Human Law and Divine Law
A sermon by Pastor Darrell Reeck, Ph.D.
2nd Sunday of Easter April 18, 2004
"We must obey God rather than men." -- Apostle Peter, in Acts 5: 27
Prayer for Enlightenment
Think of Jesus' disciples. After the crucifixion, they had seen the risen Lord. That experience propelled them into action. They preached, they healed, and they precipitated a big stir in Jerusalem.
This whirlwind of activity alarmed the high religious authorities. They still feared unrest, riot, and Roman crackdown.
The authorities told our heroes:
"Stop preaching the name of Jesus!" The message: preach our law, not divine law.
When you see a stop sign, you stop, right? It's the LAW. When an officer tells you to stop, you freeze! Some of the worst driving I've seen lately is the panic stop when the red lights go on behind a speeding motorist. We've all seen videos of what happens to those who disobey the orders of an officer. You obey the law or suffer consequences, even a beating or a shooting in extreme cases.
Our role models, the disciples, did not stop. They kept right on with their preaching and teaching, in obedience to the higher imperative. A very few days before, Jesus had commanded them to "Go, Make Disciples, Teach and Baptize." (Matthew 28: 19.) This, of course, is the Great Commission, and it's still valid today, 2000 years later.
Hauled into court, the disciples testified, "We must obey God rather than men." And they accepted the risks and consequences of resistance. Verse 40 tells of their being beaten. I suppose that was a victory; they could have been killed.
I call the disciples "our heroes" because they correctly discerned their obligation, they disobeyed, they suffered the lash, and then they rejoiced. They knew they had won the moral battle. They had taken the high moral ground. History shows they were right. They are role models of putting God's law above human regulations.
Let's learn from history! History is replete with examples of people caught in conflict between the rule of God and the yoke of unjust human institutions.
Our very nation is built on the conviction of the superiority of divine law over human law. Our fundamental documents invite resistance and change when human regulation is out of synch with higher law. Listen to the Declaration of Independence of the Thirteen Colonies, July 4, 1776: "When. . .it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another [read "human law"] and to assume . . . the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them [read divine law]. . . ."
But note what followed the act of disobedience: the high costs of the War of Independence. Disobeying "man" always leads to risk, destabilization, division, and conflict before a new equilibrium sets in.
The dynamic is explosive, unpredictable, but ultimately creative. That's the promise.
Perhaps no one embodied this dynamic in recent times in America more than Martin Luther King, Jr.
King and his movement marched to the beat of a higher drummer. They suffered unspeakable imprisonments, dog bites, water cannons, fines and punishments. They persevered in their convictions, rejoiced in prison, and now the whole nation benefits.
Because of this long, prophetic history, you can be sure of this: When the conviction grows that human regulation is in conflict with higher law, a movement will arise to transform human law.
You might ask, where is this higher law located?
Divine law is reflected in your own human constitution, your conscience, your nerves and fibers. It's closer to you than your jugular vein, as our cousins, the Muslims, would say. The centuries-old Christian doctrine is this: "You are created in the image of God."
But even though divine law is nearer than your jugular vein, as Muslims say, there's no easy, certain way to grasp the details of God's law.
You may turn to the Bible and read the record of divine law. Many fling themselves on a verse or two in the Bible, because surely the commandments in the Bible are divine law. But there are difficulties for those who use no other resource.
As a recent letter to the "Daily Record" stated, there's a verse in Leviticus that tells me to sell my daughter into slavery. Then the writer asks, "Can I wait until she's finished her homework?"
What makes Christians distinctive? Christians read the Biblical record of divine law through the lens provided by Jesus. Jesus articulated the law of love. "Love God with your whole heart, your whole mind, and your neighbor as yourself." This is divine law of the highest order. Sort out every other command on this basis.
With that in mind, you will appreciate the prophets. Hear an example from Amos 5:24: "Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream." None of these passages alone are an entire law code. They're certainly a benchmark by which any law code can be judged.
Do the dictates of human regulations promote justice? And does that justice roll down like waters? Then we can approve. Anything less requires reform.
Do the decisions of the courts promote love and justice? Then we can approve. Anything less requires reform.
It's a wonderful thing, but a dangerous thing, to adhere to belief in the reign of God.
If you're Martin Luther of 1500 A.D., marching to the higher drummer will get you into serious trouble with your church.
If you're Saint Thomas More in conflict with Henry VIII, you'll get free room and board in the prison called the Tower of London and a walk the gallows. Nowadays the Tower is a London tourist destination. That's where you see the crown jewels. Let's never forget, in our delight at the old architecture and the invaluable jewelry, that one of Christianity's prominent martyrdoms happened there.
If you're Martin Luther King, Jr., your obedience will land you in the city jail and ultimately lead to your assassination.
None of these terrifying personal consequences should cause surprise. Our heroes and role models are Jesus and the disciples. We've just remembered Jesus' passion--snatched up in the darkness of night, tried and crucified.
But as an obedient disciple, keep your cool, take the risk, stick with your convictions, because you will be the agent of the Kingdom of God if you've read the divine law correctly.
It doesn't matter if you're a tiny minority at first. Maybe you're the only ones who've heard the higher drummer.
That's what makes the story of the disciples so compelling. Against all odds, they obeyed God, and year by year their tiny movement grew. In time, they reformed the Roman empire, built a new religion that endures and now counts 1.6 billion adherents, and brought a boon to all mankind.
So, with the disciples, "We must obey God rather than men."
Copyright by Darrell Reeck, 2004. All rights reserved.
Feedback invited at dreeck@msn.com
Previous Sermons
- Sermon from Easter Sunday, April 11, 2004: The Goal of the Pilgrim
- Sermon from Palm Sunday, April 4, 2004: The Universe Proclaims
- Sermon from March 28, 2004: Extravagant Love