December 4: THE FIRST OF TEN

I wonder if the people that are spending so much time debating the location of the Ten Commandments give as much time to obeying them. These are given to us to be our guidelines as Christians. Don’t expect non-Christians to obey the Ten Commandments; don’t even expect them to read them as “ten suggestions”. These are signs that God has given to believers who want to walk the center of the road leading to righteousness. The commandments don’t belong at the Schoolhouse or the Courthouse, they belong in the home and in the Church house where they can be taught openly and freely and receive the respect that they deserve. It seems a hard struggle even for people in the Church to obey the Commandments; why would we ever be so naïve as to expect non-believers in the Bible to be able to follow them.
We Christians need to be grateful that God has given them to us as our guideposts. Exodus 20:1 sets the stage for our understanding these commands, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery”. The expectation of obedience on our part is the expectation of a Father-Child relationship. A parent naturally wants to teach his child as simply as possible for his benefit. A child naturally wants to please the parent by obeying the commands of the parent. Without the parent-child relationship there is no expectation of following by the child. Also, unless there is a love relationship, the child will harden his heart against doing something that stirs feelings of rebellion.
Based on God being our Creator, He gives the first command: “You shall have no other gods before me.” First loyalty belongs to God. Someone has defined your “god” as where your mind drifts when you have nothing else to think about. What is the first thought of your life? That is your “god”. God says, “I want your total allegiance”. Is that too much? God gives us life and health and the possibility of having a personal relationship with Him; is it too much for him to expect our loving devotion first of all in our lives? Jesus explained the First Commandment in this way: “No man can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.” (Matthew 6:24)

“Loving and Just God: we need these Ten Commandments and all the
other commands that You have given us in the Bible. Help us obey! Amen”