For one thing, I love the Evangel students. They have a sense of purpose and calling about them. And those who go on to law school have been trained well by America's hardest working pre-law adviser, Professor Bryan Sanders. Many great Evangel students have attended Regent Law School over the years (including some great students right now).
In addition, it was an honor to celebrate the Constitution today. Admittedly, the US has never perfectly lived out the Constitution's ideals. We have had some tremendous failings, especially in the treatment of minority groups. But we have been tremendously blessed by the Constitution's commitment to due process, equal protection of the law--and ultimately the rule of law. We have enjoyed a degree of freedom and principled government that is remarkable in human history.
In chapel I contrasted America's experience with some of the recent and deadly failures to follow the rule of law in places like Pakistan, Iran, and Zimbabwe. I then shared how a commitment to the rule of law is not just a nice concept, it is thoroughly supported by Christian theology about God's character. 2 quick examples:
- As God reigns, he treats all who are made in his image with dignity, equality, and justice--not just those who are rich, powerful, or influential (See Job 34:17-19). Indeed, he has a special concern for the poor and oppressed. (See Isaiah 1:17).
- Even in the atonement, God displayed his commitment to justice and the rule of law. He sent Jesus to live a perfect life under the law. And Jesus took on himself the punishment the law required--our punishment (See Romans 3:21-26). As my colleague Craig Stern has written: "The doctrine that Jesus himself keeps the law--his own law--even at so great a cost to himself, demonstrates his own most profound commitment to the rule of law."
We serve a God who loves justice--and a God who rules in justice. Praise the Lord! And happy Constitution Day!
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