Law & Order   Yes this is the same title as the popular television franchise yet this article has nothing to do with it or television.  Recent events, though minor, have sparked an overhaul of my professional field and its regulations.   Gone are the simple ways which are replaced by more expensive and time consuming oversight that do little to solve the problems that triggered this overhaul.  Now we have to present criminal record checks to be allowed to have employment.  To say the least for many of us this is an insult as we do not break the law nor have we done anything that would be considered criminal or a danger to society.   Also, most of us have worked in our field for many years without any law violation.  What these new regulations are to do is screen out those undesirables who many feel are unqualified to work because they have a criminal record.  Yet, this does nothing to solve the problems, as a criminal record does not guarantee the person is going to break the law again nor does it guarantee that those who haven’t broken the law, won’t do so in the future.   What it does do is cause a lot of headache and expense for those who truly want to do their job and keep their lives on track.  It also doesn’t stop those offenders who have committed crimes but have not been caught yet.   Yet throughout all of the subsequent discussions that have arisen over this change, there has been very little Christian input or ‘sermons’ on how a Christian should respond to this situation.  Should Christians jump on the bandwagon of secular society, who seek to use the law to contain sinful behavior?   Should Christians look upon convicts with the same attitude of the secular world, who view them as less than human and feel these people have no rights at all?  Denying them any hope of a second chance and the opportunity to make things right in their lives?   I for one feel that Christians need to remove themselves from the secular attitudes that are attached to the law and order mentality as we do not look to the law to solve our problems but to God.    Do we continually hold the convicts past over their heads, as the world does, reminding them of their failure and making them pay for their crimes more than once? I think not as we have the examples of Christ and God on how to deal with such situations.  God said in Micah 6:8—“He has showed you, o man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”   For the Christian the path is very clear and different from the world’s.  we do not jump on the law and order fad but we seek to do what is right and just for all people not an elite few.    Do we need criminal record checks? Not really as there are better alternatives which screen prospective candidates, which do not require them to continually pay for their past indiscretions.   Does this mean we give a blank check to all people applying for work?  No, Jesus didn’t as He commanded the woman caught in adultery to sin no more.  By showing mercy and being just does not mean we let the fox in the hen house as we will be able to tell, with God’s help, what to do with each applicant.   We do not go it alone like the world does nor do we install a system which provides a false sense of security but we look to God to show us how to deal with those who have a criminal past, giving them the chance to make good on what is left of their lives.   Christians are to be different from the world, not the same, thus they must follow a different set of rules and understanding from the world showing the world the better way to do things.  By doing exactly as the unbelievers do, all we have shown them is that Christ and His ways are not different from theirs, which then provides no motivation for the unbeliever to change from death unto life.   We do not follow the world but He who came to save it from destruction.