Exodus 20:1-17 *
Dear Friends in Christ,
If we were speaking in
classroom education terms, we would say that our text for today is not new
material. We still dare to hope that most
people in our country – as well as all Christians – know about the Ten
Commandments.
However, what they know about the Ten Commandments (even many Christians) is
often incomplete or incorrect. If you
were to randomly ask ten people on the street to state their view on the Ten Commandments,
you’d undoubtedly receive a wide variety of opinions. But most would fall into one of three
categories…
Some would say the Ten
Commandments are important historically
because they form the foundation upon which every workable legal system in the
world is built. That’s why in years past
it was not uncommon to see images of the Ten Commandments in court houses (something
challenged in recent years as a violation of church and state).
Others would say they are important
morally (or perhaps spiritually) because they “set the
rules” and tell us what we must do if we want to get to heaven. For those who see salvation as depending upon
their own personal performance rather than God’s grace in Christ, the Ten
Commandments become a checklist to follow for earning eternal life.
Still others would say they
have no bearing on one’s life whatsoever.
Some of you may recall the celebrated remark made a few years ago by the
successful but controversial businessman Ted Turner. He’s made any number of comments critical of
religion in general and Christianity in particular, but one specific statement
that got a lot of attention is when he dismissed the Ten Commandments as being
“outdated and irrelevant.” His opinion
got reported because he is a celebrity, yet we can be reasonably sure he’s not
the only one who feels that way.
So while there is a lot of
knowledge of the Ten Commandments,
there is an equal amount of misinformation as to what they are and what they
mean. All of which is why it is
good for us to consider this text and this subject today. It’s our opportunity to set the record
straight. And what we’ll find – and be
reconfirmed in – is just the opposite of Ted Turner’s opinion; namely
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS ARE TIMELESS AND
RELEVANT
1.
They point us to our Savior
2.
They guide us in our new life in Christ
Let’s begin by setting the
background and context. The time: approximately 1500 years before the birth of
Christ. The place:
There are ten of them, but
they are not specifically numbered (which explains why there are two different
numbering systems within the wider Christian Church). Later on in the New Testament, Jesus
condenses the Ten Commandments into two major divisions when He speaks about
the love we are to have for God (comprising commandments 1-3) and the love we
are to have for our fellow man (commands 4-10).
The opening verse of our text
is extremely significant to properly understanding what follows: And
God spoke all these words: “I am the
Lord your God who brought you out of
First, God gave the Ten
Commandments to us as our loving Maker and Savior who demonstrates his love for
us in very real ways; not because He
is some sort of controlling or mean God.
Secondly (and in view of this),
the believer who understands God’s love and care wants to obey God’s commands out of an appreciative love for Him; not because we are scared of Him. Love for
God, not fear of God, is our
motivation for keeping the commands.
Thirdly, the believer
recognizes that God has given us these commandments in order that we might live
a life of happiness; not to take the
fun out of life.
We mention this because one
of Satan’s most successful strategies is to create the belief that Christianity
is essentially restrictive in nature, and that to be a believer in Christ means
kissing goodbye anything remotely connected to fun and good times.
C.S. Lewis tells the story
about a boy who was asked what he thought God was like. He replied that as far as he could make out,
God was “The sort of person who is always snooping around to see if anyone is
enjoying himself and then trying to stop it.”
Many people have bought into that kind of thinking. God the Great Denier. God the Great Celestial Spoilsport.
But the fact of the matter
is, we are spiritual creatures created by God to be in a special relationship
with Him, and only within that relationship can real happiness and contentment
be found. Sin damaged that relationship,
but Jesus Christ restored it at great cost to Himself. And as His restored creatures, God has given
us commands (such as the Ten Commandments) to live by precisely because He
loves us and wants what is best for us – certainly not because He is trying to
deny us anything.
Let’s turn to the
commandments themselves. There is a
sermon series on each one, so we’ll just spend a moment or two on each of
them.
The first commandment tells us to have no other gods, and goes on to
talk about graven images and idols. By
definition an idol is a false god of any kind that a person gives first place
in their heart. In ancient times idols
were statues of wood or stone and had names like Baal and Ashtoreth and Dagon;
the idols we contend with today are more lifestyles or modes of living and have
names like pleasure or materialism or upward mobility. In this command God is simply asking that He
take first place in our life.
