Exodus Chapter 20 and Deuteronomy Chapter 5
1. "You shall have no other gods before me." I think we violate this quite regularly with all the stuff we put before God - such as our families, our jobs, money, tv, church, etc.
2. "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God."
I don't think we "bow down" and worship as often as the Israelites did. It seems silly how often they violated this commandment. However, we definitely have idols that we worship - very similar to number 1. We worship movie stars, political figures, money, cars, pastors, etc.
3. "You shall not misuse the name of the name of the Lord your God." I grew up getting slapped (figuratively) if I ever used the Lord's name in vain. Such as OMG, or the worst one of all, GD. I still cringe a little when I hear it used that way. While I think those might apply, I'm not sure that's what this really means. To me, misusing the name of God means misrepresenting him. Claiming to be a Christian, a follower of Christ and a follower of the Lord, while not obeying him and living as we should, is a much bigger misuse of the name of the Lord our God than saying OMG. Claiming to be a Christian and then slandering and gossiping is much worse than saying the occasional GD. I'm not saying those sayings aren't sinful, I'm just saying the emphasis could be better put elsewhere.
4. "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy." We do have to remember that these commandments were to the Jewish people of the OT. This is the old covenant and we do not live underneath this. So "keeping the Sabbath holy" can mean something totally different to us. FIrst of all, our "Sabbath" is on Sunday while there's was on Saturday. So if you want to be literal, be literal. I used to understand this as we are not supposed to work on Sunday - but going to church for a few hours (where the ministers are working) and then spending the rest of the day watching football or taking or a nap or eating out was ok. My grandma took this to the extreme and wouldn't buy anything on Sunday because that caused someone else to have to work - I respected that.
But some people have to work on Sunday. Some people have to work 7 days a week for some periods of time. Ultimately, I think we have to take time out of our weeks to spend time with the Lord. Time to worship him and honor him. That may be some morning. That may be a few lunch hours during the week. It may be Sunday. Whatever it may be for you, I think this commandment teaches that there should be a time of rest where we focus on the Lord in our week.
5. "Honor your father and your mother so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you." Some of the synonyms for "honor" in my Bible text notes are "prize highly", "care for", "show respect for", and "obey". Lots of words could be written on this. I think this can be treated exactly the same as it was 3000 years ago. Do I still have to obey my parents as a 32 year old? I don't think so. But I should show them respect if I choose not to obey them. I should honor them with phone calls, and letters, and visits, and most importantly, let them take the grandkids one weekend a month.
6. "You shall not murder." Pretty self-explanatory. Until Jesus got a hold of it. He said in Matthew 5:22, "But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment." Now that is tough. And we thought the Pharisees took some of the laws a little far.
7. "You shall not commit adultery." Matthew 5:28, "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." This one is a little tougher. But there is definitely a difference between noticing a woman's beauty and looking at her lustfully. Looking lustfully involves dwelling on the image and that can be avoided. I guess the woman get completely off the hook here, unless, of course, they are looking lustfully at a woman.
8. "You shall not steal." This includes music, videos, intellectual property (such as someone's answers or essays), and others. Stealing is much more broad than just physically taking that which does not belong to you.
9. "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor." Lying and gossiping I think fall in this category. We all have our little pet peeves and sins that bother us. Some can't handle those that copy DVD's or torrent files. Mine is gossip. I absolutely abhor hearing people talk badly about others.
10. "You shall not covet your neighbor's house ... neighbor's wife ... or anything that belongs to your neighbor." Be content with how the Lord has blessed you. Be happy for your neighbor. Thank the Lord for how he has blessed you.
Matthew 22:37-40. Jesus is asked which is the greatest commandment in the Law. He replies, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
All the above commandments are moot when we treat these two as the greatest. If you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind, you won't have any other gods, or make idols, or misuse God's name, and you will keep some time holy and spend it with the Lord. If you love your neighbor, you will honor your parents, you won't murder/hate, you won't cheat/lust, you won't steal, you won't lie/gossip, and you will not covet.
It's just that easy.
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