Our country was founded on some great principles. Those principles were so great that we made them into a constitution to live and govern by and many if not most of our laws are based from them.
But our country has gotten away from using those principles, now we call them rules!
But these rules go against our freedom, and our “religious views.”
So we have became tolerant, and we overlook those who don’t follow many of them.
People are doing things that are laws are not clear on because our founding fathers of this nation never would have imagined that two men or two women would want to marry each other!
We are a nation that has gotten away from the very principles that it was founded upon.
Today I want to look at 10 of these principles.
Genesis 20:1-17
Who here could name all of the 10 Commandments if I were to ask you to?
Who could name them in order?
Most of us can’t. But if we can’t even remember all of them, then are we actually going to live by them?
Now these were the Jewish commandments that their laws and religion was based on but it is also the fundamentals that all of Christianity is based upon!
Exodus 20:1-17 (NIV) 1 And God spoke all these words: 2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before me.
This is God’s commandment against mental idolatry. No other religious Gods! Nothing that can’t be seen or that requires faith should be above God.
4 "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. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,
6 but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
This is God’s commandment against physical idolatry. We shouldn’t do like the Israelites and go make a golden calf to worship.
And I am sorry but there are even some Christian religions that are guilty of this! If we put Mary the mother of Jesus upon a pedestal in such a way that we pray to her, we are sinning, because we have just made her not only a physical God by having a statue that we pray to but also a metal God.
Hail Mary is a traditional catholic prayer asking for the intercession of the Virgin Mary. I believe that is wrong.
7 "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
If you use God’s name with another choice word or two then that is wrong. Even many Christians today say “oh God” when they are not praying or asking God for help. That is wrong.
I believe that my God is so amazing and so awesome that He doesn’t deserve to have His name used in such a way.
And as for His Son Jesus Christ, well I’ll just say you shouldn’t be saying those words unless you are praying or witnessing!
Colossians 3:8 (NIV) But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.
8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Now for those of you that think your pretty smart and are thinking I shouldn’t have to live by any of these rules because the Sabbath was actually on Saturday by the Jewish calendar and we go to church on Sunday. Well I have an answer for you.
Romans 14:5-6 (NLT) 5 In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. 6 Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. Those who eat any kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord and give thanks to God.
We celebrate on Sunday because Jesus was crucified on a Friday (good Friday) and rose from the grave 3 days later which is Sunday!
12 "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.
I said this a few weeks ago and several of you chuckled but it’s true! Your momma brought you into this world and by golly she can take you out of it!
13 "You shall not murder.
You so we that’s easy! I don’t go around shooting people. But as Christian’s we are held to a higher standard!
1 John 3:15 (NIV) Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer…
14 "You shall not commit adultery.
Matthew 5:27-28 (NIV) "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'
28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
15 "You shall not steal.
If you take something that is not yours it is stealing! If you take something from work because they will never miss it or you could sure use that at home and your boss doesn’t give you the ok, it is stealing! It’s the same as embezzlement!
16 "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
You shouldn’t slander people, you shouldn’t tell lies about people, and if it’s a rumor that you’re not for sure is true, you shouldn’t tell it! We shouldn’t tell rumors at all but especially false ones.
17 "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor."
To covet means to desire or to long after. It’s okay to tell your neighbor, hey nice boat, but when in your mind your thinking man I wish I had that boat, then your thinking of ways to get one of your own and you become obsessed with keeping up with the Joneses then you are coveting.
Do you follow God’s laws? To God hatred is as bad as murder, lust is as bad as adultery! Stealing a roll of paper towels is as bad as stealing a car.
A sin is a sin in God’s eyes!
Who’s Law Do You Follow?
