Saints,
Below you will find the rough draft notes for the sermon on Sunday October 6th, 2013. It is always my hope that these notes will help you in you study throughout the week.
Ten Commands of our love Relationship with God
One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and
recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, "What commandment
is the foremost of all?" Jesus answered, "The foremost is, 'HEAR, O
ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH
ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL
YOUR STRENGTH.' "The second is this, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS
YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
(Mar 12:28-31)
Then God spoke all these words, saying, "I am the LORD
your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
slavery. "You shall have no other gods before Me. "You shall not make
for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the
earth beneath or in the water under the earth. "You shall not worship them
or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the
iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth
generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to
those who love Me and keep My commandments. "You shall not take the name
of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who
takes His name in vain. "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
"Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a
sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son
or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your
sojourner who stays with you. "For in six days the LORD made the heavens
and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day;
therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and made it holy. "Honor your
father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the
LORD your God gives you. "You shall not murder. "You shall not commit
adultery. "You shall not steal. "You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbor. "You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall
not covet your neighbor's wife or his male servant or his female servant or his
ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor." All the
people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the
trumpet and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and
stood at a distance. Then they said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we
will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die." Moses said to
the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and
in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not
sin."
(Exo 20:1-20)
The Ten Commandments are a form of protection for the people
of God. They are much like a fence, not
to keep you out, but to keep you in.
Within the boundaries of the Ten Commandments you find protection and
freedom. Outside, there is a stepping out of the bounds of Gods grace. When Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the Tree
of the Knowledge of Good and Evil they placed themselves within an experience
that would forever affect everyone.
We began with the two greatest commands, of which the other
ten all are understood.
·
Love God
·
Love others
In these two are the whole law.
God is directing us to emulate Him.
·
Christians/disciples/saints love God above all
else, thus they value what He values and live from the heart for such truth.
·
Christians/disciples/saints also love others,
even enemy sinners as God has also loved such people; and He loves them
sacrificially.
These are matters of the heart, not simply behaviors.
The ten commandments
teach us about God and our relationship to Him
1. No other God’s
before Me (God is God and nothing
else can compare)
God will
not share His glory with another. When
He is #1 it protects us from being double minded. Thus, justice, truth, and holiness, values of
God, are imparted to us.
2. No carved images (God is beyond our imagination)
We need to
subject ourselves to God and not to the exercise of false imaginations. The use of images in such worship restricts a
persons understanding, it limits who God is in theology. We should never settle for our own
understanding of God, but pursue an ongoing relationship with Him.
It says God
is jealous God, because He is ultimate, He wants the justice of His love to be
poured out upon those who believe.
3. Not take His name in Vain. (God is where
our hope lies)
This has
more to do with understanding who He is rather than colorful language. It is a love for His name, His reputation and
the person of God. God is not to be
taken in a trite manner, or as a common buddy.
He is serious, and in Him there is no vain effort.
Notice the first three commands direct us to God. Without these we flounder in our basis for
understanding love, law, or life.
4. Remember the Sabbath day. (God is to be
worshipped, we express our love)
Guard your
mind, body, and spirit to focus on God.
Taking a day off from laboring and striving is a means of exercising
faith in His sovereignty and provision.
It is a day
to spend time with God. It is a giving
thanks for all He has done.
5. Honor your father and mother. (Families
are for our good, even those that are not our own)
Relationships
matter. The honoring of parents has a
cultural effect on what a people believe about life. It teaches that euthanizing people is wrong,
that abortion is murder, and that in the winter years when a person is unable
to care for themselves, it is a tribute to God in justice to love and care for
those who have served us. It says life
is precious.
Honoring
parents is the basis for following leaders.
We read through scripture how we are to honor even those whom we do not
agree with as leaders that God appoints.
It reveals that ultimately, our hope is in God and not our officials.
6. You shall not
murder (The work of redemption is at
the heart of God, it has keep us from wrath)
This is not
talking about war or judicial prudence.
It is all about being a self-appointed authority and acting our a
violent disregard for God and justice.
Even anger
against another in guilty enough for the fires of Hell. God says to love our enemies, pray for them,
and do goo to them.
7. You shall not
commit adultery. (God’s love is sacred)
As murder
is not love, neither is lust. You cannot
have adultery without lust. Lust is the
striving to be god over some person, thing, or situation wherein they serve you
by worshipping you. Adultery says” I
want, I deserve, I know better than God.
God says,
one man with one woman, and cleave together through all pains to get a glimpse
of hoe God has loved you. Marriage is
for one another to find a suitable earthly helper that opens their eyes to a
need of a helper from Heaven. It shows
what the love of God is like.
Sacredness
is always an issue with God.
8. You Shall Not Steal (God is our provider
and we must learn to trust Him)
Adultery is stealing a person. Stealing is perverting justice by
appropriating stuff, which is playing god over situations.
It is cheating.
It is manipulations.
It is a lack of faith that God will provide.
It is the worship of an idol to serve the self.
Stealing says “God isn’t enough.”
It is the compromising of all that is good for a moment of self-indulgence.
9. You shall not lie (God is truth and those
that love God love truth)
For all
that stealing is, lying is theft by tongue. It is destroying or perverting
truth. Thus, it is swaying justice.
Remember,
Satan is the father of lies.
10. You shall not covet (God is our all in
all, we place our hope in Him)
To covet is
to be unthankful.
It is to crave…
More stuff
More power
More convenience
Those who covet do so by imagination of the fantasy of
self-empowerment that comes from life playing out their way. It puts them in the role-play of being a god.
Even Christians who do this
say by the action taken, Jesus and ________________ will make me happy. For them, Jesus is not enough
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