The Ten Commandments - 5&6

Exodus 20:1-17

Since I am tremendously late posting today, let's dive right into commandments 5 and 6. This marks the end of God's commandments that have to do with our relationship to Him and now focus on our relationships with others.

The Fifth Commandment: "Honor you father and your mother."

This commandment is probably the most quoted commandment of them all by Christian (and even non-Christian) parents! Hands down, it wins!! But, it is also the "first commandment with a promise" (Ephesians 6:2). To "honor" has four different meanings in this verse.

1. Prize highly
2. Care for
3. Show respect for
4. Obey

If you were like me, by the time you were 10 or 11 years old and had gotten your bottom spanked about a million times, you got the respect and obey part. But, we are also to prize our parents and to care for them. Notice that God does not say that "if you have good parents, then honor them". And He does not say "honor your parents to their face, but talk about them however you want behind their backs". If we are to ever teach our children to honor, respect, obey, prize, and care for us, we must watch our own attitudes and mouths toward our own parents AND our parents-in-law.

This command can also relate to other types of "fathers". We are to honor those in authority such as spritual fathers or even political fathers. God has placed these people over us and as an act of obedience to God, we are to respect and honor them.

The Sixth Commandment: "You shall not murder"

I think it is important to point out that the word "murder" has been mistranslated to the word "kill" in many translations. This is very important because the Hebrews were instructed by God to kill animals, kill in battle, and practice capital punishment. God was not going against His Word when He instructed His people to "kill" in those ways. It has been correctly translated to "murder" by the NIV and several other translations. However, this commandment goes far deeper than what we would generally consider murder.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:21-22 “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment. But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell."

These are difficult words to read. From Jesus' words, we can see that murder is thinking about hurting someone else, either physically or mentally, even if it never happens. This means that we break this commandment when we gossip, bear a grudge, slander, or lose our temper with someone. So many times those sins I just listed are looked over, even laughed about in church while we condemn other sins like homosexuality. This should not be. God takes them seriously and to Him, they are murder of another individual. Even if I did not believe this to be true from God's word, I have seen it so vividly portrayed in the lives of others. The times I have sat with young women as they have cried over the words that were spoken to them in anger have helped me to see that part of their life was taken from them by the other person. I have personally felt this way, yet I too, have spoken words of anger to others and therefore broken the sixth commandment.

Let us ask God today to help us to honor our parents, parent's-in-law, and those in authority. Let us also judge ourselves over the sixth commandment and confess and repent of any sin we find in that area.

The Ten Commandments - 3&4

Exodus 20:1-17


I hope that you took a second and read the scripture passage today even though it was the same as yesterday! Guess what? It will be the same tomorrow! The reason I want us to read the Ten Commandments everyday this week is because most people do not really know what the Ten Commandments are and certainly do not have them memorized. Let's begin changing that with ourselves this week.

Today we will continue our study of the Ten Commandments focusing on commandment 3 and 4.

The Third Commandment: "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God."

This commandment is, yet again, pretty obvious. Saying things such as "Oh my God!" or "Oh Lord!" are wrong and demeaning to a Most Holy God. The reason is because the names of God represent who He and His many praiseworthy attributes. Jehovah, Jehovah-Nissi, Adonai, El Elyon, the Ancient of Days, Immanuel, Our Advocate - these are all names of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. To honor these names is to honor God. Using His name as an everyday word almost like profanity is to dishonor God. For many, this is simply a habit that we must begin breaking right this minute. We must also think about what we are putting into our minds, especially for our children's sake. As they grow up and we teach them this commandment, they will not only be listening to our speech, but also of the speech of others, including what WE watch on television.

The Fourth Commandment: "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy."

This commandment might be the least understood in the culture that we live in. I have recently been studying the Sabbath and seeking the counsel of other Christians on this matter. This commandment is very lengthy and we cannot take it lightly. God gave us the Sabbath. It is a gift from Him, but do we despise it? Do we thank Him for His gift of rest or do we reject it? While we want to honor God through the Sabbath, we do not want to become legalistic like the Pharisees. Where is the line? I believe that is something we must settle in our own hearts.

