ADULT EYES AT THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD

In this sermon about Exodus 20:12-17, we discover another angle to view the commandment of God in the way that will help us feel a closer connection to God and more aware of how we can make a difference in the world.

WHY DO WE NEED ADULT EYES?

Yahweh would have none of his business of the Hebrews treating each other in the ways the Egyptian taskmasters treated them.

God’s agenda is for the liberation of people,but He preferred to establish essential rules to keep us from becoming mini-Pharaohs or tyrants and brutes between us and just not to be prohibited by ourselves from His blessings .

As children, many of us learned the commandments as basic morality lessons, a list of dos and don’ts. Maybe we haven’t given much thought to them since childhood.

When we look at the commandments through adult eyes, we discover that they are much broader than a restrictive morality list for children.

KEY EXAMPLES

I. Honor your father and mother.

On top of the list of key example of commandment is this: Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Sunday school teachers shrink this down to, “Obey your parents.” And that is part of what is going on here. It assumes loving, nurturing, and non-abusive parents who care for their children as God cares for all of us.

We should notice, however, that the commandment says “honor” not “obey.” So, what does it mean to honor one’s parents? To honor is to validate someone’s importance. It’s to treat someone as a person of substance, deserving respect.

It’s not about blind obedience but about listening to them, learning from them, respecting their wisdom, and experience. It has to do with full consideration to someone.

Without shrinking the commandment, this shows that by honoring your parents, it is the source of blessing, not a restriction.

In more expansive version of the commandment is to learn from other elders as well–especially our spiritual mothers and fathers, people who have journeyed on the path of faith.

II. Don’t commit adultery.

Sex out of marriage (adultery, extramarital sex) was prohibited. Why? because the marriage relationship should reflect a believer’s relationship to God. Therefore an Israelite who would be unfaithful to his or her partner would also be unfaithful to the covenant of God and would be inclined to go after other gods. In the relevance of the text to the 21st century church, Church is the Bride, Jesus is the Groom, the bride-price is the blood of Jesus.

Though this commandment does not refer explicitly to premarital sex, the Bible prohibits it elsewhere in other 5 books of Moses (e.g., Gen. 2:24; Ex. 22:16; Deut. 22:13–29).

In addition, we can’t list the consequences and curses that follow this sin.

CONCLUSION

The commandments aren’t there to make us feel guilty. They are there for us to find the fullness of a meaningful life that loves God and our neighbors. Let’s try looking at the commandments through adult eyes but not as a list of restrictions. Let’s try to think about them in terms of how we can be more intentional in our love of God and neighbor.

Thank You!