The Ten Commandments:
- You shall have no other gods before Me.
- You shall make no idols.
- You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
- Keep the Sabbath day holy.
- Honor your father and your mother.
- 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.
The Ten Commandments were originally given to Moses and the Israelites in Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21, which is after God saved them from slavery in Egypt. They are a sort of summary of the 613 commandments in the rest of the Old Testament. The first four commandments concern our relationship with God and the last six concern our relationship with other people. As explained by Billy Graham, “The Ten Commandments were given so they [the Israelites] would know how to live, and God promised that if they followed them, their lives would be blessed.”
An important note to make is that these are commandments not suggestions. The word commandment comes from the word command, which is defined by Merriam-Webster as “to direct authoritatively.” A synonym of command is order. A command is something that you obey without questioning. Think of it as a military, God is our commander, therefore we must obey his commands. Just as a soldier follows commands, so must we. Jesus explains in John 14:15 that, “If you love me, keep my commands”.
The Ten Commandments also serve another purpose: to show that no one can perfectly obey God’s law (Romans 7:7-13, Romans 3:23, Ecclesiastes 7:20) and, therefore, we require the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ to be saved. There is a belief that by strict adherence to the Ten Commandments one will have eternal life, but Romans and Ecclesiastes teach that this is impossible, meaning that this belief is incorrect.
For further support, remember the rich young ruler Jesus encountered. He claimed that he did obey the Commandments and he learned that he hadn't,
““Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
“Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’"
“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.”
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.”
With that being said, the Ten Commandments are still a great guide for our morality as Christians and they are still orders from God. The Commandments teach morality even to non-believers. All of these laws are good laws that benefit society, Commandments five through ten are clearly universal. You would hard to pressed to say that these aren't good laws. Number six, eight, and nine (in a court of law or when speaking to an officer of the law) are all illegal in most places on Earth.
In 1980 the Supreme Court, in Stone v. Graham, struck down a Kentucky statute “requiring the posting of a copy of the Ten Commandments, purchased with private contributions, on the wall of each public school classroom in the State”. Even in my lifetime there have been many people that has complained about the Ten Commandments posted in government buildings. I vaguely remember when the Supreme Court banned the Ten Commandments in courthouses. It is not a good idea to turn one’s back on the laws of God.
There’s another belief that the Ten Commandments aren’t relevant today with all of our modern technology. This is simply not true. Sin hasn't changed since the Fall; there are no new sins committed now that haven't been committed in the past. Ecclesiastes 1:9 explains that, "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun." God knew what technologies would exist at this time and He knew His laws would always be relevant. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
In conclusion, the Ten Commandments serve two purposes: one, to teach us how to treat God and each other, two, to show us our need for Jesus Christ. The Ten Commandments are relevant today and they teach good morality. We should all strive to keep these commandments, through our words and our actions.
