"Commentary on D&C 130:20–21 God governs the universe through law. There are moral laws as unbreakable as the laws of physics. God’s laws govern everything from the motion of the planets (Alma 30:44; D&C 88:42) to the deliverance of His children (2 Nephi 9:25). Every kingdom God has created is given a law (D&C 88:38), and the blessings we receive come in response to our obedience to this law. However, our relationship to God is not merely transactional. While it is true that when we obey God’s law we receive blessings, as a loving Father, God also goes to great lengths to provide us with gifts that are acts of mercy. He arranged for the sacrifice of His Only Begotten Son to “answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit” (2 Nephi 2:7). The Father and the Son carried out the atonement “to bring about the plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice, that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God also” (Alma 42:15). God found a way to perfectly obey the law but also extend mercy to His children. He asks us to adhere to the laws He has given, and in response to our obedience He provides us blessings. But He also asks us to look beyond the purpose of the law to see the character of the Lawgiver and the mercy and love He shows to us. God respects the laws of the universe as their Author and Creator. God is not the servant of the law. The law originated with Him and is thus governed by Him."

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