Do you know that it's illegal to throw shoes at a bridal couple in Colorado; rob a bank and then shoot the bank teller with a water pistol in Louisiana; sneeze in public in Nebraska; eavesdrop in Oklahoma; sing out of tune in North Carolina; push a live moose out of a moving airplane in Alaska; sit on the curb of any city street and drink beer from a bucket in Missouri; and, wear a false moustache in church in Alabama if it makes people laugh?
I doubt these are state-wide laws. But according to some sources, all of them, though old and outdated, are on the law books somewhere in these states because it isn't worth legislators' time to remove them. It's hard to imagine the circumstances that required such laws to be written in the first place, or even how they could have been enforced. But do you suppose for a moment they made people live their lives any differently? So often, prohibiting something makes us want to do the very thing that is prohibited.
I think the prohibition era showed us that human behavior cannot be legislated. And this is true with the law of God as well. Some people think that the Ten Commandments were given to help us to be good, but this is not so. The Bible clearly says they were given to show all of us that we can never obey them and therefore need a Savior. Romans 3:19 tells us that the Law was given "that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God." And Romans 3:20 says, "for by the law is the knowledge of sin." This is why we see in Romans 8:3 that "what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature," God sent Jesus Christ to accomplish. Also in Hebrews 7:19 we read that "the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did." This "better hope" is "that through Jesus Christ there is forgiveness for your sins." And "everyone who believes in him is declared right with God—something the law of Moses could never do" (Acts 13:38-39).
EVERYONE has broken the God's law (Rom 3:23). Do you believe that Jesus Christ paid your penalty for you (Rom 6:23; Jn 3:16)?
Well, I promise not to throw a live moose out of a moving plane in Alaska...or throw shoes at a bridal couple in Colorado. The only shoe thrower I know of was in Iraq, and then he was throwing his shoes at Bush....
ReplyDeleteSeriously now. I understand what you are saying,Justme, it is beautifully explained. I agree.