Many believe we are to observe the Sabbath on Saturday, but most Christian Churches believe we are to observe it on Sunday. However, what are we doing to observe it? Do we do anything different on Sunday that we do not do the rest of the week? While I cannot tell you whether washing a load of clothes is okay on Sunday, I can tell you that that we must take this requirement seriously. A couple of ways we could do this is by either ceasing all work or by spending this day serving the Church and our Lord Jesus Christ. I am a nurse and for many years had to work Sunday's. While I did not enjoy missing church, I did take comfort in knowing that I was taking care of the sick and that is what God had called me to do. If you have to work some Sunday's, do not allow this commandment to offend you. Seek God as to how He would have you observe the Sabbath in your own life. Whatever we do, let's ask God to settle this issue in our hearts that we may honor Him and thank Him for His gift of the Sabbath.

The Ten Commandments - 1 & 2

Exodus 20:1-17

We are going to spend this week studying the Ten Commandments in detail. I hope you will join me each day as we look at God's moral law for our lives. These commandments are truly already written on our hearts. As we study each of them, I think we will all find that we know that these guidelines are true and right, and are how we should live our lives.

In studying this recently, I found something very interesting. In the pictures we see of Moses carrying the Ten Commandments, there are always two tablets. Scholars have said that the commandments were divided different ways, either five and five or four and six. Now the view is that each tablet contained the entire Ten Commandments, one copy belonging to the people and the other belonging to God Himself. God was entering into a covenant with His people. He took it very serious. He kept a copy for Himself.

Today we will look closely at the first two commandments...

The First Commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me."

The first commandment begins exactly where we would expect. God is outlining our relationship with Him first and the fact that we are to have no other gods. Obviously idol worship, such as the worship of Zeus, Rameses, Baal or any other pagan deity was forbidden. Before you check this one off as a no brainer, let me give you something to think about. We break this commandment when we look to other sources, such as astrology, for direction. We break this commandment when we give anyone or anything first place in our lives. We must look at our priorities and see if we have made anything else a god in our lives. Lastly, we also break this commandment when we substitute ourselves for God by making up our own moral code. Our society teaches us that as long as someone is sincere in their beliefs that is okay. No, that is wrong. We do not set the standard, God does.

The Second Commandment: "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below."

At first glance, this commandment seems to just be a continuation of the first. But, the first commandment deals with the object of our worship - which is to be God and God alone. This commandment deals with the manner of our worship. We are not to worship even God Almighty in an unworthy manner. An unworthy manner would be by forming an image that is supposed to be Him and bowing down to it. Why? J.I. Packer goes into great detail as to why this is wrong in his book Knowing God. To paraphrase what he says, there are two reasons:

1. "Images dishonor God". There is nothing in all creation to compare God to. He is incomparable in greatness, beauty and splendor. To try to do so, belittles Him. Isaiah 40:18 asks us, "To whom, then, will you compare God? What image will you compare him to?" The question itself demands our silence.

2. "Images mislead men". When an image is made to represent the Almighty, men get confused. We may begin to think that whatever the image is, is God or represents all the power, might, and wisdom that He has. This just simply is not true.

A hard question to ask ourselves in dealing with the second commandment, is how do I see God? Do I accept the modern church culture that pictures God as a grandfather that is so happy when I stop by, or as an indulgent parent that does not know what to do with his rebellious children? If we have allowed ourselves to picture God in this way, we are in danger of breaking this commandment. He is a Holy God who cannot and will not be compared with anyone or anything.

Ask God today to show you how and where you may be breaking these first two commandments. Let me tell you that this week of study may be difficult as we truly look into God's law, but I believe it is so important to know what God expects of us. Seek God, confess and repent if you need to. And remember, I would not be writing any of this if God had not already broken my heart over it.

We Must Be Prepared

Exodus 19

Sometimes when I read the Old Testament I feel like God has changed, but I know that is not true. Therefore, I have to ask God to show me how all the characteristics of God fit together. He is love. He is merciful and compassionate. He is a Father to the fatherless. But, our God is also HOLY and a consuming fire. He is The Judge of all nations and peoples. And He is just.

In this passage, we see the Israelites being prepared to receive the Law from God Himself. They had to consecrate themselves. Consecrate means to "set apart, declare holy". The people were to also wash their clothes and abstain from sexual relations for three days to prepare themselves to meet with God. The mountain where God was going to descend was also off limits to them. Why was this? If God wanted to meet with them, why would He make it so difficult for them?

