Sermon Tone Analysis

The chapters in Exodus that follow the Ten Words (aka The Ten Commandments) give the people of God some very practical application; these chapters will help the people of God know how they should live.

These chapters cover some whacky and weird verses as well as some contemporary hot topics: the death penalty, slavery, premarital sex, orphan care, lawsuits, fistfights, property rights, the poor, the foreigner, loving our enemies, and on and on.

Tony Merida: “In Exodus, God formed a people to display His glory.

He taught them how to live in community with one another.

Before we pass this section off as irrelevant [to us], think about how important this section was for Israel.

They needed some guidelines for living.”

Have you ever had a roommate?

If so, you know exactly what I mean when I say that we can understand the need for guidelines.

I had a roommate who hid pizza under the couch so no one would find it and eat it, a roommate who brought greasy bags of old cafeteria food home and threw it on the floor for “whoever is hungry”, a roommate who refused to wash a single dish (ever), and a roommate who fell asleep in the bathtub and flooded the entire apartment (twice)!

I had to set some guidelines if we were going to live together without killing each other: all food goes in the fridge (or in the trash); if you use it, wash it; and most importantly: no baths, showers only.

Imagine 600,000+ Israelite men (not counting women and children and the others who left Egypt with them) living amongst one another in the desert for what will turn out to be 40 years.

Let’s call it 1.5 million people living side-by-side—they could use some rules, some guidelines for living.

The question for us: How do we, God’s people, live out this life with one another?

With our brothers and sisters, our neighbors, our enemies?

With those who hate us?

Knowing how to live with one another, in the sight of God, requires us to have more than a knowledge of God’s commands (the Ten Words).

We should know them, even the order of them.

But, more importantly, we must put them into practice.

It’s as Jesus said:

The rules and ordinances in our text for today essentially apply the Ten Words to specific situations.

Is there anything more relevant than glorifying God by loving Him and loving our neighbor?

All true Christians long to obey the Greatest Command—Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength—and the Second Greatest Command—Love your neighbor as yourself.

Since all true Christians long to obey what Jesus identified as the Greatest and Second Greatest Commands, all true Christians should consider these chapters carefully.

You see, God is concerned with how we relate to one another in day-to-day life.

God calls us to holiness, integrity, mercy, justice, and fairness in the ordinariness of life.

We spend most of our days in the ordinary: going to work, seeing neighbors, raising kids, eating at Swope’s, shopping at Food Fair—seemingly routine activities.

How, then, can we glorify God in the routine of our daily life?

These chapters give us some insight into how Israel was meant to apply God’s Word to their lives.

This is precisely what we do when we open this book.

The goal of studying the Bible (or listening to a sermon) is to apply God’s truth to our lives, to learn to apply what God has said to our particular situation.

>If you have your Bible (and I hope you do) please turn with me to Exodus 20, starting with verse 22. Keep your Bible (digital or hard copy) open this morning as we move our way through the text.

I will make one reference after another this morning and you will be well-served by having God’s Word open in front of you.

>After the Lord spoke to His people from the mountain, giving them the Ten Words, it seems pretty clear that the people realized what just took place.

They had just heard from the Lord Himself.

Smoke and fire and lightning and trumpet blast…and they trembled.

And now, in verse 22, the Lord speaks to Moses:

And from here on, the Lord shares with Moses rules and regulations, practical application of the Ten Words the people just heard from Him.

Worship

In Exodus 20:23-26, the people are given some specifics concerning worship—the outworking of the 1st and 2nd Commandments: no other gods and no idols or images of worship.

The people must worship God alone.

So God tells them how He is to be worshipped; that is, how His people must and must not worship Him.

The Lord tells them to make an altar for sacrifices and burnt offerings, but with specific instruction.

He doesn’t want them merely to avoid worshipping pagan gods, but to avoid worshipping like the pagans.

Pagan altars were fancy and well-crafted, so fancy in fact that the temptation might be to worship the altar as much as anything else.

You see, nothing in corporate worship should be done for show.

We shouldn’t be gimmicky or ornate.

God should be the focus of worship; not the building or even a leader.

If there’s anything that distracts from the worship of God, it needs to be done away with immediately.

The altar was to be made of natural, God-made objects; it was not to be fancy.

And it’s purpose was simple: sacrifice.

The altar was the place for making sacrifice for sin.

And, on special occasions, for giving thanks to God.

God knew His people would need forgiveness, even after giving the law to them.

Of course, the altar and the sacrifices point us to Jesus, the once-for-all-time sacrifice; He who paid the penalty for our sin by being slaughtered in our place.

His sacrifice pleased God, and because of that, we can be reconciled to God.

Jesus is our sacrifice for sin and the offering that reconciles us to the Father.

Therefore, when it comes to our worship, the most important thing we do is remember Jesus.

Apart from Him, we cannot worship and know God.

Servants/Slaves

(Exodus 21:1-11) We should first note that this is not “slavery” like we think about in American history.

Most people of the day ran small family businesses and their servants were simple workers, employees in the business who lived at the master’s place.

They were contract workers.

During the time of Moses, the situation was markedly different than the 18th and 19th centuries.

These people weren’t forced laborers; their service was voluntary.

People hired themselves into service of others, often because of debt.

Involuntary slavery was forbidden.

The service was voluntary and temporary.

The servant/slave worked for 6 years and then went free; they were given a Sabbatical.

They didn’t leave empty-handed.

Their service was civil.

The master could not abuse the slave.

This service/slavery was neither oppressive nor was it racially based.

God’s freed people weren’t freed so that they could oppress others.

One cannot excuse the blight of American slavery or its utter and complete sinfulness by turning to the Bible as justification.

The servants/slaves in the OT aren’t property; they’re people (if the Lord considered them to be property, they would be dealt with in Exodus 22).

Servants/slaves weren’t considered three-fifths of a person as in America.

They are whole people, created in God’s image, with all the worth and dignity as everyone else.

The 4th and 10th commandments mention servants, giving them the same worth as anyone else.

This we must understand: A servant/slave here is much different than what happened here in our country and what continues to happen around the world today.

No person is property.

No person is less-than another.

No person is to be used or exploited.

If you believe differently, you need to repent.

In Christ, we are no longer slaves to sin.

We’ve been freed from that.

We are, however, slaves to Christ—and this is our joy.

Our Master loves us and died for us, He cares for us, protects us, and provides for us.

Personal Injuries

(Exodus 21:12-36) As we move through these verses, we see laws on injuries to people and animals.

The principle reiterated here is that the punishment should fit the crime.

These verses deal with intentional and unintentional homicide (re: the 6th Commandment), with kidnapping, physical or verbal assaults on one’s parents, and abuse.

Bottom line: people matter to God.

They bear His image.

On this Mother’s Day, we should notice the gravity of honoring one’s parents (re: the 5th Commandment).

Attacking (v.

15) and cursing (v.

17) one’s parents is forbidden.

Speaking against or abusing your parents means you are guilty of a great sin against God.

It’s no small thing, the 5th Commandment.

“Honor your father and mother.”