This Sunday service Pastor (Mrs) Silvia Lia Leigh preached the first sermon in the series titled ‘The Ten Commandments’. Her main scriptures were taken from the book Exodus 20:1-26; John 1:17; 8:1-12.  

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS – INTRODUCTION

The Ten Commandments are ten laws that God Himself gave to the ancient nation of Israel thru His servant Moses. These Biblical principles apply to men’s relationship with God and with one another. These basic laws play a fundamental role in Judaism and Christianity. The Ten Commandments appear in Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. The Ten Commandments are also called God’s Law, or simply, ‘The Law’. They are like ‘instructions’ for electronic equipment. If you want to ‘function’ well in this life, study these Laws and obey them. If all people on earth keep at least one of these commandments, the world will be a better place. But the reality is that because all men are born sinners, they are lawless too. They hate God and His Word. That is why there is individual and national sin, which brings much confusion and sorrow.

The Ten Commandments have influenced the behavior of people and the law system of humanity more than any other document. History has proven that every man who obeyed these commandments and every nation that made them part of their constitution, have become better and more civilized. Every man or nation that rejected them, became worse. This is enough reason for us to study them and obey them. There are some arguments about these Laws. America insists on separation of religion and state. They rejected the display of the Ten Commandments in public places like schools or court rooms. It is said that since they rejected the Ten Commandments the behavior of the people is getting worse.

WHY DO WE NEED TO STUDY THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

*The Ten Commandments are part of the Bible!

First, we study them because they are part of the unfailing Word of God. “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Rom 15:4). God’s Word is the best Teacher. It has the power to give us faith and hope like no other word. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2Tim 3:16, 17). The Word of God is profitable for growth in grace and knowledge. This is the way we learn how to serve God and do ministry. Most people are spiritually ignorant. They think that they are religious, or that they are Christians, but they cannot quote any of the Ten Commandments.

It is a great mistake to think that because we are Christians, and we read the New Testament, therefore, we don’t need the Old Testament anymore. The truth is that you can only understand the New Testament in the light of the Old. The early church started and grew from the study of the Old Testament. Selah!

*Obeying God’s Law produces spiritual fruit. It is the only way to prove that you are truly born again, and that you worship God!

Some Christians insist that because we are under grace, we do not need to obey the Law now. This is a mistake because Law and Grace are both from God, and each has a different function to perform. “Though a Christian is not under the condemning power of the Law, yet he is under its commanding power” (Thomas Watson, puritan preacher, 1620-1626). Jesus said: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (Jn 14:15). The only way you can prove that you love Jesus is by obeying His Commandments. No religious unbeliever can obey God’s Commands. It is only in Christ, by Grace and thru Faith you can obey God’s Law. Once you become saved, for the first time in your life you receive the power to obey God’s Law. Jesus said: “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill” (Matt 5:17). To fulfill it means to obey, to execute, to finish, or to satisfy something. The Law and the Prophets together mean the whole Old Testament. Christ said that He came to perfectly obey God’s Law in the Old Testament. Christ is the only Man who obeyed the Law. Selah!  

*Obeying God’s Law proves that His people are holy, wise, understanding, and different than the world  

Moses said: “Surely, I have taught you statutes and judgments, just as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should act according to them in the land which you go to possess. Therefore, be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ “For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day?” (Deut 4:5-8). Lawless people are rebellious and foolish. Believers should obey God’s Law. This is how they become loving, patient, and wiser than the world. Glory to God!

THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND WHEN THE LAW WAS GIVEN

God’s people stayed in Egypt for about 400 years. Initially they were free, and they prospered in Goshen. Later, the Egyptians enslaved and oppressed them. God allowed them to become slaves as a punishment because they served the Egyptian gods alongside Jehovah. At the fullness of time, God sends Moses to deliver them. God judged the gods of Egypt with ten plagues. During the Passover night, the people of God are protected by faith in the blood of the lambs sacrificed for them. At last, defeated, Pharoah allows them to go to worship God in the wilderness. About 4 million people leave Egypt. This is called The Exodus. The Egyptians pursue them, to bring them back to slavery. God uses the rod in Moses’ hand to divide the Red Sea. By faith in God, the people pass through the sea as on dry ground. The Egyptians pursue them but the Sea closes on them and they are all drowned. God’s people celebrate the mighty victory of their freedom from slavery and praise God. From this moment on, God shall be known as the God who saved them out from Egypt. Three months later they arrive at Mount Sinai. Here, God gives them The Ten Commandments and other laws. He tells them that if they obey His Commands, they will be His special people. The people promised to obey God’s Laws. “Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel. So, Moses came and called for the elders of the people and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do” (Ex 19:3-8).