The reason is that God is holy, holy, holy and holy, holy, holy is His Name. It is because of His grace, mercy, compassion, and love that He warned them not to get to close to the mountain and instructed them to consecrate themselves. God is approachable, but only on His terms.

I feel that we as a society and even as the Church have tried to put God on our terms. Could it be that we think we can just pop in every now and again with God and that He will show up and do what we want Him to do? Do we prepare ourselves to meet with Him? Do we ask Him for cleansing before we attempt to come into His presence? Let us make no mistake, He is a Holy God. We cannot and will not ever be able to approach Him except on His terms. For us, His terms are a relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ. Are you approaching Him on those terms or are you trying to go to Him on your own?

As we prepare to take a close look at the Ten Commandments next week, I pray that we will prepare ourselves to hear from God. Ask Him to prepare your heart in a new way to hear what He says.

Have a great weekend!

Taking the Advice of Others

Exodus 18:24-27

I promise this is our last day in Exodus 18. Probably! Seriously, there is at least one more lesson that I believe we can all learn from this text.

Jethro offered Moses advice on how to run his country. Jethro was older than Moses, but I think it is safe to say he was not as experienced. As far as we know, Jethro had never led a nation as large as the nation of Israel. One might almost expect Moses to say, "Hey! Who are you to tell me how to do my job?" or even "Thanks, but I'll do it my way." Yet, we see from scripture that Moses "listened" and "did everything" his father-in-law said. Although Moses had been highly honored by God to lead His people, he was not too proud to take advice from his father-in-law.

Do you know anyone that it seems like if you give them a suggestion you can almost guarantee that they are not going to do what you suggested? Or can you see some of those aspects in yourself? We must not be too proud to take advice or suggestions after we listen and weigh our options. To do so is truly a pride issue and sin before God. Ask God today if you are having trouble taking suggestions from other people. If so, ask Him to cleanse your heart of that attitude and help you to accept the advice from others.

My Bible study teacher said this week that "the mark of a leader is to not only give good advice, but be able to receive it". Wise counsel indeed.

Delegating Authority

Exodus 18:13-27

I have been trying to wait until next week to post this devotion, but God has so helped me through what He has taught me in this passage, I just have to share it with you!

After you read the scripture passage for the day, I want you do get out a big piece of paper and a Sharpie. Write in the biggest letters you can fit on the page:

JUST BECAUSE I AM THE MOTHER DOES NOT MEAN THAT I HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING!

Now, you may replace the word "mother" with "woman" or "boss" or "Sunday school teacher" or whatever you want to, but I want you to remember that you are not able (and never will be) to do everything. And the best part is - God never meant for you to!

Jethro saw first hand what was going on in the camp and he realized that Moses would never be able to stand the stress of leading this nation alone for very long. He offered him some wise counsel. He also told him that if he would "do this and God so commands", Moses would be able to stand the strain of his position.

We can take so much from this passage, but mostly I want you to realize that God never meant for the strain of running a home and family to be on one person. Just as we share the celebrations and struggles of life, we are also to share the work. To try to do everything ourselves instead of teaching others to do them is foolish because we will completely wear ourselves out and risk resenting our own family members for not helping us.

I am realizing that those of us with small children have to take responsiblity for teaching our children how to do things. We have the huge responsibility of teaching them the Word of God, but we must also teach them how to do things in the home as well.

The last thing I want to point out is that this passage does not say that if we delegate authority in our jobs or homes that we will be stress free. Responsibility always has pressure and strains. But, if we are all working together, we will be able to "stand the strain".

I hope this word encourages you as you enter the holidays. As we are all sharing the celebration, let's delegate some of the work as well. That is truly how God meant for the family to operate.

Building Family Relationships

Exodus 18

We are going to camp out in Exodus 18 for the next few days because there is so much to learn from this chapter in the Bible. God has used it in my life recently and the things He has taught me are so timely for this time of year. For today, I want us to turn our attention to verses 1-12.

