doing another, or saying two opposite statements. Another is by contradicting one’s faith and beliefs, such as Peter did. Peter had many conflicts with Jesus and had many contradictory actions. Peter felt great love for Jesus, which is why he said that he could never fall away. When Peter states, “This shall not be unto thee,” he is rebuking the Savior, but it is a rebuke of love. He does not feel Jesus should be put through the torture of the crucifixion. Remarkably Jesus states, “Get behind me, Satan,” while beforehand he states “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona.” Jesus is not contradicting himself, but rather pointing out the contradiction of Peter. He tells Peter that he “do[es] not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Murray, John. The Contradiction). In Romans 7:22, Paul states why humans contradict the law by saying, “I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.” Paul knows that there will always be contradiction until God decides to give the people His final test.

The gospels say that “Jesus is always available,” and no matter what position a person is in, He will guide him (Kay, James F. Theology Today). In order for people to let Him guide them, they must first prioritize and put the will of God in their mind; if they have the will of man, they will come to the wrong decision. Jesus states when faced with a life or death decision to choose Him and not choose man and says, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it (Mark 8:35).” Satan tries again to contradict the law by lying and saying that he can give us the entire world, but Jesus turns this around and says, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul (Mark 8:36)?” He also states that if people are to be with Him they must have a “life of faith.” They must have a life of rebuking man and Satan and taking in that of the Lord.

Along with this decision, God gives His people another mission: to live in His image. He tells all of his people to go out and lose their life for those who are diseased in both spirit and mind. He wants them to spread the “power of Jesus’ love” throughout the world. God also wants them to dine with the sinners and invite them to rid themselves of evil and join the Lord in heaven and shalom (Starenko, Ron. Crossings).

So people must go out and keep the will of God with them, and they will make every decision correctly, no matter how large or small. Some may think this is impossible, but many authors and other people have already expressed that this is possible. Lacey Mosley from the Texas band Flyleaf knows that when a life or death question is presented, the person should always answer in the name of God, even if it means they die. She tries to convey this in the song “Cassie” and shows the listener her pledge to do this saying “I will die, I will say yes… ‘Do you believe in God?’ I will pull the trigger.” The song is about the shooting at Columbine and how a girl lost her life because she believed in God. Lacey and the rest of her band was devastated at the tragic events of Columbine and wanted to send Cassie’s message out to the people who had not already heard it and taken it into their hearts. One of the shooters walked up to the young girl known as “Cassie” with the gun pointed directly to her. He asked if she believed in God. A shot rang out, but Cassie still lived. Again, he asked if she believed in God and again she said yes. This time she didn’t live. Even though her life was taken, her soul will live because she kept her honor and pride in God.

The author of The Crucible, Arthur Miller, shows through his characters the honor and the joyous consequences of “saying yes.” Giles Corey is tortured because of his beliefs but he knows that he will prosper in the end and only says two words before he dies: “More weight.” In their last moments together Elizabeth Proctor tells her husband not to give into the people of the court and the village but to stay with his heart telling him to “sink them with [your stone-hearted will].”

No matter what religion or beliefs people have, they must always remember to keep this strong will of justice in their heart and mind. God wants His people to be a just people, not that of contradiction and sin. He wants them to be kind and open. God wants His people to go and give their lives for Him and that of His kingdom. People must always remember to choose what the Lord would choose for them.