In today's psalm we sing, "Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord."

Few of us love the law. In a country that sometimes views government with hostility and authority with suspicion, our reflexive stance toward rules is to shred first, reconsider later. Maybe. Many of us don’t even read the operating instructions on what we buy, though our personal safety may be compromised: Just plug it in, hit the ON button, and hope for the best!

“Don’t suppose for a minute that I have come to demolish the scriptures—either God’s Law or the Prophets. I’m not here to demolish but to complete. I am going to put it all together, pull it all together in a vast panorama. God’s Law is more real and lasting than the stars in the sky and the ground at your feet.

Years ago a columnist interviewed former President Jimmy Carter during a book tour. At the time, a political candidate was under fire for her unfortunate comments taken from scripture on sexuality.

God gives us the freedom to choose between good and evil, life and death.

Nobody has a more sacred obligation to obey the law than those who make the law.