ON EAGLES’ WINGS
VIII. “Loving God: Commandments 1-4"
11-06-05
Ken Peterson
Exodus 20:1-11
INTRODUCTION
At Halloween it is fun to dress up like someone or something else. Some people are extremely clever at this. And impersonations can be fun, where we try to look like and sound like some famous person. I’ve even seen pictures people had taken with a wax sculpture of one of our recent presidents that make it look like they had a meeting with the real president of the U.S. The impersonation or staged shot can sometimes fool us, but if your meeting is only with a “pretend president” of the U.S. it has little significance because there is none of the power or authority there.
There are a lot of “would-be gods” in our world and lots of spiritual paths offered. Sometimes what they offer and promise are good things. But, we don’t want to end up with a fake that can’t deliver on the promise, do we? I remember visiting with a man who was in the hospital dying who had not been “very religious” (as he put it) through his life. I gathered that he was more of the “try to do the best you can and hope for the best at the end” philosophy. But then he said, “I’m terrified that when I get to the gate (referring to heaven), it won’t open to me.” You see, when we face the end, we want to know about what is real– we want certainty. The gods and philosophies that are false won’t do. I was glad to be able to share with this man that Jesus is the gate, and he accepted Jesus. Then he knew he had the real thing.
There are things we must know, or the god we think we know is not the real God, the Creator of the universe, the Lord of all, and the Author of eternal life. As we continue our series from Exodus, notice that the first four of the Ten Commandments are about our relationship with God. Then, the next six are about relating to one another. They cover the two major relationships in our lives: the vertical, with God, and the horizontal, with one another. Relationships need to have rules, don’t they? Otherwise they will not be free, loving and just. Everyone can’t just do what he or she thinks is right or what they feel like doing. Community, being together, necessitates certain agreed upon rules to frame our relationship. And, most important of all, these need to be in touch with the way things really are.
Here at Mt. Sinai, God is now at the point with Israel to frame these rules. They’ve been delivered from impossible slavery in Egypt by God’s strong arm. In miracle after miracle He has demonstrated His love for them and that He is on their side. As John later affirms, We love Him because He first loved us (1 Jn. 4:19). In chapter 19 (our last sermon from this series) God declares His purpose for them:
'You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' (Ex 19:4-6)
Here, in chapter 20 we get to what it means to obey me fully and keep my covenant.
The Ten Commandments are set in the form of contemporary royal treaties, which consisted of three parts: 1) a preamble in which the king identified himself; 2) a historical prologue saying what he had done for them; and 3) the treaty or covenant stipulations to be obeyed. In other words, because of who I am and what I have done for you, this is what you are to do. Looking at Exodus 20:2, you see the first two parts:
1) the King identifying himself, I am the Lord your God...
2) then, what He has done, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
Then, the Ten Commandments, the “therefore” part. Using this royal treaty or covenant form, with which the Israelites were familiar, they are clearly acknowledging God as their King– entering into a covenant with Him. Interestingly, there are ten, one for each finger to aid memory.
As I’ve mentioned, these first four commandments have to do with our relationship with God. The phrase, “I am the Lord your God” is repeated in each one. Four basic principles to guide our relating to God and making sure it is the true God we are relating to and not some fake god that can’t deliver on its promises.
NO OTHER GODS– The 1st Commandment, Ex 20:2-3
Here’s an actual reply to a question on a confirmation test: “The first commandment was when Eve told Adam to eat the apple.” I’m afraid not. This is the real first commandment,
"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
"You shall have no other gods before me.
The covenant we are most familiar with is the covenant of marriage. And this scene almost seems like that, God entering into marriage with His bride, His people. They have gathered before Mt. Sinai, heard God declare His love and purpose for them. They have agreed to be His people. They have purified themselves, standing before the mountain covered with fire and smoke. Moses as their representative ascends the mountain to consummate the agreement with these Ten Commandments.