Moses tells the people that God will come to meet with them on the third day. They must do two things: sanctify themselves (they must wash their clothes and abstain from sexual relations) and they should fear God (not touch the mountain). Thru these laws, God tells them that He is Holy and Sovereign. Lesson: You must be spiritually prepared to meet with God. On the third day God comes down on Mount Sinai, through thundering, lightnings, fire, smoke, thick cloud, and loud sound of trumpets. Moses goes up and down the mountain, a mediator between God and man. In this role, Moses is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. God who gives him the Ten Commandments and other laws. From now on, God’s people have God’s Law. They are people of Covenant. They have the responsibility to study God’s Law and obey it. Ignorance of the Law is not an excuse for disobedience. Obedience brings God’s blessings. Disobedience brings curses and punishments. The Law came without mercy!

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (THE LAW)?

Before we look at the purpose of the Law, let us look at what the Law is not supposed to do.

*The Law is not given to bring man into a relationship with God. Just before giving the Ten Commandments, God has already told them that they are His special people. During the Ten Commandments, God introduces Himself as ‘I am the Lord, your God’. The people of Israel have been in a relationship with God since the time of Abraham. That covenant relationship was by grace and through faith in God.

*The Law of God was not given to save men. Obeying the Law does not take you to heaven. Apostle Paul said: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified” (Gal 2:16, 17). Man has always been justified by the grace of God and thru faith in Jesus Christ. Salvation has always been a gift from God. Obeying the law is called ‘works’. No man can ‘work’ his way to heaven. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph 2:8, 9). Obeying the law cannot save you because that obedience will make you proud and you will boast before God.

The Law of God, the Ten Commandments, in particular, are given to us for the following reasons:

1-To know who God is! His character, what He likes and what He hates. God hates sin! The Ten Commandments are God’s will to make us holy, wise, clean, disciplined, and righteous. God gave the Law, but He did not give men the power to obey it. Only the believers can obey God’s Law.

2-The Law was given to bring the fear of God in man! When God gave the Law, it was with thundering and lighting. Then the people ran away. Moses told them that God wants them to fear Him. “Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin” (Ex 20:20).

3-To know what sin is! The Law reveals the sinfulness of sin. The Law convicts a sinner of sin and of his need for a Savior. The Law must do its work of convicting before a sinner can appreciate the Grace of our Savior Jesus Christ. “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore, by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom 3:19, 20). “They must be slain by the Law before they can be made alive by the Gospel” (Charles Spurgeon).

“What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore, the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me” (Rom 7:7-17).

“For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” (Rom 8:3, 4).

4-The Law leads us to Christ, to the Gospel! Christ leads us back to the Law and helps us to obey it by the power of the Holy Spirit!

“What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor” (Gal 3:19-25)

‘The Law leads to the Gospel and the Gospel leads to the Law’ (Charles Wesley). The Law of God is like a mirror. It shows your stains, but it cannot wash them away. The Gospel of Christ Crucified is the basin filled with water so that we can wash the stains of sin. This basin is filled with the Blood of Christ. As you can see, knowing God’s Law is not enough. We need to obey it! But no sinner can obey God’s Law! The Law is good and holy but the sin inside the heart weakens the will. Knowing the Law does not come with the power to obey the Law. That is why we see doctors who drink alcohol, lawyers who are taken to court, financial gurus who are in debt and pastors who are divorced. They know and teach the Law, but they have no strength to obey it. Power to obey comes only thru the Holy Spirit to the believers in Christ! Selah

5- To restrain sin and evil in the world. The Ten Commandments have influenced human behavior for thousands of years. Thru them, men learn to fear God. Evil is restrained through the authorities that govern the nations. “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore, you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake” (Rom 13:1-5).

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (1)

*God gave Moses moral laws (the Ten Commandments and others) and ceremonial laws (for the priests in the tabernacle, how to serve God).

*These are commands and not some vague suggestions. They do not start with the word ‘if’. God demands total and instant obedience.

*These are God’s standards and cannot be adjusted to please men. The Law is the holy will of God. It shows how God wants man to be.

*The Ten Commandments show the great distance between God’s standard for man and man’s standard for himself.

*The Ten Commandments never made a man to be a sinner. The Law only reveals sin in man. The Law does not produce sin.

