RUSHWAVE: Establishing Believers in the Christian Faith

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

Chapter 13: The Holy Law by which God Judges

God has revealed His law in the historical account of the Ten Commandments.

One must be careful when traveling to different countries. Laws differ from place to place, and what may be legal in one country may bring a fine, imprisonment, the lash or even death somewhere else …

The universe and all within it is God’s, and it is He who establishes what is right and wrong, just and unjust. And He has revealed His Law through the Ten Commandments.

Historically, the Ten Commandments represented a covenant between God and the Israelites thousands of years ago when they were delivered from slavery in Egypt. The commandments were miraculously engraved on stone by God Himself, and the Israelites occupy a unique place in history in that God entrusted this revelation to them. In scripture the Ten Commandments were often referred to as the “Law,” even though the term in certain contexts has expanded meanings (all the laws given through Moses, etc.).

The Ten Commandments may be divided into two groups. The first four relay God’s law between man and God, and the remaining six God’s law between man and his fellow man. The commandments are:

You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol.
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it 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.
You shall not covet.

Exodus 20:1-17

Since God is the author of the Ten Commandments, it is for Him to define their interpretation, application and use. And He has revealed these things in scripture. Specifically as respects their use, God has revealed several things.

The Ten Commandments reflect standards that universally apply to all men over all time. It is not that they were only relevant to the Israelites long ago. Instead they represent timeless principles of right and wrong against which the atheist, agnostic, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist will be held. Yes, even the unreached jungle tribesman taught by the local witchdoctor will be held to these holy standards.

While other nations did not have the privilege of this special revelation, they nonetheless are accountable to God for worshiping false gods, idolatry, dishonoring their parents, murder, adultery, bearing false witness, and covetousness. This will be clearly shown when we examine the apostle Paul’s treatise on the condemnation of mankind in another chapter.

The Ten Commandments were given for man to understand his own sinfulness. If a man employs the Ten Commandments to justify himself, he has completely missed the point. God’s intent was not for man to say “I have never murdered anyone, and I have never committed adultery, so I am in good standing with God.” The goal was rather that man would say “I am exceedingly sinful, corrupt and worthy of judgment. My condition is hopeless, and I need to be saved.”

Prior to his conversion the apostle Paul was a Pharisee extensively educated in God’s Law. He was trained under a renowned teacher named Gamaliel. Paul was an expert in interpreting the Law (or so he thought) and in keeping all the rules and regulations God prescribed under Moses. Paul’s perspective of himself was “as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless” (Philippians 3:6).

After Paul’s conversion, he saw God’s true purpose in giving the Law. In several of his letters he comments on this.

When certain false teachers were using God’s Law as a means for obtaining a righteous standing before God, Paul pointed out the proper use of the Law was in condemning us.

But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane. Timothy 1:8–9

The Law served to increase man’s awareness of his culpability before God, magnifying both the frequency and depth of his transgressions.

The Law came in so that the transgression would increase. Romans 5:20

The Law, by increasing man’s knowledge and awareness of his own sin, was designed to produce an utter sense of futility so he would look to God in Jesus Christ for salvation.

Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ. Galatians 3:24

So the Ten Commandments should in no way be viewed as a means to secure a right standing with God. They rather serve to show we are sinners worthy of judgment and condemnation.

The Ten Commandments are applicable to activities that violate the general intent of the commands. The letter of the Law is distinct from the spirit of the Law, but both constitute violations. It is a serious mistake to limit the Ten Commandments to a strict, literal interpretation.

The seventh commandment is “Do not commit adultery” which obviously means do not have sexual relations with someone who is not your spouse. But in scripture God clearly prohibits and condemns other sexual activities such as rape, incest, premarital sex, homosexuality and lesbianism. These other activities may not violate the letter of the seventh commandment which addresses adultery, but they certainly violate the spirit of the command in that they constitute sexual activities God likewise condemns and abhors.

The first commandment states “Have no other gods before Me,” but the violation of this command goes far beyond simply worshiping a false god. In the historical context of the children of Israel, this commandment would mean do not regard false gods such as those of the idolatrous Canaanites or other peoples. But the command can be violated other ways. If the ruling principle in a man’s heart is drugs, alcohol, money, his job, his spouse, his career or anything else, he has in effect made that his god even though he never knelt before an idol. If his decisions are made with a view towards getting those drugs, having that drink, keeping that money, pleasing his spouse, or holding that job even at the expense of obeying God — if these are foremost in his heart — his affections and loyalties are misplaced and he has violated the first commandment.

Scripture condemns numerous practices not explicitly prohibited in the Ten Commandments, but they are listed right alongside activities that clearly are prohibited in the Commandments. Consider these scriptures.

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. Galatians 5:19-21
Being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful. Romans 1:29-32
There are six things which the Lord hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers. Proverbs 6:16–19
Law is … for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers. 1 Timothy 1:9-11
Mankind … did not repent … so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood … and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. Revelation 9:20-21
The cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire. Revelation 21:8

When considering the Ten Commandments and these scriptures, it is plain that God’s standards are far different from this fallen world.

When a man engages in a one-night sexual encounter he is deemed “lucky.”
Musical artists perform and are awarded for songs celebrating immorality, violence, and profanity.
Promotions are received by those who through exploitation and oppression increase profits.
God’s name is routinely used flippantly, as a curse word, or in an insincere way.
A “good time” involves getting drunk, taking drugs, or committing or observing lewd acts.

For man to rightly understand His moral condition, He must examine Himself not in light of his own standards or the accolades of other fallen men. He must examine himself in light of God’s Law as revealed in the Ten Commandments.

God judges your works on the basis of moral standards He Himself has established. The Ten Commandments are God’s revelation of those standards. They serve not to justify you, but rather to reveal the magnitude of your sin. Violating the spirit of any commandment is to violate that commandment, and be liable before God.

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

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