We Are COMMANDED By GOD HIMSELF: “Thou shalt not . . .”
“This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you,
(The First Letter of John 1: 5 NASB)
that God is Light,
and in Him there is not darkness at all.”
Do we believe this verse?
Do we live our days as if we do, really do believe this verse of God?
Being exposed, realizing that someone knows our sin remains so uncomfortable, for we like to think of ourselves as being ‘above’ sin. Oftentimes we think: ‘I have been a Christian so long, so I have this living right thing down to a science.’
May I say to myself, and maybe to you too: “This is stinky thinking, for we are sinners through and through, and will remain so until the day we die.
See the Word of God.
“If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness,
(The First Letter of John 1: 6-10 NASB)
we lie and do not practice the truth;
but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins,
He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we say that we have not sinned,
we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.”
The generation of Israelites who invaded Canaan had grown up as nomads in the Sinai wilderness.
Their parents & grandparents had lived as slaves in Egypt.
The “ten words of God” protected the fidelity of the individual citizen to Israel’s covenant with the Lord, that He gave to Abraham.
Without them—
They could not have conquered the land God had promised to give them.
God’s help was directly connected to their OBEDIENCE to the TEN COMMANDMENTS!
The 1ST & the 10TH COMMANDMENTS touch upon with what is inside our hearts.
Command #1—GOD IS SO SERIOUS ABOUT RECEIVING EXCLUSIVE WORSHIP & LOVE THAT HE PUNISHES THOSE WHO REFUSE TO OBEY HIM. Paganism divides divine authority among many gods and creates a chaotic conflict of authority.
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Command #10—This command deals with the motive of desire.
Do we ever place any god before the ONE HOLY, ALMIGHTY GOD?
The 2nd through the 9th COMMANDMENTS focus on our outward actions,
those actions we do, those things that first begin as thoughts inside our minds & hearts.
Command #2—Man-made idols can be shaped into anything and from anything we desire.
The image represents a false god, and we are COMMANDED BY GOD to not worship other gods.
So, the only real choice is to worship the one true & all-powerful God, who is the God of the whole universe.
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Command #3—Do not speak the Lord’s name frivolously or claim something about Him that’s false. PERIOD.
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Command #4—When we observe the Sabbath as it was intended, it becomes a witness to our neighbors who view the seventh day as just any other day.
How was the Sabbath intended?
The Sabbath: A day to refocus on who God is & what He has done for us.
This commandment remains still important for believers.
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Command #5—An important application for this COMMANDMENT is when we provide for our parents when they can no longer care for themselves.
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Command #6—LIFE IS A GIFT FROM GOD & ONLY GOD HAS THE AUTHORITY TO TAKE IT.
God’s people should do everything possible to respect and preserve human life.
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Command #7—When the Israelites first encountered the Canaanites in the Promise Land, they found a people who connected sexual activity to agriculture. Thus the religion of the Canaanites encouraged numerous sexual partners. Recall how the cultic prostitutes staffed the temples. Infidelity begins inside one’s heart and stands as sin.
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Command #8—Since everything belongs to God alone, we are stewards of His possessions, and therefore, we are not to steal from God.
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Command #9—Always tell the truth & Do not gossip.
“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.
(The First Letter of John 2: 1-3 NASB)
And if anyone sins,
we have an Advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous;
and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins;
and not for ours only,
but also for those of the whole world.
By this we know that we have come to know Him,
if we keep His commandments.”
SO THE QUESTION BECOMES: HOW MUST GOD’S CHILDREN RESPOND TO GOD’S COMMANDMENTS?