Law and order proceed from the nature and character of the Godhead who in himself is absolutely orderly. His law and commands are cogent, logical, systematic, and organized. Both Old Testament and New affirm organized religion. The conditions for life, namely his law, are a necessity for obedience to him and favor with him. This is why we must live in an organized way according to his dictates. Christianity understands the law as the standard of righteousness fulfilled perfectly in Christ. By grace alone through Christ’s atoning death is a sinner justified to the perfection that a holy God necessarily requires. For the born-again believer, the moral law of God remains authoritative for sanctification while he has been redeemed from its curse.
The cannon of scripture is confirmed by a sound biblical, historical hermeneutic. These disciplines ought to determine what authority ultimately governs us. The Word of God is consistent and revelatory with respect to the nature of God, which by definition is the perfection of order. Without order, there is anarchy. With anarchy, there is lawlessness, and to all living this way, Jesus will one day say: “Depart from me I never knew you, you workers of lawlessness.”
-Ken Carlton