Sermon Series “Exodus”
Exodus 20:12-14
“The 10 Commands – Part 2”
Pastor John Bright
Exodus 20 “12 “Honor 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.”
Last week we covered the first 4 of the 10 Commands. They all focused on God- who He is our relationship with Him. The whole focus of the 10 Commands is relationships. Why? We are designed for relationship – with God and with others.
Scripture defines our relationship with God through Jesus who opened the way to the Father by His death on the cross of Calvary. Now, God knocks on the door of every human heart. If you open the door, you can claim a relationship with God.
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The Bible serves as a guide to all human relationships. What we notice from beginning to end – God’s Word is very consistent in limiting sexual intimacy in relationships to one man and one woman in the bonds of marriage:
• In the beginning, God made Adam and Eve (not Adam and Steve)
• Throughout the Old Testament, every time there is any detail given about a man having more than one wife there’s trouble
• Jesus always referred to husband and wife
• In the New Testament, leadership in the Church was restricted to men with only one wife (not 2 or 3)
• The Bible ends with the Marriage Supper of the Lamb with the Church as the bride and Christ as the groom
• What about the Command 5 – “Honor your father and mother”? God could have given us the command to honor “father and father” or “mother and mother” – but He didn’t.
This would appear to be God’s only way!
Of course, you are free to do whatever you want. The world is free to do whatever it wants. Right? If you claim to be IN CHRIST, remember that God chooses the relationships He will bless.
COMMAND FIVE
Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.”
Each of the commands I will cover today are mentioned in Proverbs 6:
Proverbs 6 “20 My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
21 Bind them continually upon your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
22 When you roam, they will lead you;
When you sleep, they will keep you;
And when you awake, they will speak with you.”
Family relationships are essential to life. Back then, those relationships were covered by lots of covenant regulations that I will touch on later. For now, just look at honor – what does that mean? “WHOA!” (Translation – “You’re Amazing! And I’m going to treat you that way!”)
Today, how can we honor (WHOA!) parents no matter your age or their age?
• Pray of them
• Help them
• Forgive them
• Bring them joy
https://decisionmagazine.com/honor-mother-father/
COMMAND SIX
Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder.”
Proverbs 6 “16 These six things the Lord hates, …
17 …Hands that shed innocent blood,”
The next two commands – Jesus discusses in the Sermon on the Mount. Here we see Jesus making the demands of the Law even more demanding for the Christian.
Matthew 5 “21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.”
• Killing – capital punishment, war, defense of family – but not every killing is understood to be allowed, like when innocent civilians are killed in a war
• Murder – taking a life - this is always wrong and often depends on the intent of the person (as Jesus taught)
• What about abortion? Is it appropriate to mention Prov. 6:17 here? I want to assure you that God can and will grant forgiveness to all involved in abortion. I know for sure! I have been on the receiving end of that forgiveness as one who fathered four children who were aborted. The guilt and shame I carried for years made Father’s Day a most miserable day for me. Then I got set free!
COMMAND SEVEN
Exodus 20:14 “You shall not commit adultery.”
Proverbs 6 “32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding;
He who does so destroys his own soul.
33 Wounds and dishonor he will get,
And his reproach will not be wiped away.”
Matthew 5 “27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
Again, we see Jesus teach on the internal – the heart – as the problem. The lust of the heart takes us toward adultery.
I had a professor of Christian Counseling that asked us, “When does an affair begin?” What if I have to plan an event with a woman in the church, so I ask her to meet me at a local restaurant (meeting in public) and I tell my wife (transparency). No problem. We don’t finish our work so we plan to meet at a restaurant the next week. I tell my wife about next week. No problem – right? After that meeting, we need one more meeting… but this time I hide it from my wife and I am even prepared to lie to her to keep this hidden. Right at this point - the affair has begun – as soon as I seek to keep it hidden. Have we crossed a line (in fact, this could be all me with no desire on the woman’s part) that would make it adultery in the Old Testament? No! Have I crossed a line according to Jesus’ teaching? YES!
HUMAN INTIMACY DEMANDS PROPER BOUNDARIES
Men and women need boundaries – a line that will never be crossed. We need these to protect the sacred vows of the Marriage Covenant. Boundaries like transparency and honesty (no a complete list) can help every marriage improve.
These three commands seek to make our human relationships as strong as possible – in the family, in the community and in the marriage of one man and one woman – just as God designed it to be from beginning to end. Amen.
TEACHING SHEET
(date)
Sermon Series: Exodus
Exodus 20:12-14
“10 Commands – Part 2”
Guide to Human Relationships
The Bible serves as a guide to all human relationships. What we notice from beginning to end – God’s Word is very consistent in limiting sexual intimacy in relationships to one man and one woman in the bonds of marriage. This would appear to be God’s only way!
COMMAND FIVE
Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.”
Proverbs 6 “20 My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
21 Bind them continually upon your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
22 When you roam, they will lead you;
When you sleep, they will keep you;
And when you awake, they will speak with you.”
Today:
• Pray of them
• Help them
• Forgive them
• Bring them joy
https://decisionmagazine.com/honor-mother-father/
COMMAND SIX
Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder.”
Proverbs 6 “16 These six things the Lord hates, …
17 …Hands that shed innocent blood,”
Matthew 5 “21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.”
• Killing – capital punishment, war, defense of family
• Murder – taking a life
COMMAND SEVEN
Exodus 20:14 “You shall not commit adultery.”
Proverbs 6 “32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding;
He who does so destroys his own soul.
33 Wounds and dishonor he will get,
And his reproach will not be wiped away.”
Matthew 5 “27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
HUMAN INTIMACY DEMANDS
PROPER BOUNDARIES
