Outlined Transcript:
Hi everyone,
I wanted to follow up on the little series we’ve been on. A few weeks ago, we talked about keeping the law of the Lord, keeping all that Christ has commanded, and guarding it. Then we talked about reminding people of what God has said and what God has done, the Word and the works of God, from Deuteronomy: don’t forget, take care that you remember.
Then we talked about discipling through frequent, constant, intentional, multisensory ways of reminding, especially younger children and young believers, of the Word and the works of God, and using creation, the book of creation, as a way to highlight and depict the truths of the book of God’s revelation, His special revelation.
Today, I’m going to demonstrate how I walk through the Ten Commandments, the simple Ten Commandments.
Looking Ahead
In late April, I’ll be doing the conference for the Lahu Church, and we’ll be doing it on the fundamentals of the faith, the Christian faith and Christian living, and how those two things work together.
I’m going to go through the law in a way that teaches both how it wounds the conscience and points us to Christ, so the first and second uses of the law, and then how it instructs us to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel, in a manner that imitates Christ, so the third use of the law.
The Preface to the Ten Commandments
First of all, the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20 have a preface. A lot of people don’t even notice that.
If they talk about the Ten Commandments, which in today’s day can seem old-fashioned, it’s almost treated as if that’s just fundamental. Sometimes people even go so far as to say, “We’re just New Testament Christians. The Old Testament is really for the Jews, but the New Testament is for Christians.”
It couldn’t be farther from the truth.
The Old Testament is a book for Christians. Peter talks about how the Scriptures were written for us, meaning New Testament believers. The believers of the Old Testament didn’t have all that we now have in Christ. It was still in mystery. They didn’t have all of the truths that we now have in union with Christ because of the Holy Spirit.
They didn’t have all of that information about the time and the person that the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating through His sufferings and subsequent glories, as Peter talks about. They were writing, knowing that it wasn’t mainly for them. They were writing for a future audience, a future generation.
So the original audience would have been the Hebrews, and we have to understand, as best we can, the historical and cultural context to understand that original audience. But the intended audience, according to Peter, is New Testament believers, those who now have the indwelling of the Spirit, who now have the mind of Christ.
We now have the mind of Christ. We can understand the mysteries of the Old Testament because they are now revealed in Christ. All the promises of God in the Old Testament are yes and amen in Jesus Christ.
Reading the Law Christianly
When we go to the law, the Decalogue, as it’s been called, the Ten Commandments, how do we understand those Christianly?
Not too much different than they should have understood them in the Old Testament. But now that we have Christ, we can read them through the lens of the Word and work of God in the person of Christ.
The preface, the verses preceding the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, is in chapter 20, verse 2:
“I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”
That’s the KJV I’m using here.
It’s just indicative. God is telling the truth about who He is and the truth about what He has done.
I am the Lord your God. I am Adonai, your God. I have brought you out of the land of Egypt. I have redeemed you from Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You were in bondage. You were slaves. And I redeemed you. I ransomed you. I am Adonai, your Elohim. I am the Lord, your God.
So that’s the preface. This is the redemptive indicative. This is what you have to have in the backdrop of your mind as you go into the Decalogue, into the Ten Commandments, and want to learn a way to walk that is worthy of this redemptive truth.
So what does the preface teach us?
The preface of the Ten Commandments teaches us that because God is the Lord, and our God, our Redeemer, therefore we ought to keep all His commandments.
A Simple Way to Teach the Ten Commandments
How do I do this?
I learned this mnemonic device, this way of teaching, from my friend John Miller. So this is not original to me, but I’ve adapted it. Of course, I have to do it a little differently in a different language. This works in English, and it can work in other languages too. You just have to be more creative in some of the ways you remember these things.
There are ten commandments, and this is an easy way to do it with adults or children.
1. One God
There is one God. We shall have no other gods before Him.
2. No idols
We shall not make idols and bow down to idols. So you kind of do your bowing motion with your fingers.
3. Watch your words
Do not take the Lord’s name in vain. Watch your words.
4. Keep the Sabbath holy
You shall keep the Sabbath and hold the Sabbath and keep it holy. It’s like four people in a family, or four tires on a car, going to church or going to worship.
5. Honor your parents
Honor your parents, because if you don’t, your parents will exact the right hand of discipline.
6. Do not murder
You shall not murder. Don’t kill anybody. Stop murdering.
7. Do not commit adultery
You shall not commit adultery, like two people going into a secret place together, into a building or a house or a room.
8. Do not steal
You shall not steal. In some countries, you lose your thumbs if you steal.
9. Do not bear false witness
You shall not bear false witness, or you shall not lie. In some countries, if you lose both thumbs, it would be a lie to say you grew your thumb back. That doesn’t happen. Do not bear false witness. Don’t lie about growing the thumb back.
10. Do not covet
You shall not covet. You shall not want what your neighbor has. You shall not desire and covet what is not yours.
Final Thoughts
That’s just an easy way to walk through the Ten Commandments. I thought I’d share that with you.
Like I said, I have to adapt that in different languages with different kinds of mnemonic devices. But in English, I find that to be a really helpful way.
In a future video, I’ll talk more about how to pass on the law as it convicts, the law as it comforts, and then the law as it instructs us in Christ.
Thank you.