In the older traditional marriage services, there was always that statement of intent before the vows were repeated. In them the minister asked the groom and then the bride, if he or she will, “forsaking all others, keep thee only unto her/ him, so long as ye both shall live?” In spite of all the jokes about marriage taking away our freedom, it is in fact a door into an immense freedom. For those of you who are married, do you remember the freedom you felt when you decided, “this is the one,” and the one you chose said, “yes?” It meant no more shopping around, no more worrying about if you’d be accepted, no more trying to impress this girl or guy. Once you’re married, it means you don’t have to worry about being rejected if you become an invalid, or terrible circumstances come, because a promise has been made: “for better for worse; for richer for poorer; in sickness and in health; to love and to cherish; as long as we both shall live.” We’ve said, no matter what may happen, if I’m alive, I’ll be there for you and love you. That is a huge freedom to live in.
Here is the “forsaking all others” part in this first commandment. God is saying, “I don’t want our relationship cut off or separated by other loyalties.” We all know there can only be one number one– only one ultimate loyalty. Our relationship with God begins with making a clear, unequivocal choice– forsaking all other would-be gods. Until we know who is number one, we can’t figure out what should be number two or three– setting our priorities.
I can look back at some well-marked places in my Christian pilgrimage where I wrestled with other gods seeking my allegiance. Sometimes these have been in the form of things, or goals, or success. Other times it has been other people I wanted to please, to be popular, or to meet their expectations. Then in that wrestling, I finally arriving at the place of “forsaking all others”– deciding for God alone, exclusively, has been an exhilarating freedom. A decision to seek God first and His kingdom restores peace to our divided hearts.
NO IDOLS– The 2nd Commandment, vs. 4
"You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.
This commandment addresses our tendency to shape God into our own ideas and images. We want to reduce God to something we can manage, can get our hands on, something we can understand. God is saying, “I’m greater than anything you can possibly imagine. Let me tell you who I am. Don’t try to make me into something I am not.”
Most of us aren’t tempted to have carved statues of what we imagine God to be like. But, think about what idols meant in that day. It was a location you could go to if you wanted to meet with your god. Generally there were specific actions you could take for the god’s blessing. Things were physical, concrete, within a person’s control. Don’t we still seek to do that? We want formulas, guarantees, predictable results. We want to put God in a box.
There is a freedom when we quit trying to get God to do what we want Him to do– when we quit trying to shape Him to meet our needs and desires. We then take all limits off, and are willing to let Him teach us about who He is. To do this, we need to faithfully immerse ourselves in God’s Word and let Him tell us about Himself through this written revelation. This is the basic measuring stick for all we think about God. Revelation also comes through the world He has created and through the Holy Spirit He has given. But these forms of revelation need to be checked against Scripture.
NO MISUSING GOD’S NAME– The 3rd Commandment, vs. 7
"You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.”
“Misuse” is translated “in vain” in many versions, following the King James. We are accustomed to thinking of this as cursing or swearing. While it certainly includes this, that is only scratching the surface.
To catch the significance of this, we must realize that, in the Bible, names had special significance. This is behind the name changes in the Bible:
- Abram, meaning “exalted father” to Abraham, meaning “father of many;”
- Jacob, meaning “supplanter” of “grabs the heel” to Isaac, meaning “wrestles with God.”
- The apostle Simon’s name is changed to Peter, meaning “rock.”
The name Jesus was given by God, meaning “Savior.” And, remember in Moses’ encounter at the burning bush, God reveals His name as “I Am”– also revealing His nature: essence of all being, all that is, alive, personal, and all that is needed.
We misuse God’s name anytime we empty it of its content, its meaning, or its power. We make it “vain” or empty. Of course blasphemy is the ultimate expression of perverting God’s name. How can we use the name of the God who loves, blesses, and creates to express hatred, damnation, and destruction? Or how could we use the name of Jesus who gives us life and saves us as an expression of disgust, anger, or impatience? But this is only one level of misusing God’s name.