*These commands are personal. They are directed at the individual and not at a group of people or a nation.

*In the Ten Commandments God introduces Himself as their Savior. “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Ex 20:2). 

THE SINFUL WOMAN RECEIVES GRACE (John 8:1-12) GO AND SIN NO MORE!

This is a story of judgment, of confrontation between Law and Grace. Grace wins! The Pharisees caught a woman in the act of adultery. They let the man who committed adultery with her go away and they bring only the woman to Jesus. They want Jesus to judge her. One of the Ten Commandments says: ‘You shall not commit adultery’ (Ex 20:14). God’s Law also says that a person caught in adultery should be stoned to death. “The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death” (Lev 20:10). The Pharisees don’t care about the woman. They want to disgrace Jesus. This is a clever trap. If Jesus says: ‘let her go’ they will accuse Him of breaking the Law of Moses. If Jesus says: ‘stone, her!’ He will break the Law of the Romans who were masters in the land. The Romans did not allow the Jews to condemn a person to death without their approval. This situation brought Jesus under great pressure. But Jesus knew what was in their hearts. They have been judging Him all along. These are some of their accusations: They said that Jesus have not studied theology (Jn 7:15) and that He has a demon (Jn 7:20). They said that Jesus cannot be the Messiah because He comes from the wrong place (Jn 7:27), that His witness is not true (Jn 8:13), and that He is a Samaritan (Jn 8:48).

These Pharisees brought this woman to Jesus to test Him and accuse Him. In this story the Pharisees, filled with anger, self-righteousness, envy, and pride, stand as the judges, not only to the woman but to Jesus. Who is the judge and who is the accused? Jesus stoops down and writes on the ground with His finger ‘as though He did not hear’ them. The same finger of God who wrote the Ten Commandments now writes on the ground. We do not know what Jesus writes. But we see the royal calmness of Jesus. By stopping and writing on the ground, he changes the atmosphere of the scene. His silence has authority. None speaks. None moves. The very presence of Jesus stops evil men. Holding stones in their hands, the accusers wait for Jesus to speak. Jesus needed a Word of wisdom from the Father. He got it. Standing, the Judge of all men now speaks. This is His verdict: “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” The courtroom is now silent as a graveyard. The judges have been dismissed. The true Judge as spoken. Jesus is the light of the world. “The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it]” (Jn 1:5; AMP). The accusers now stand accused. Light has exposed the sin in their darkened hearts. They drop the stones and one by one, the older ones first, they leave the woman and go away. All this time, Jesus goes back to write on the ground. He ignores them as they leave. They go away leaving behind a heap of stones. They go away leaving behind their only source of Grace, Truth and Light for salvation. They go away into the darkness from where they came. It is a sad scene. To abandon Jesus and go away is a mortal sin.

Only two people are left in the empty court room: Jesus and the woman. All this time Jesus did not look at the woman. He allowed the Law to finish its work. Now, He stands and looks in her eyes. This is the time for Grace. Jesus is the tender merciful Judge. He pities the lonely, ashamed, frighten and trembling sinner. He wants her to say that no more accusers are left. He says He does not accuse her of this sin. But Jesus also tells her: “go and sin no more”. Grace speaks. Jesus does not condone or cover her sin. His Grace is available to humble men who repent of their sins. He gives them the power to ‘sin no more’. Here you see that Grace does not ignore sin. Grace speaks and acts with total authority because Blood was shed. Jesus died that this woman might be saved. That is why Grace has total authority. This is the eternal Gospel of Christ Crucified and Resurrected. Jesus is the Judge and He is the Savior. “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom” (2Tim 4:1). Jesus did not condemn but He also did not compromise! Jesus is a Friend of Sinners (Matt 11:19). But Jesus is also ‘separate from sinners’ (Heb 7:26). What a Savior!

The Pharisees thought that Jesus has only two options. To break Moses’ Law or Caesar’s Law. They did not believe that Jesus is God and God is limitless in options. Nobody can trap God! Jesus not only escape their trap, but He changes the tables in this drama. It is Jesus that ‘traps’ them!

By dropping the stones and walking away, the Pharisees have lost the respect of the crowd because they seem to have compromised with the Law of Moses. Jesus gives the woman an opportunity for repentance. His goodness leads to repentance (Rom 2:4). Jesus also reminds her of the Justice of God. He tells her never to do this again. We do not only see the Mercy of God, but we must respond to the mercy of God!

Worship the Lord!