The second commandment deals with the proper use of God’s name. Besides every expression the Bible uses to
refer to God, God’s name is also, by extension, everything He has revealed to
us in His Word. In this command God asks
us use His name properly – for prayer and praise, rather than as an expletive –
and His Word faithfully.
The third commandment talks about the importance of regularly
worshiping God as an integral and important part of our life. Failure to take this seriously on our part
doesn’t hurt God, but it does hurt and weakens us. We need the strength which only God can
provide through Word and Sacrament.
The fourth commandment revolves around the representatives God places
in our lives. He asks that we show honor
and respect to our parents and others in authority over us. The only exception is when they ask us to do
something contrary to God’s Word.
The fifth commandment speaks of God’s gift of life. Life is a gift of God, and only He or His
chosen instruments (the government as Paul tells us in Romans 13) has the right
to take it. This is the one commandment
we often think we haven’t broken – until we remember that hatred, ill will or
thoughts of revenge all are considered by God to be murder in the heart.
In the sixth commandment God is protecting the institution of
marriage. His clear will for married
couples is faithfulness; His will for all people whether married or unmarried
is moral purity.
The seventh commandment deals with God’s gift of possessions. The Lord
condemns stealing of any kind (robbery, theft, fraud; even laziness and loafing)
and expects His children to responsibly use the possessions He has entrusted to
their care.
The eighth commandment deals with God’s gift of a good name. He asks us to avoid every form of slander and
gossip and elevation of ourselves by tearing someone else down. Rather God asks us to consistently defend
others, give them the benefit of the doubt, and interpret another person’s
actions in the kindest possible way.
Finally, the subject matter
of the ninth and tenth commandments
is the holy desires God would have in His children. Coveting is the sinful desire for something
God clearly has not given us, which can then lead to all kinds of other sins.
So far the brief review. Now the question: Why did God give the Ten Commandments to us
in the first place? The Apostle Paul
answers that question in Romans 3 when he states that “through the law we become conscience of sin.” In other words, the first and main
purpose is to show us our sinfulness.
God says to us: keep these commands perfectly and you will live,
eternally. Disobey them, and you will
die, eternally.
But when we look in the
mirror of God’s law what reflects back is our utter failure and inability to
keep them as God would like. We fail miserably.
The only conclusion we can draw is this:
If getting to heaven depends upon our own performance in keeping the Ten
Commandments, we’re sunk. We need
help. Specifically, we need a Savior.
And the good news of the
Gospel is that God has provided that Savior for us in the person of Jesus Christ. What that Savior has done for us is the
message of this Lenten Season. Unlike
us, Jesus did keep all of the Ten Commandments perfectly – in our place; as our
substitute. But it didn’t stop there.
The perfect life gave way to
the sacrificial death, again in our place and as our substitute. Jesus bore the full brunt of God’s righteous
anger at our failure to keep the Ten Commandments when God punished Him instead
of us on the cross of
And here’s the best news
yet. Everything Jesus did is credited to
the account of those who believe and trust in Him as my Savior. Through holding on to Christ’s work every
believer can say “I am saved.” For
sure. No doubt. Because my salvation does not depend upon
what I do for God, but on what God has done for me through Jesus. “Nothing
in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling” (“Rock of Ages”).
In view of this, the Ten
Commandments take on a whole new perspective and purpose for us. Having pointed out our sin and our complete
inability to gain salvation through keeping them perfectly, they still remain
God’s will. And because of Jesus and
through the power of Jesus, we become the willing. So now they take on a new role for us. Now they serve as the guidelines we want to keep. And the reason we want to keep them is to
show God in some small way how grateful we are for what He has done for us in
the life, death and resurrection of His Son.
Now we see them as ten opportunities.
The Apostle John put it this
way in his first epistle. “This
is love for God: to obey His
commands. And his commands are not
burdensome…” Rather, as we read
in the Psalms repeatedly, as believers we delight
in God’s law.
So what are the Ten
Commandments? They are God’s will which
first drive us to our Savior. Then they
become God’s will to guide us in our new life in Christ. Which makes them timeless and relevant for
our Christian walk. Amen.