JP’s Mind

The ‘big 10’ offers more than just list of what to do or not to do. It reveals deeper conceptual truths that guide us in our walk with God, and a righteous path in this life. It also gives us a method of living that is beneficial, physically and spiritually.

Let us look at these commandments from God and their deeper meaning and applicability:

Exo 20:2 I am the Lord your God, Who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

This first contains an essential truth to spiritual/religious righteousness: There is one True God, the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. This One is the Lord.

Lord is defined as one who has authority, control, or power over others; a master, chief, or ruler. One exercises authority from property rights. God is the creator; all things exist from Him and for Him. His sovereignty and authority over all things is absolute as He alone has the ‘property rights’ for that which is His by His creation.

(3) You shall have no other gods before or besides Me. (4) You shall not make yourself any graven image [to worship it] or any likeness of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; (5) You shall not bow down yourself to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, [Isa. 42:8; 48:11.] (6) But showing mercy and steadfast love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.

This is the commandment against idolatry. It speaks not just to worshipping little statues, but to placing ourselves under the control of anything other than the One True God.

Many things in this life gain control over us, or rather, there are many things that we place in positions of importance in our lives more so than God: Money, prestige, success, sports, drugs, relationships, etc.

God tells us that all things in this life are secondary to Him and His Lordship in our lives. This causes me to think on my own life and my struggle with alcoholism. I’ve been recovered for just over 8 years now, and I remember back to when I was deep in the bottle, it wasn’t that my life was in shambles from drinking that caused me to seek recovery, because for the most part I was an extremely functional alcoholic. But I realized that alcohol had control over my life, everything I did or thought about doing revolved around the idea of drinking. Often times when planning an outing, or going out to dinner, or visiting friends, I thought about whether or not there would be drink available, and sometimes that made the difference in what I did or did not do.

(7) You shall not use or repeat the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, lightly or frivolously, in false affirmations or profanely]; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

This isn’t about simply cursing using the name of God profanely or frivolously. It speaks to us on a deeper level of respect, love, and reverence. To train a person not to take for granted the name of that which is of paramount importance in their lives teaches that person to demonstrate respect for those things. By commanding us not to treat His name frivolously or falsely, He teaches us to learn respect by demonstrating respect.

( 8 ) [Earnestly] remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy (withdrawn from common employment and dedicated to God). (9) Six days you shall labor and do all your work, (10) But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, your daughter, your manservant, your maidservant, your domestic animals, or the sojourner within your gates. (11) For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it [set it apart for His purposes].

Ah, the ‘4^th commandment’ – that which separates so many who would have us earn our salvation through works and religious observance…

This, in its simplest terms, is an instruction on how to care for our lives and ourselves.

Work is an unfortunate necessity. We must work to earn a living, and often times we must work hard. This commandment teaches us that all work and no rest is a bad thing. We must rest our bodies and our minds; we must take the time to let our physical and mental selves rejuvenate and recuperate.

God demonstrated this necessity for us although I would offer that He needed no rest, but chose to do so. We are not omnipotent, thus we must take the physical rest.

There is also the spiritual aspect here regarding the foreshadowing of the Gospel of Christ. Jesus Christ is our spiritual rest. It is His salvation that provides us rest from the pursuit of righteousness through works which is the law given in the OT.

(12) Regard (treat with honor, due obedience, and courtesy) your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land the Lord your God gives you.

Respect and obedience to authority – this is something we learn as children, or do not learn depending upon how one is raised. God instructs us to honor (respect) our parents and this is the first step in teaching a person respect for authority.

In the New Testament, we are told to respect and adhere to the authority of the government, and throughout scriptures, we are admonished to respect and adhere to the authority of God. This respect begins at home, with the parents.

(13) You shall not commit murder.

Wow, so much to discuss regarding murder, what it is and what it is not, and why we should not do it….

Murder is defined as the unlawful killing of another person. It is not simply killing someone, thus government-sanctioned executions do not apply, and accidental killing does not apply, slaughtering animals for food does not apply.

There are many psychological ramifications involved here that I will not go into at this time however, but this idea of ‘not committing murder’ may make an interesting post of its own some day…

(14) You shall not commit adultery.

(15) You shall not steal. [Prov. 11:1; 16:8; 21:6; 22:16; Jer. 17:11; Mal. 3:8.]

(16) You shall not witness falsely against your neighbor. [Exod. 23:1; Prov. 19:9; 24:28.]

I am taking these three together as they all lean towards a central issue: Trust, reliability, and righteousness.

To lie, cheat or steal irreparably damages, or destroys trust. One who lies cannot be trusted, one who cheats on his/her spouse cannot be trusted. One who steals cannot be trusted.

God desires for us to re-become the image of Him, and God has demonstrated to us that He is ever faithful, and ever honest. We cannot become like Him if we do not demonstrate the essential qualities that He possesses.

Additionally, we cannot be the witness, the testimony of His love, wisdom, and faithfulness if we demonstrate the opposite, and if we cannot be the witness to His glory then we are not doing the job He has given us to do.

(17) You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s. [Luke 12:15; Col. 3:5.]

Coveting… that carnal desire to have that which belongs to someone else – it is a destroyer of souls. Scripture tells us that the root of evil is the love of money. This is an intricate part of coveting – loving something other than God.

When we covet what are we doing, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally? We are sublimating our love of our Lord with a desire for material things. We are setting the stage for idolatry.

When one becomes covetous, it leads into a downward spiral of other issues. If we want something someone else has, and we want it badly enough we easily fall into lying, stealing, yes… and adultery.

Ultimately, God’s commandments given to Moses to share with His chosen people give us the basic blueprints on how to succeed in life, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Adherence to these commandments will disciple us, keep us from our own naturally carnal tendency to self-destruction, and provide us with a strong witness and ability to share the Gospel of Christ crucified and risen from the dead.