Podcasts about series: loving god

Today we come to the end of a 3-month journey to remind ourselves of the commands, renew ourselves to the commands of God. And end is probably not the right word. End of a series, yes, but not the end of seeking a growing understanding of the goodness and rightness of God’s commands for our life. As I study these, I grow in awe of God: His understanding of us, of life, so perfect. And of course, in His commands is a light on my evil. In His commands I see afresh my great need for Jesus. And now the last command, a warning about everything we will try pursue to find love, peace, satisfaction, happiness other than Jesus. Let’s read Exodus 20:1-17.

Lying is a unique sin in that one lie almost always demands another. If I steal, I don’t have to steal again. If I lust, I don’t have to lust again. But if I lie, it often calls for more lying. Lying is kind of the protector of all sin. To cover all the sins out there, usually involves lying along the way. And we think of lying as a little sin. Let’s read Exodus 20:1-17.

And here we are at number 8 and heading to the barn. We started this series on commandments, the great commandment and the ten commandments back on May 1; with the first message entitled, Loving God, because that is what all these commands are about: love. Today’s command can be a little like the murder command. Today is about stealing, and I think we run out there to the big examples of stealing and absolve ourselves of any guilt. I haven’t killed anyone, and I haven’t robbed a bank, so I’m in the good here. But as we said on murder, the goal is not just not killing someone, or not robbing a bank. The goal is being like God. So what is that going to mean here. Look with me at Exodus 20:1-17.

Today we are going to focus on the seventh commandment: *You shall not commit adultery*. What is adultery? Adultery is typically defined as sexual intercourse between a married person and a person who is not his or her spouse. This is perhaps the commandment that many of us will struggle the most with while on this earth, especially as we understand the heart of the commandment. It’s a struggle because we are sexual beings, that naturally crave physical and emotional intimacy. Part of the struggle is also the sexually immoral society we live in, where we are constantly bombarded with ideas about sexuality that oppose the perfect will of God for one man and one woman in marriage. As we think about adultery, we have to wonder what is at the heart of the commandment.

I just read a long passage (Exodus 20:1-17) to get to a short command. Four words: you shall not murder. Or, said positively: You shall value life. How can Jesus say, in Matthew 5:21-22 that anger brings the same judgment as murder? There is a simple logic here. Life is so precious, is to be valued so highly, we don’t even get on the road that leads to murder.

We continue our series on the commandments today. We have studied the Great Commandment, and today brings us halfway through the Ten Commandments. Today’s command has everything to do with whether or not you can make it in the world. It is all about authority.

Today we look at the Fourth Commandment on the Sabbath. What is the Sabbath? We see its genesis, no pun intended, in Genesis 2:1-3. It says in 2:2 that He rested, and the word is Sabbath. It means He ceased His work. He did not rest because He was tired, for He is omnipotent. He can have powers flow out of Him that create the universe and He doesn’t even need a drink of water. It was His delight to stop after 6 days and celebrate. Sabbath here is not the name of a day, but a reference to stopping one’s normal activity to rest and celebrate. 6 days of work and 1 day of rest was the cycle God gave to us. This is before the law.

This week we continue with the 3rd commandment. When we are told not to take the Lord's name in vain, what does that mean exactly? On the surface it appears like it's talking about our language of swearing/mocking the Lord's name. But I believe that the commandment may also be referring to something more than verbal expression.

Last week we looked at the first one of the Ten Commandments: nothing before God. And while we learned that God tests, we came up with a self-test: Can I give this to God? We also said last week that while the *Thou shall nots* can sound foreboding and ominous, they are words of kindness. We need to know what is wrong and what is right. We need to know how to really love. And maybe the most important role the Ten Commandments play is they are a witness to us every day that we need Jesus, for we cannot keep the Ten Commandments and all that come from them. So there is a lot going on with these commandments. Let’s move to #2 today, *Don’t try to capture God in physical form.* Turn to Exodus 20:1-17.

Today we begin our study of one of the most well-known passages in the Bible throughout the world and across religions: the Ten Commandments. I am not saying everyone can recite all Ten, but we know the idea. Some of us remember seeing them posted in schools and various government buildings. Then began the legal battles to take them down, to keep them up. Believe it or not, most Americas still today have a favorable opinion of them being posted, even believe they are relevant. Now while it is a largely favorable view, it is declining view as we as a culture embrace the idea that nothing is wrong, except telling someone that something is wrong. I think posting them is of great value not just for the content, but the symbolism. I also think God is as interested, if not more, on whether they are posted on our hearts. We need the Ten Commandments. They are a moral compass for our soul.

All commands can be put under two categories, two great commandments: love God and love others. Last we talked about loving God, and that topic is interesting to most of us. It doesn’t frustrate us to think about it, doesn’t raise questions. We want to love God better. But loving others. Now indeed, there are some others that we want to love better and love more, but the command to love others is not about some of your choosing. It is about all.

Last week we began a new series on commandments. We are going to spend 3 months studying the two great commandments, then the Ten Commandments, as well as others that come from these. We also introduced the idea that this is all about love. Studying the commandments is studying how to love God as well positioning our lives to best experience His love and presence and blessing. So today we start with the first and the great commandment. Turn in your Bible to Matthew 22:35-40.

Possibly the wisest person that has ever lived concluded that life is meaningless. It was Solomon who said that, and it was not a random thought after a bad day, a bad experience, or a bad life. This is his conclusion upon purposely studying all that we put our hands to, to find life and meaning. God put this conclusion of Solomon here in His Word. God wanted us to see this. Why? The key to understanding this book and what Solomon is communicating is 3 words: under the sun. If you only live life under the sun, horizontally, no vertical connection, no relationship with what is above the sun; it will never matter how much you laugh, spend, make, accomplish, achieve or enjoy – you will be empty. He is profoundly communicating that there is no real joy, no meaning life, apart from God.

NewLife Greencastle

NewLife Greencastle

Video file contains both worship music and sermon. The separate audio file contains just the sermon. Use media menu or episodes icons to select.

Video file contains both worship music and sermon. The separate audio file contains just the sermon. Use media menu or episodes icons to select.

HOw Much Is Enough? Part 4 of Loving God, Loving Others

HOw Much Is Enough? Part 4 of Loving God, Loving Others

We should invest our lives in things that last longer than wealth.

We should invest our lives in things that last longer than wealth.

Loving God, Loving Others Part 2 David McNitzky

Loving God, Loving Others Part 2 David McNitzky