The externals

The externals are important. Just because the internal is more important does not mean the externals are not. Why would God give us standards to live by if the externals were of no importance. We sometimes, in our sin, want the externals - consequences to sin, failures, etc. - to not matter, but they do. They do not end God's covenant faithfulness to us, but they affect our life and the lives of others. So how do we implement God's standards - His law - into our lives, our politics, our economy, our jobs, without being hypocrites and without denying the grace of God in the process?