Lawless
I’ve lived in the United States of America my entire life. I’ve visited other countries and cultures, but the USA has always been home to me. I remember as a young boy learning what is right and wrong. I still remember not having money for some fishing hooks and sinkers and taking them without paying. I got away with it and really felt bad about it. On another occasion I got caught and had to go meet the store clerk and profoundly apologize and make restitution for my theft. I learned some valuable lessons about the law. I learned at a very young age what the law of the land was. I’m still struggling with the laws surrounding speed limits and driving. I’ve had my fair share of “safe driving awards”!
Some folks grow up and know the law of the land, but choose to ignore it and do what they want. They steal and if they are confronted they kill. There are people who will stop at nothing to get what they want. I can’t hardly stomach the evening news to hear about all the thefts and murders by people who are lawless in our land where the rule of law is what keeps the rest of us safe for the most part.
Jeremiah was left behind in Jerusalem when Babylon took the city captive. The commander of the Babylonian army had appointed a governor over Jerusalem. The place became a vacuum of lawlessness. Check this out…
1 In the seventh month Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood and had been one of the king’s officers, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah. While they were eating together there, 2 Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, killing the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed as governor over the land. 3 Ishmael also killed all the men of Judah who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, as well as the Babylonian soldiers who were there. (Jeremiah 41:1-3 NIV)
I think that it’s important to live within the laws of our land. There are times when the law is frustrating but it is still the code by which we get along with one another. The law provides the tools to settle disagreements without violence. The law helps me protect my family and my home. When lawless people ignore the law, they are subject to the full extent of the law and the punishment that applies to their crime.
The Lord and His Word are the inspiration for the code of law that I live under. I have been a recipient of forgiveness under the law. I’ve been forgiven of the fine that comes with the “safe driving award” and I’ve been warned by the officer who was about to present me with one of those “awards”. I can’t imagine living in a land without laws and I’m thankful for the people who enforce and defend our laws. If there were no laws everyone would do what is right in their own eyes and I would no longer be safe in my own home.
Pressing On!
Dwayne