Once we understand the law rightly, how should we apply it in our lives? Scripture shows us that God has intended his law to be used in three distinct ways, and our understanding of these uses was recovered during the time of the Protestant Reformation. John Calvin, one of the most well-known theologians of the Reformation, broke down the uses of the law like this*—
1. The first use of the law is to act as a mirror. When we look into the law and rightly understand God’s perfect and holy standard, we are confronted with out own inability to keep it and confronted with the reality that we all stand under God’s holy judgement. As a result, when we look into the mirror of the law, we are then drawn to the perfect Savior who fulfilled the law on our behalf (Romans 3:20; 4:15; 5:13; 7:7-11).
2. The second use of the law is to restrain evil. Although the law can’t change human hearts, it can serve to inhibit evil by its threat of judgement toward those who break it. Wherever people hear God’s law, a society is more likely to have civil order (Romans 13:3-4).
3. The third use of the law is to serve as a guide to God’s people to show them how to live. In this use, the law has no power to condemn and threatens no judgement. Instead, God’s redeemed people see the goodness of his design and seek to obey his commandments out of love for him, love for others, and out of gratitude for the free gift of grace they have been given in Jesus (Romans 7:4, 6).
Understanding these uses helps us understand how to apply the law rightly. Are you in an unbelieving context where people have not trusted in Jesus? The first use of the law would be appropriate in such a situation where people need to see their own sin and be drawn to the Saviour. In the same circumstance, however, the third of use of the law would not be appropriate because the law can not change hearts. Telling an unregenerate heart how to live in a way that pleases God can never be fruitful.
By contrast, in a church context, surrounded by those who have trusted in Jesus, been forgiven of their sins, and inherited perfect righteousness, it would not be appropriate to employ the first use of the law to speak words of judgement and condemnation toward brothers and sisters who war against their flesh and sometimes fall short. In this situation, the third use of the law serves as a gentle guide to draw people into the kind of living that leads to true joy and flourishing, to which God’s people gladly say, “yes! I want to live that way!”
And so, wherever you see the law being used, think to yourself about these three uses and whether or not the law is being used appropriately. As you do, I trust that you will find greater understanding, greater joy, and greater rest in Christ!
All the best,
Luke
*These three uses of the law are different from an idea that is usually called the ‘tripartite division of the law,’ which separates the law into categories of moral law, civil law, and ceremonial law. While they can seem similar on the surface, they are different ideas and not related to each other.
