Day 6

“Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” — Psalm 119:165

When Winston Churchill was the Minister of Interior Affairs during the 1920’s, he brought a fundamental revision to the judicial and penitentiary system in Britain. The legal system, he felt, was weighted against the lower classes in favour of the higher classes. Poor people were being jailed for stealing a chicken while the wealthy were getting away with murder. This caused him to undertake a thorough review of the judicial system.

As part of the process, he categorized crimes into three areas of priority. Crimes against persons were the most serious. Crimes against property were of next importance, and crimes of morality, (such as blasphemy and sexual offences, especially if carried out by consenting adults), were of third importance. Punishment was to be administered in such a way that it recognized the relative seriousness of the crime, according to these categories.

I am a great fan of the wit and wisdom of Churchill, but I am not sure he got this right. When God gave the Ten Commandments, he addressed four categories: relationship with God, relationships within the family, relationships with people, and relationships with things.

This order of priority seems deliberate in the written law of God. God comes first, people come next and material things come last. If, therefore, we have a problem with material things and I find myself coveting what does not belong to me, it might be good to go back up the chain. Is it because I have a problem with people? If so, is this because I have a problem with God?

The justice systems of our secular societies work from the outside in. They address symptoms; namely, the crimes committed, and punish accordingly in the hope the punishment may be remedial. God, on the other hand, is concerned about working from the inside out. He addresses the inner spiritual condition first. That then produces inward morality, which, in turn, produces outward behaviour in relationship to people, property and attitudes. His first, foremost and indispensable priority is given to our relationship with God. It is that which will produce the symptoms of right relationship with people and that, in turn, will lead to right relationship with property. We will have learned to be content and have no reason to covet anything of our neighbour. The key to the tenth commandment, therefore, is our obedience to the first.

Prayer: I realize, lord, that everything hinges on my relationship with you. When that is well and strong, all else falls in place. Keep me under your watchful eye, so that your spirit in me is always at work, drawing me into your likeness, into relationship to you. Thank you, lord.

To reflect upon: As far as time spent and emotion invested, which of these three categories have been more prevalent in my life recently: spiritual, relationships, material? After considering this, has my priority been with what I believe is right for me or with God’s commands?