The Ten Commandments

What’s So Special About the Ten Commandments?

In 1962, mandatory prayer was deemed unconstitutional in our public schools. Then in 1980, the mandatory display of the Ten Commandments was ruled unconstitutional in any school or official public venue. The need to respect the separation of church and state was the reason given.

In recent years, the debate over the constitutionality of Ten Commandment displays has been in and out of the media, ripping our country in two over such “religious rights” issues.

Why this attack on God’s moral law? What harm have God’s commands caused to deserve such treatment?

The Bible lists God’s laws in the Old Testament. The Ten Commandments are first listed in Exodus chapter 20. Are you familiar with God’s moral laws? Can you quote any of them?

They are:

I. You shall have no other gods before Me.

II. You shall not make to yourselves any graven image…You shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them.

III. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.

IV. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

V. Honor your father and your mother…

VI. You shall not kill.

VII. You shall not commit adultery.

VIII. You shall not steal.

IX. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

X. You shall not covet your neighbor's house...nor anything that is your neighbor's.

Let’s ask a very important question: Why did God give His moral laws? Some say it was because He did not want us to “have fun.” Others say God’s laws are the way to salvation. But what does the Bible say?

Romans 3:19-20 : “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.”

There are three key truths here: 1. By the law comes the knowledge of sin. 2. By the law, all the world sees itself as guilty before God. 3. No one can be justified (or saved) by keeping the law.

How does the law of God bring knowledge of sin? How does God’s law make us all guilty before Him? The best answer I can give is this: Try to live by and obey the Ten Commandments for one month, you will see for yourself!

But the Bible gives us another crucial purpose for the Ten Commandments:

Galatians 3:23-24 : “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.”

Here we see that the law of God doesn’t just leave us guilty before God, it BRINGS US TO CHRIST! What an important function. God’s holy commands show us how sinful we all are. Then they point us to God’s answer to our problem—to Jesus Christ!

How is Jesus the answer to our sin problem?

Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Christ died for us, as a payment for our sins. Have you called out to Jesus, in simple, childlike faith, to save you?

Romans 10:9, 13 : “…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved… For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

Since God’s moral law was given to bring people to Christ, then it would make sense that if someone did not want people to come to Christ, they would try to eliminate God’s law from society. Who is responsible for this? A political party? No. Atheists? No. The ACLU? No. But there is an enemy of our souls. The Bible gives the identity of this enemy in Revelation 12:9: “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”

Here the enemy is known by four designations: the great dragon, the old serpent, the Devil, and Satan. He is also described as the one who deceives the whole world. If you deny the existence of such an evil being, please know that this is not my idea. This is what God, in the Bible, clearly says.

If men, women and children are allowed to grow up in a country with no knowledge of God’s holy laws, they will be left to themselves as to how to live. Chaos and anarchy will reign. But most importantly, they will not see their need, as helpless sinners, to come to a holy God, and call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.

The good news (or gospel) of Jesus Christ, means nothing unless people know the bad news. The Ten Commandments tell us the bad news—they prove that “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23.) The bad news and the good news are contrasted in this one Bible verse: “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23.)

Where do you stand before a holy God? Will you suffer the penalty for your sins? Or will you believe that Jesus suffered on the cross for your sins? Will you receive Him today? When you do, this verse states that you will receive the gift of eternal life. Only a loving God would do that for us!

© 2007 Daniel Dore

Global Missions Team

Evangelical Baptist Church

Laconia, NH

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