Untitled Sermon (5)
When the New Testament lists the sins that lead to condemnation or the acts of obedience that are pleasing to God, it sometimes follows the outline of the Ten Commandments (e.g., Matt. 15:19; 19:17–19; Rom. 7:8–10; 1 Cor. 6:9, 10; 1 Tim. 1:9–11; Rev. 21:8). But the commandments are also treated individually. The first commandment tells us to have no other gods. Jesus made essentially the same claim about himself: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6; cf. Acts 4:12). The second commandment forbids idolatry. John said, “Dear children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21). The third commandment tells us to honor God’s name, which is exactly the way Jesus taught us to pray: “Hallowed be your name” (Matt. 6:9). The fourth commandment is about working and resting. As believers in Jesus Christ we are told that whatever we do, we should work at it with all our hearts (Col. 3:23). We are also told that Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8) and that there remains “a Sabbath rest for the people of God” (Heb. 4:9).
The first four commands are about loving God, but what about loving our neighbor? In the fifth commandment we are bound to honor our parents. This command is repeated by the Apostle Paul: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ ” (Eph. 6:1, 2a). Next, without in any way changing the sixth commandment, Jesus clarified its true spiritual purpose when he said, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder’… But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment” (Matt. 5:21, 22a). Jesus did the same thing with the seventh commandment: “I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 5:28). As for the eighth commandment, the New Testament says, “He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work” (Eph. 4:28a). And with regard to the ninth commandment, the Scripture says, “Do not lie to each other” (Col. 3:9a). Finally, the tenth commandment forbids coveting, which the Apostle James condemns by saying, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3).