1 Now Jethro, the priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses, heard of
everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, and how the LORD
had brought Israel out of Egypt. 2 After Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro received her 3 and her two sons. One son was named Gershom, for Moses said, "I have become an alien in a foreign land"; 4 and the other was named Eliezer, for he said, "My father's God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh." 5 Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, together with Moses' sons and wife, came to him in the desert, where he was camped near the mountain of God. 6 Jethro had sent word to him, "I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons." 7 So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and
kissed him. They greeted each other and then went into the tent. 8 Moses told
his father-in-law about everything the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the
Egyptians for Israel's sake and about all the hardships they had met along the
way and how the LORD had saved them. 9 Jethro was delighted to hear
about all the good things the LORD had done for Israel in rescuing them from the
hand of the Egyptians. 10 He said, "Praise be to the LORD, who rescued you from
the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the
hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other
gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly." 12 Then
Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to
God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses'
father-in-law in the presence of God.

Family relationships can often be hard. As a matter of fact, some people truly dread the holidays because of having to be around difficult family members. There is so much we can learn from this passage about family.

First of all, Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, sets the tone for this story. Moses' wife and sons had been under his care and he is bringing them back to Moses. Jethro could have sent them with messengers, but we see that he truly cared about Moses. He wanted to see and hear all that God was doing through Moses for himself. Jethro was a great man among his people. Moses had become a great man, but Jethro still had so much respect for him that he sent messengers ahead to let Moses know he was on his way with his family. We then see Moses going out to meet his father-in-law. He bows and kisses him which are other signs of respect. Moses was the leader of a nation of over 2 million people, yet he humbled himself in respect of his father-in-law. All relationships can be improved by mutual respect.

Next, the two great men talk face to face in Moses' tent. I can imagine that Moses' could not wait to tell Jethro all that had happened since they had last seen each other! I would love to know what all Moses included in the "everything" that he told Jethro. These men were sharing their lives with each other, not just the struggles, but also the joys. Jethro's response was truly amazing! He praised God for all that he had heard and makes a statement that I cannot pass over: "Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods..."

Theologians have debated about whether or not Jethro was a Believer in the Living God. He was a priest of Midian, but that does not necessarily mean he was a Believer. The word "priest" can also mean that he was the head or patriarch of a clan. However, he was a Midianite. Midianites were descendants of Abraham from his second wife. It is likely that Jethro had a knowledge of God from his ancestors. Either way, he now proclaims his belief in God from hearing what God has done for the Israelites.

If you have family members that are not Believers, I hope you will allow this story to bring you great comfort. We can show our family the wonderful things about God without being confrontational. Moses started the day by showing respect for his father-in-law and ended it by sharing a meal with him in the very presence of God. How I pray our holidays could be this blessed. Begin praying this week for opportunities to show your family that you love and respect them. Look for ways to share what God is doing in your life. Then allow the Holy Spirit to work in their hearts. We could spend our holidays celebrating in the very presence of God.

Prayer and Action Go Hand in Hand

Exodus 17:8-16

Here we see a beautiful picture of James 5:16, "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective". Prayer is so important to our physical, mental, and spiritual lives. Prayerlessness forms a huge barrier between us and God. I think we will all agree that there is no substitute for prayer. However, there is usually action to be taken as well.

If we look closely at the story we see that as long as Moses hands were up toward God, Joshua's army was winning. But they still had to fight. Moses' prayer would not have been effective without Joshua's fighting. And Joshua's fighting would not have been effective without Moses' prayer. God called Moses to pray and Joshua's army to do the necessary work.

What we can take from this story and apply to our lives is to never be judgemental of someones calling or service. Prayer is most important, but we can not use it as a substitution for action. I also love the fact that Moses' two friends helped hold his arms up. God could have given Moses' supernatural strength to hold his arms up all day, but He did not. He gave Aaron and Hur the responsibility of lifting their brother up. God has given us that same responsibility.

Today, ask God where He wants you to take action. Maybe you have prayed about something for a long time and know that now is the time for action. Also ask God to show you a brother or a sister that needs someone to help hold them up. If He shows you someone, pray for that person and then do whatever you can to help them.

Manna from Heaven

First of all, please let me offer my apology for not posting anything Monday or Tuesday morning. We are having computer problems at my house! We are desperately in need of a new computer because the one I am on right now has less memory than my cell phone!! We were trying to get our laptop fixed, but it looks like that is not possible. So please forgive me! With that said...

Exodus 16:11-21

I am sure you all know the story about God providing for the children of Isreal through quail and manna. But, what exactly is manna? The very word itself comes from the Hebrew "man hu" which literally means "what is it?" because the Hebrew's did not know what it was. God explained to them through Moses that the manna was their daily provision of food from the LORD. This was truly miraculous and although scholars have tried to explain it away, there is no other explanation than a true miracle.

