Tag: Ten Commandments

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God's Story Preparing the Bride of Jesus Christ

GOD’S STORY: Part 4 Why the Law?

Here at Preparing the Bride, I’m telling GOD’S STORY. Presumptuous?! Not when simply looking at scripture, because scripture is the unfolding of God’s story to us who read it.

How do we prepare as the Bride of Christ? We learn GOD’s Story. Piece by piece, and peace by peace, we learn to walk as He has walked. 

GOD’S STORY Part 4: Why the LAW?

“Open my eyes, that I may see

Wondrous things from your law.”

(Psalm 119:18)

I asked the LORD, What is the next thing to share of Your Story?

He led me to the Ten Commandments. Really? Yes! Okay.

Why the Law to share with you?

You will know Exodus 20, where the LORD lists the summary version of His Law: the 10 Commandments. Exodus and Leviticus are full of GOD’s laws for various contingencies. But the Law is encapsulated well in the 10 Commandments.

Exodus 20:2-17

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

12 “Honour your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

14 “You shall not commit adultery.

15 “You shall not steal.

16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

17 “You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbour’s.”

But why was the Law necessary? 

Sin, yes. But why didn’t GOD just send His son in the first place? If Jesus didn’t come to replace the Law but to fulfil it (Matthew 5:17), why didn’t He just arrive in front of the Hebrews in the wilderness?

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of GOD.” (Romans 3:21) But first we need to know we’ve sinned in order to recognise we have fallen short. The Law teaches us our inability to keep it. Who hasn’t made a mistake and hoped and prayed we’d not suffer the consequences? That fear, that prayer, enables us to see we’ve fallen short. The Hebrews needed to learn GOD’s perfection before they could recognise their fallibility. So they needed to know GOD’s standard, His Law — They certainly weren’t going to find it in the heathen Egyptian society.

And so, why the Law? So we can know we’ve broken it, so we can know we’ve sinned, so we can know we’ve fallen short and need a Saviour… and then value The Saviour: Jesus, the Jewish Messiah Yeshua.

What does the Law signify?

Whilst GOD very much wanted relationship with the Hebrews, the fear of GOD pervaded their hearts. They saw the power of GOD in the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud. They saw His power in the parting of the Red Sea. And so, they pushed Moses up front and said, ‘You talk to GOD and then tell us what He says.’

“Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” (Exodus 20:18-19)

This was immediately after the 10 Commandments had been announced. The people were willing to obey but didn’t want intimacy with GOD. The Law gives rules, requirements and we turn it into religion. But GOD wants relationship. 

So, why Jesus?

Millennia after the Hebrews in the desert Jesus arrived, and He fulfilled the Law we failed to follow, with two commandments that encapsulated GOD’s standard even more succinctly, 

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your 

strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbour as yourself.’ ” (Luke 10:27)

Even further, through Jesus we can receive freedom today… overcoming the Law through the grace of faith in GOD.

John wrote in chapter 8 of his gospel, “If the son sets you free, you shall be free indeed.” Faith in Jesus, the son of God, offers us freedom from the Law as we receive Him and His love. We discover our choice to follow the Law changes; no longer do we follow out of a sense of duty or fear, but out of the desire to love others just as He has loved us. We are free as the yoke is lifted! “Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

The Law makes us aware of our failure to keep it. But we don’t have to live in fear and anxiety about the consequences of our weaknesses. Rather, we can know we have been saved from ourselves — our sinfulness — through the blood of Jesus.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 19:14) Like little children innocent of their faults, we can embrace Jesus and His Father, knowing Jesus is the Truth and GOD the Father is a GOD of love. The sin of the past is left behind and the new has come: walking as Jesus walks, saved through faith in Him and living beyond sin because through faith in Jesus our sin is forgiven and blotted out.

So, the knowledge of GOD’s Law provoked mankind to realise our sinfulness and Jesus has released us from the yoke of the Law when we choose to follow Him.

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32)

God’s Story 

When we look at GOD’s Story through the lens of His Law, we recognise that the Hebrews and all the descendants, save one, were imperfect. It is through that one exceptional person that any and all can be rescued from imperfection. 

We cannot escape GOD’s Law but we can learn to live the Law as embedded in the principle of Love, GOD’s love. And a part of GOD’s story is to recognise His identity. GOD’s identity is that He is Love. 

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Preparing the Bride of Jesus Christ

Powerless or Full of His Power?

“In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be put to shame.” (Psalm 71:1)

Do you feel powerless or full of His power?

Goodness of God song link

Power of Intimacy

I sit in the dark at 5am and wonder, where are we headed in this nation?

We have a new prime minister in the United Kingdom who has not been elected (except by his constituents as a local member of parliament). 

We had a new prime minister for 45 days. Then she was booted out by her own party for daring to believe Britain could grow the economy and prosper now.

We had a Conservative prime minister who was voted in by a huge majority including by usually Labour voters amongst the enthusiastic throng, for a cause that was stuck in government because the party in power hated the idea that the nation voted to separate from the European Union. 

I could list the demise of democratic Britain but that would be negative. 

What we have is a somewhat quiet coup of elite parliamentarians against their own party, an opposition who is lacking in acuity, and behind the scenes the wealthy and powerful who are lining their pockets with the mad ideas from the fearful who believe the end is nigh because of climate change.

The end may be nigh, but we don’t know the season nor the time, and it certainly has nothing to do with the natural fluctuations in climate.

