Law and Loopholes

Mrs. S., the law demands that these rules are followed, otherwise we get penalized and fined.

I am at a conference room, sitting across the desk from the principal and guidance counselor of our child's school.  I called the meeting because I felt the need to better understand reasons behind the three months of chaos we’ve been through since the beginning of the school year.

I happen to know exactly what she is talking about – the law and the set of guidelines. I actually voted in favor of this law.  When I cast my ballot, I did so as a citizen and as a mom of school age children.  My heart and my intent behind supporting this law was to make the children’s job of learning and teacher’s job of teaching easier.

I stare at the principle, marveling how is it possible that the implementation of something that is supposed to enhance educational process has created so much upheaval and disruption?

How can something that was intended for good turn out to be so bad and counterproductive?!!!

The law was good.  The intent behind it was good.  But something got lost in translation.  In implementation.  And, instead of loving provision, fear of punishment became a factor… a dominating factor dare I say… And in that process,  the goodness, the benefit and the protection which the law was meant to provide gave way to bureaucracy.

When God gave the law to Moses, it was a loving father’s heart and intention that was behind it. The Law was meant for our good.  It was meant to provide guidelines for God’s children to live lives of dignity, joy, peace and fruitfulness. It was given so we can flourish and share this incredible blessing of knowing Him and living under His loving rule with everyone around us.

But something got lost in translation.  Something got lost in implementation.  The law became an end to itself… other laws and amendments were added, in order to avoid punishment. We got further and further away from the original purpose.  Fear rather than love became the guideline. It became so non-sensical that by the time the Lawgiver Himself came to visit His people He was treated like a law-breaker and criminal. 

But God’s heart never changed towards His people. 

For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. John 1:17