In looking closely at this story, I believe that God can use manna to teach us about Himself and about His word. Some characteristics of manna are: 1. Manna was a supernatural gift. 2. Manna had to be gathered by each person/family. 3. Manna had to be gathered daily. 4. The manna had to be eaten daily.

In looking closely at these characteristics, I believe that we can draw spiritual symbolism between manna and the Bible. 1.The Bible is truly a supernatural gift. There is no possible way that one book could have been written over hundreds of years with over 40 different authors and still have one theme and one purpose - redemption. It is truly God's words and not man's. 2. We each have to "gather" the Word for ourselves. We have to choose to read His Word. God could have miraculously put the manna in the Isrealites tents or even in their mouths, but He did not. He expected them to go and get it. He expects the same from us today. 3. We have to be in His Word daily. God has something for each of us in His Word everyday. This one is a hard one, but if we do not take in His Word daily we will be spiritually hungry, just like we are physically hungry when we do not take in food. 4. We have to use what we learn. The Israelites had to eat what they gathered or it would spoil. We also have to do something with what God teaches us through His Word. We must obey and apply what we learn to our lives, otherwise it is just sitting inside of us and will eventually spoil.

God's Word is truly manna from heaven. Let's gather His Words today, take them in, and allow the Holy Spirit to use them in our lives to feed our very souls.

No Whining!

Exodus15:22-27

The children of Israel have so much to teach us. Sometimes I think God allowed them to go through tests just so we could see what they did and not do it! They had to learn everything on "field trips" with God. We have the opportunity to learn from the "book" as opposed to going on the "field trip". Unfortunately, many times I have chosen the field trip instead. Funny, they were not as fun as I thought they would be.

We find the Israelites in the desert searching for water. They had walked for three days without water so they were very thirsty. They did have the right to voice their need, but the Bible says they "grumbled against Moses". "Grumbling" is not the same as just saying "I'm thirsty". Grumbling is when we voice our need as a complaint against someone else. We are blaming them for what is happening in our lives. This is what the Israelites were doing. They were blaming Moses for their lack of water.

In this passage, we see that God supplies all there needs and so we would think that a few days later when they were in this position again that they would react differently. Let see. Read Exodus 17:1-7.

Almost the same test as before and the Israelites failed again. They again grumbled against Moses again or so they thought. What they did not realize was that God is sovreign over all circumstances. He had brought them there. There was no water there (yet) because that was His choice for them. Their complaint was really not with Moses, but with God. Moses had not brought them out of Egypt, God had. The same is true for us. When we complain about an aspect of our lives, we are complaining about God's ordering of our lives whether we can admit that or not.

We must recognize from this passage that God is not pleased or honored in complaining. Complaining and whining is in fact a sin. Do you see any of these aspects in your own life today? Can you accept that your circumstances are from God and can be used by God for His glory? If God shows us that we have a "grumbling" spirit, let us confess that as sin and repent today. Then ask Him to help us see when this is rising up in us again so we can turn from it immediately.

For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe
Philippians 2:13-15

Who Does Not Lift Up His Soul...

Psalm 24

Who may ascend the hill of the LORD ?
Who may stand in his holy place?

He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to an idol
or swear by what is false.

He will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from God his Savior.

Such is the generation of those who seek him,
who seek your face, O God of Jacob.

Selah

Psalm 24:3-6

We cannot know right now how God feels about our generation. In scripture, God speaks of generations past as righteous or unrighteous. So how He is judging our present generation is yet to be known. Are we a generation that seek Him and seek after the things of God? Or are we a generation that lifts up our souls to idols? Do we put others, material possessions, or other activities before our relationship with God?

We all want the blessings of God and "vindication" from God, but we see in this passage that their are some requirements we must meet in order to receive them. If we want to stand in His holy place, receive blessings from God and vindication from Him, we must have clean hands and a pure heart. We must not lift up our souls to an idol or swear by what is false. This is the type of generation God is pleased with. This is the type of generation that seeks Him.

May we ask ourselves today in all of our decisions, am I seeking God and the heart of God in this decision? The book is still being written on our generation. We can be a generation that God looks down on and says "that generation is seeking after Me".