The whole scenario — and I’ve only touched on some of the factors — reads like a sci fi novel. We live in a liberal democracy but are ruled by an appointed leader, who doesn’t even have the freedom to lead but is pulled around like a ringed bull, doing what he’s told about the climate change agenda, the economy, and who knows what else!

If the Prime Minister hasn’t any power, then is it any wonder if we, the people, feel powerless. 

I voted Conservative, I voted for Brexit. I won. And I feel powerless. Pity those who voted the other way… It doesn’t really matter now does it? We voted but we got it wrong so powers that be are doing their level best to counter the vote: first regarding Brexit, now about policy and even the Leader.

I sit and I stare and I wonder. Do others say to our Creator,  “Father, we don’t have any more prayers right now. We just want to talk to you… and we aren’t even sure what to say.”

He’s listening. He knows. He cares. And He values our prayers. Our voice matters to Him. “Thank you LORD!” Because certainly, our voice doesn’t seem to matter to many politicians.

Who holds the Power?

We don’t know man’s time table, we don’t know the unoriginal Satan’s time table (New Ten Commandments). But we can see the signs of the enemy and it seems a New Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai are about to be proclaimed. It infuriates me. What can I do? Rejoice in the LORD! We who keep our eyes on Jesus, not the storm, will overcome…. Because GOD is in charge.

“And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—“ (Revelations 2:26)

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Politics and Society today

What the United Airlines fiasco tells us about our Western Society: signs of the times

Fly the Friendly Skies?

Society is becoming increasingly aggressive. What, for example, does the embarrassing public relations disaster that is the United Airlines’ eviction of one of its customers from a plane warn us about our times?

Last week Dr Dao wouldn’t leave voluntarily. He had his ticket and his seat. But UA wanted some of the seats back. They forced Dr Dao off the plane to make available his seat to a UA employee. To the distress of all the passengers, Dr Dao was humiliated because he wouldn’t comply to pressure.

When bullies force a 69 year old citizen off a plane it reminds me of the brownshirts in Nazi Germany before WWII. It also tells me a lot about how our society has degenerated in recent times.

What was the attack

Degrading themselves through acts of bullying, the staff at United Airlines demonstrated that survival of the fittest, money and power, and the-end-justifies-the-means hold prominence against the qualities of grace, humility and service in the eyes of some big businesses, and their employees. This is not new, but it is shocking that in a Secular Humanist Era, one that boasts of humanity being capable of taking care of itself without God, and where political correctness is supreme, this could happen.

The consequence of ditching the teaching of the Ten Commandments has left people bereft of a powerful code of behaviour that is civilised. Thank goodness passengers recognised the brutality was wrong, but it took a while for the UA CEO even to apologise for the abuse, and that was primarily because of public opinion against the actions on the plane rather than any inherent sense of shame or regret.

What has happened is that the moral compass in our society has shifted from an absolute code, as defined by the Ten Commandments and the teachings of Jesus, to a foggy concept of good and bad, that is adaptable, depending on public opinion and the opinion of the media. There is a serious lack of power or authority in our current social values. It has been eroding over decades with consequences that range from unwanted pregnancy and abortion, to crime and substance abuse rising and continuing to rise with little hope of change.

So when employees on a plane need to have an end result, they force the result they want because they lack the ability to determine right from wrong, and to exclude options that are uncivilised and untenable.

Is it because children are not taught the Ten Commandments that homicide – planned murder – is considered by many young adults when polled, “Would you kill your neighbour’s spouse if s/he offered you a million dollars?” I think it is.

But so far, I’m preaching to the converted, literally… Readers will on the whole agree with me that we need a return to Judeo-Christian values in order to save our society from itself. So of what value is there to my writing about this?

Who is our ally

We need to be aware there is a movement afoot to shift back to what is wholesome, powerful and pure. The agents may not be those whom we would choose, but God chooses our leaders and so we must pray for and stand with them.

When someone(s) you don’t see eye to eye with upholds the values that God originated, let’s stand with them. God is supplying push-back and we need to get on the band wagon of those He’s given authority to.

Whether it is the boss at work, or a political leader, or a celebrity, those who stand for what is Godly will experience hate and a backlash, so they need our support.

Dr Dao is suing the Airline. Many would say he’s justified. The actions of the UA employees was nothing short of diabolical.

But they are pawns. Dr Dao is a pawn. The real enemy is not United Airlines or their CEO of staff members. It isn’t even the tendency for UA to overbook their flights. The real enemy is the same source that ignited the brown shirts and the legalisation of abortion, and who is the source for anything that seeks death and destruction.

Who is the enemy

Death and destruction is on the rise. Satan’s days are short. He may know this. But this much is certain: there is a war between what is Godly and what is not. We who are called by Him must take a stand on one side of the road and stand with all others who seek to uphold and defend right from wrong, the Bible as the inerrant Word of God, and stand against the tempest that Satan is wreaking. We are soldiers, there is a war, and we have been chosen to fight.

How do we fight

The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God is where we start (Ephesians 6). We band together because where two or more are gathered, there is He in the midst (Matthew 18:20). And we remember how good and pleasant it is when we dwell together in unity (Psalm 133). We represent a mighty and good God. Let us walk in the courage and confidence of our convictions, ready to share and waiting for God to lead us.

Dr Dao’s plight was horrendous. It is a marker of what society unchecked is capable of. And we who see the wrong have the opportunity to sow righteousness and point to the Founder of it to those who seek it. Our behaviour and attitude must stand upright as we seek to reconcile others to God. And we can no longer watch from the sidelines.