Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment
holy, and just, and good
— Romans 7:12
Last month we
began a series on the 10 Commandments. We continue our introduction:
Purpose of the Ten Commandments
Before we tell
what the commandments can do, here is an important point of what it cannot
do: the 10 Commandments cannot save the soul. This is made clear
in Romans 8:3-4:
For what the law could not do, in that it was
weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful
flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4That the
righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the
flesh, but after the Spirit.
It
is vitally important that we know and understand this fact.
So
what can the 10 Commandments do?
1. Moral fence: Morality is very
much a protective barrier that shield us, our souls, as well as our family,
present or future from danger. Stay within the bounds of the fence and your
spirit, soul, and even body will be protected. Stray beyond the fence and you
are taking your chances. The 10 commandments, as God’s righteous and high
standard, leads us to that hedge of protection.
2. Mirror: Most people are under
the illusion that they are basically good. They don’t rob banks, commit murder,
are sexually responsible (most of the time), pay their bills, provide for their
families, and are generally nice to people. Yet, the amazing thing of the law
is that, like a mirror, it shows us what we are really like, NOT what we
think we’re like. Transgression of the Law is universal (Romand 3:23) and
the wages of such transgression is death (Romans 6:23). Through the
commandments, we discover that we really are sinners and thus are more open to
the Saviour. Using the commandments as a quiz can be a good evangelistic tool.
Ray Comfort wonderfully illustrates this in Hell’s Best Kept Secret. Go
through the ten commandments one-by-one and ask someone, have you kept this
command, both in letter and in spirit, all of your life? If the person is
honest, they will say ‘No,’ they have not kept all commandments, all their
lives. This includes people raised in the church.
3. Schoolmaster: In the liberating
Epistle to the Galatians, Paul shows that the commandments cannot save but it
is a tutor that leads us to the One who can, namely Jesus Christ. Galatians
3:24-25:
Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring
us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25But after that faith
is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
New Testament Summary
Jesus
Christ wonderfully summarised the commandments in Matthew 22:36-40
Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37Jesus
said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38This is the first and great
commandment. 39And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself. 40On these two commandments hang all the law
and the prophets.
The
Lord not only summarises the 10 Commandments, but indeed all the law is
condensed into 2 precepts:
1. Love God
2. Love people
You
will find that the 10 Commandments do this in an amplified fashion: the first
four commandments deal with how to love God, and the last six are about our
dealings with people.
As
New Testament believers, we should respect the law and guide our behaviour
according to its precepts, knowing that it is by God’s Grace that this is made
possible.
TO
BE CONTINUED
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