The Ten Commandments.

Sunday School brought them to life for me with flannel graph images of Moses carrying the tablets of stone down from the mountain. But I have to admit, reading this book brought fresh and meaningful insights which gave me a new appreciation for these words of old.

Ten Words to Live By, written by Jen Wilkin, was a treat for my heart and mind as she showed how these commands bear impact on our lives today. As believers, we can forget these commands still serve a purpose in our lives now.

“The Ten Words are encouraging words, meant to give us hope – hope that we will live rightly oriented to God and others, hope that we will grow in holiness. They are not given to discourage but to delight. They are no less than words of life.” (page 18)

Let me share one thought gleaned on each word, command:

1. No other gods. God desires our undivided heart and allegiance. “It is our undiluted worship that marks us as his children in a crooked and depraved generation” (page 31).
2. Do not bow down or serve carved images. We are not to worship or serve other images of God. Idols diminish the truth of Who God is.
3. Do not take the name of the Lord in vain. “We represent a holy God accurately when we preach only what we practice” (page 54). It is not enough just to refrain from throwing His Name around in a casual way, we must keep it sacred and respected so the world recognizes it is a Name to be remembered.
4. Remember the Sabbath Day. We need rest. “To sabbath is to cease activity for the purpose of remembering God’s provision, that we might worship him as we ought (page 65). “Sabbath is the deliberate cessation of any activity that might reinforce my belief in my own self-sufficiency” (page 65). In resting, we acknowledge and remember we have been created with limits by a God who knows no limits.
5. Honor your father and mother. This is a command we hear often when we are children and yet, it’s aim is towards adults. This is a command to remember in interacting with all elders. May we not view the elderly as expendable, or to be dismissed.
6. You shall not murder. This command challenges us to more than not taking a life. Simply put: “Let us run to be life-protectors and esteem-givers and peacemakers (page 96).
7. You shall not commit adultery. This command reminds us of “the permanence and interconnectedness of the marriage relationship” (page 100). May we not devalue or treat with contempt our spouses. May we treasure and protect them as image bearers.
8. You shall not steal. Jesus introduces the enemy as the one who comes to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10). But Jesus comes to give us life and abundance. As His followers, we will be called not to be merely takers, but to be givers. He bids us to “open our own storehouses to bless others” (page 120).
9. You shall not bear false witness. This command demands “honesty in our words and actions, a commitment to integrity in rightly representing our neighbors, in both their presence and in their absence” (page 127). It can take the form of reviling, flattery, silence,  or misattribution. May we choose our words carefully and wisely.
10. You shall not covet. Covetousness begins and hides in the heart. Contentment is learned as we find in the words of Paul, “I have learned to be content” (Philippians 4:10-13). We want what we want because we think we are entitled, or deserving, to have it. It binds us to constantly thinking of ourselves instead of others.

We need to remember these ten words – these ten commands – given to show us how to live rightly with God and with others. They put us on the right path here on earth.

“You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” (Psalm 16:11, NASB)

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Photo by Karsten Würth on Unsplash
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