When Jesus teaches us to pray, he begins with Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. “Hallowed” is a way of saying, “be who You are” or as The Message puts it, “reveal who You are.” Go on to apply that as “reveal who You are in this sickness, in this decision, in my life, or in the life of this one for whom I am praying.” In Jn. 14:13, Jesus promises, Whatever you ask in my name I will do it. This is far more than ending our prayers with “in Jesus’ name, Amen.” To “ask in Jesus’ name” means that our asking is consistent with who He is, His character, nature, will. When our praying matches that, it will be done.
There is a wonderful freedom here in using God’s name in the right way, in all its power– flowing with His will. One way to illustrate this is in thinking of a parent/ child relationship. Parents can make the mistake of trying to bend a child to fit their desires and interests. They will play this instrument, be a sports star, get super grades, go to college, etc. without respect to that child’s interests and gifts. I’ve met some very uptight parents like that. Freedom comes when we come to enjoy the uniqueness of each child, celebrating their natural gifts, flowing with their creation, rather than trying to impose our wills.
When we give up trying to get God to do what we want in our way and time and just let Him be God, all that He is, glorifying His name, we enter into a joyous freedom. We enjoy the marvelous unfolding of His will in our lives and world. We don’t empty God’s name of His essence, but enjoy the true God in all His love and power.
THE SABBATH– The 4th Commandment, 8-11
"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
Probably most of us would see this as the least important of the Ten Commandments, yet it is the longest of all them with the most detailed explanation. This should warn us that we may be missing something here.
The word “Sabbath” is the Hebrew word for “stop.” This is a stop sign in our week, a pause to cultivate our relationship with God. Every relationship needs time. Again and again, it seems the press of time is what more often than not sabotages our relationship with God. But also, it is a gift to us, for our rest and renewal. We can labor as much and as ambitiously as we want for six days, but then we stop and rest. Work is good but rest is also needed. Our lives need rhythm. And, it is not just physical rest, but also time for God-reflection, for it is holy.
It is to our soul’s peril that we have let Sunday be just another day for shopping, rushing here and there, and failing to attend to our physical and spiritual renewal. We enter into a wonderful freedom when we place this enforced “stop” in our crazy schedules. It is a day to avoid all busyness and rushing. A day for leisurely contemplation, walks, and of course worship with God’s people.
The first Christians moved the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday because Sunday was the day Christ rose from the dead. Certainly that was appropriate, since all our Christian faith is a celebration of His resurrection. However, the moving of the day doesn’t mean the commandment is no longer applicable. We need one day every week to sanctify for holy purpose to keep us in touch with God and His purposes for our lives.
CONCLUSION
So, here are four basic truths about relating to God and making sure the god we are following is the one true God. Each of these four commands alert us as to dangers that mess up our relationship with God.
Next week, we’ll look at the commandments that deal with relating to one another. But God takes priority. We must learn to relate to Him before relating to one another. Unless we get that part right, any commands about living in community will rest upon an uncertain foundation.
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ON EAGLES’ WINGS,
VIII. “Loving God: Commandments 1-4”
For Further Study and Reflection from Sermon 11-06-05
Scripture: Exodus 20:1-11
1. Is there something in this sermon that seems particularly applicable to your life now?
2. Do you think the 10 Commandments are more respected or less respected than a generation ago? What makes you think so?
3. With the 1st Commandment, “no other gods before me,” talk about some of your struggles in keeping God #1 in your life.
4. With the 2nd Commandment, “no idols,” consider Col.3:5, Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
How is greed a form of idolatry?
Discuss 1 Tim 6:6-10, in light of our Thanksgiving season: But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
5. With the 2nd Commandment is included, Ex 20:5-6
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Why do you think God included these verses?
How do you understand them in light of Lk. 1:50, His mercy extends to those who fear Him from generation to generation?
Share some ways you have been able to encourage faith in your descendants.
6. With the 4th Commandment, remembering the Sabbath, can you recall times you feel you have kept it well? What was the effect on you?
7. Discuss what you feel should be involved in good Sabbath keeping.
What are things that would be inappropriate for you?