Torah – Its Roles and Functions Firstly the Torah teaches that we must recognize our need of repair. The Biblical examples give us ample opportunity to find ourselves within the matrix of a God-centric universe, a universe where we are either for God or (by default) opposed to God. This is the recognition of sin in our lives before we come to know who God is and what his plans are all about. The Word(s) of God, whether personally read, or heard (at the mouth of those who are his) cause our heart to begin to yield to the leading of the Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit). To be sure, the Torah teaches that all are sinners and that no one properly seeks after God. Only the call of the Ruach can lead a man to finding God; no man has found God of his own accord. Allow me to illustrate this by first explaining the role of the Torah in a sinner's life. The fine folks over at First Fruits of Zion have written a wonderful set of books on the functions of the Torah in the lives of believers. 'Torah Rediscovered' and 'Take Hold' are some of the finest examples of explaining our relationship to the Word of God that I have ever researched. As such, I highly recommend both books (see FFOZ link above for details). Quoting a few paragraphs from those works, I want to share with you the practicality of the Word of God, as it applies to both believers and non-believers, in helping to bring them into the plans and purposes of HaShem. Authors Ariel and D'vorah Berkowitz write: "Torah helps man recognize his own sinfulness (Romans 7:7-12). This function of the Torah primarily concerns those who are not yet redeemed. Torah helps to bring about HaShem’s wrath (Romans 4:15). The teaching here in Romans stresses that if anyone tries to use Torah to achieve justification before HaShem, the attempt will backfire! He will only discover that he cannot obey it perfectly, thus achieving only condemnation! "The Torah acts as a protector. How? "For the unredeemed: The Torah was intended to preserve the mental, moral and social safety of the environment into which an individual was born and raised. The person was protected “until the date set by the Father” (Galatians 4:2) when the Spirit of HaShem would lead them to the Teacher, the Messiah. The Torah does this by providing a safe environment in which they may live. The judgments, commandments, ordinances and other teachings of the Torah all help to create a safe community surrounded by the protective border of the Torah. Anyone who lives within the confines of that border will live in relative safety. This does not mean that the person living within the borders of the Torah is automatically safe spiritually, or “saved”; rather, living within the Torah community, his life is being preserved and protected as he awaits the time set by the Father, his moment of salvation." Now this helps us to understand the role of the Torah in the life of an unbeliever. But what of the believer? They continue to explain: " For the redeemed: Because the Torah tells us the truth—the difference between holy and unholy, clean and unclean, life and death—it is both a protection for us and a written revelation of the grace of HaShem. Every man, woman or child who chooses not to live within the teachings of HaShem, which produce life, is consigned to a place outside of the blessing and protection established by these teachings (Deuteronomy 30:19-20). We can also tie in the description of the Torah as the national covenant and constitution, in which the Great King promises to protect His subjects through the covenant. To protect them from what? From the kingdom outside of His kingdom: the kingdom of darkness. Remember that the chief characteristic of the kingdom of darkness is death, with all of its legal rights (Romans 6:23). The legal aspects of the Torah declare the truth that the kingdom of darkness has no jurisdiction inside the boundaries of HaShem’s kingdom—the Torah Community."