A MORAL NATURE IMPLANTED IN MAN
By R. C. P.
This Moral Nature Responds to a Moral Government and a Moral Law—The Law Before Sinai—The Law Given at Sinai
THAT there was originally implanted in man a moral nature is clearly evident. The innate sense of right that leads the heathen to worship he knows not what, his blind efforts to please a god whom he knows not, and the American Indian's worship of the Great Spirit, are evidence of the remains of a moral law originally implanted in the hearts of men as the basis of God's government. "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another." Rom. 2: 14, 15. IMPLANTED IN THE HEARTS OF MEN
In the beginning, therefore, God had a law, which He implanted in the hearts of men. From the first chapter of Romans we learn that this was a moral law. Its violation led to all kinds of immorality. The reason men are in darkness to-day with reference to God's law is, "because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened." Rom. 1: 21. Man is therefore not left in doubt as to whether God in the beginning established a moral government. Since God is a moral governor, justice demands that the law of His government be so plainly declared that all may know its requirements. To announce to the world that "the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6: 23), and that "whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3: 4), and then to proceed to hold men accountable for a morality in keeping with the requirements of that law, without having plainly proclaimed the law so that there can be no misunderstanding it, would be the worst of tyranny. We can not charge God with this conduct. No just government would make such demands upon its subjects without clearly revealing to them its laws. That God did reveal His law at the time of creation is unquestionable. "Where no law is, there is no transgression." Rom. 4: 15. Since sin is the transgression of the law, and since there is no transgression without a law, it follows that wherever we see transgression, there was a law. Therefore, when Satan sinned, he transgressed the law. In Eze. 28: 14 he is spoken of as "the anointed cherub that covereth." God says: "I have set thee so." "Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire." Verses 15, 16. "Thou hast sinned" is God's reason for removing Satan from his position as covering cherub. The law of God's moral government was transgressed. This is evidence that God's moral law was proclaimed before the fall of the angels. Adam sinned. Paul says his sin was disobedience. "As by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." Rom. 5: 19. To what was he disobedient? — To the law, the transgression of which is sin. Therefore Adam had a knowledge of the law of God's moral government. Paul uses another argument to prove the existence of the law from Adam to Moses: "For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of Him that was to come." Rom. 5: 13, 14. The fact that sin was imputed from Adam to Moses proves the existence of God's moral law during that period. Why does Paul leave this argument with the days of Moses? Why does he not pursue it through the history of Israel? The answer is given in verses 20, 21: "Moreover the law entered, that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." THE TEN COMMANDMENTS GOD'S MORAL LAW
In the days of Moses the law was proclaimed under circumstances that leave no room for question. From that time God's moral law was known as the Ten Commandments. "And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me. "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My commandments. "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain. "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. "Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. "Thou shalt not commit adultery. "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's." Ex. 20: 1-17. "These words the Lord spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and He added no more. And He wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me." Deut. 5: 22. This is a plain proclamation of the moral law as uttered by God Himself. It was at the time of the establishment of the old-covenant kingdom, which represented the kingdom of God as originally established. Hence we have the law of the kingdom plainly before us as proclaimed by the King to His subjects. There is no excuse, therefore, for any intelligent man, with a Bible in his possession, for not knowing the law of God's moral government. R. C. P.