The Ten Commandments Speak Clearly

I can think of no better place to hear God's voice than Exodus 20:2-17. The Lord has already been speaking to us right from the opening words of Genesis, but for our purposes we will start with the Ten Commandments, as the Lord God has laid them before us. Today we will look at what God is saying to us in the first four commandments.

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me" (Ex. 20:2-3). Listen, and you can hear God speak clearly, right to your heart. According to the first commandment, God is to be first in your life. Matthew 22:37-38 is much the same: "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment."

"You shall not make for yourself a carved image" (Ex. 20:4a). The second commandment builds on the first and reinforces the all-important truth that God must always be first in your life. You must not put anything or anyone ahead of the Lord. Follow Him above all else.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain" (Ex. 20:7). Again, a command closely related to the first two. It is all about making sure that the Lord God is in first place, above all else, in your life. And note that we have not exhausted God's Word, not even in this single verse. The rest of the verse reads, "for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain." To dishonor God is serious business. To use His name in a way that belittles the name of God brings severe consequences.

In the same way, each of these commands has more to it when you read the context. We are not being exhaustive in our study at this point. What I am doing is introducing the importance of being in the Word daily, looking at each verse in its context, and gleaning from the Word what God is saying to you at that moment. His Word is truly our guide for how we ought to live in Christ.

The fourth commandment continues along the same line of thought: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" (Ex. 20:8). Again, the verses that follow expand on the meaning. Verse 11 gives the theology behind this: "For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore, the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it." Even the Sabbath is made for us—a day to honor the Lord by resting from our labors. Amen.