This is important, because it would not be fair for God to hold us responsible on the judgment day, if we did not KNOW WHAT IS and WHAT IS NOT acceptable unto him.
Illus: That would be like going down a highway without any speed limit signs, and the highway patrolman pulling you over, and giving you a speeding violation. That would not be fair to the driver.
In these ten commandments, GOD TELLS US what HE LIKES, and what HE DISLIKES! So far, we looked at:
I. HIS PRIORITY LIST.
II. HIS PUNISHMENT LIST.
III. HIS POLITENESS LIST.
In this second sermon on this series, let us look at some more things to see what HE LIKES, or DISLIKES. Such as:
IV. HIS PLACE LIST.
Look at Exodus 20:8-11. We read, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
DID YOU KNOW, IT DISPLEASES GOD WHEN PROFESSING CHRISTIANS DO NOT HAVE A DAY SET ASIDE FOR WORSHIP?
Some are quick to respond to that by saying, “Preacher, God gave these moral laws to Israel. Once they received these commandments, they were to set aside a day for worship!”
What is interesting about people who make this argument, is how they pull that one commandment out of the ten, and say. “That does not apply to us.” If that commandment does not apply to us, neither do the other nine. We cannot choose which of these ten commandments we want to accept, and which ones we want to reject.
God’s Word says in verse 9, “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work. “ He wanted them to know that the Sabbath day was to be set aside for worship.
Look at verse 10, we read, “But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates.”
In the Old Testament, they worshipped on the last day of the week. In the New Testament, after the resurrection, the early church Christians started worshipping on the first day of the week.
The word “rested” in verse 11, means to “cease”. It is essential that we discover what the word “rest” means.
Illus: There are some who believe it means that if THEY GO FISHING, PLAY GOLF, or GO SHOPPING ON SUNDAY, they are resting, and this is what God had in mind.
That is not what the Word of God is teaching here. The word “rest” means you have all week to GO FISHING, HUNTING, PLAY GOLF, GO SHOPPING AND WORK, but on God’s day, you stop doing those things.
Illus: This word “rest”, is the same thing we do when we are singing. We come to the “rest” note, and we cease singing.
Because God’s men no longer preach and teach what pleases God, and what displeases God, in many churches, it should not shock us, that God’s day has become like any other day.
We are to make a DAY in our busy schedules, for the worship of our Creator. It displeases the Lord when we do not have time for Him. There are many, who do not have time for God during the six days He gives them, and then they take the seventh day also, and rob him of that day, to do their SHOPPING, GOLFING, HUNTING, FAMILY RE-UNIONS, ETC.
A lot of folks are going to have to give account to the Lord on the judgment day, for causing people to have to work in restaurants and stores, because they choose to patronize these places of business on the Lord’s day, like any other day.
This is HIS PLACE LIST. He wants us to put Him first in all of our every day activities, and He wants us to take one day a week to set aside for Him. He also has-
V. HIS PARENTS LIST.
Look at verse 12. We read, “Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.”
This is one of the commandments that ranks high, as one of the most violated commandments in the Word of God. Young people do not know what they are doing, when they violate this commandment from God. Again, I remind you, this is not a SUGGESTION, this is a commandment from Almighty God!
• WHY IS THIS SUCH AN IMPORTANT COMMANDMENT?
Illus: Respect starts at home, and if children do not respect their parents, they are not going to respect their teachers, or the police officers.
This country can keep throwing tax-payers money at the problems in our public schools, if they so choose, but the situation will never be corrected, until they recognize that the problems we have in our schools, are problems that come from our homes.
• WHY ARE THE PROBLEMS COMING FROM THE HOME?
Because almost every dad and mom today, are working outside of the home. No one has time to teach Bible principles that should be instilled in the children.
This country would be a lot better off, if we could learn to live with a lot less. Get mom back in the home, raising the children, while dad provides for the home. When this happens, we will stop raising a bunch of heathen, and start again to raise some godly children for the Lord.
God wants every child here to know, that it displeases Him greatly, when you do not show the honor that you should show to your parents. God knows that children like gifts, and this is one command with a promise of a gift, if they obey.
Listen to it again, “Honour thy father and thy mother: THAT THY DAYS MAY BE LONG UPON THE LAND WHICH THE LORD THY GOD GIVETH THEE.”
The world in which we live, would be revolutionized overnight, if all the children would obey the command to honor their parents. It is our responsibility as parents, to make sure that we are worthy of honor. God sees the need for a child to honor their parents as such a big issue, God placed it as one of the ten commandments.
This is HIS PARENT’S LIST. Also, look at-
VI. HIS PROTECTION LIST.
Look at verse 13, “Thou shalt not kill.” Again, this is a command that tells us what GOD LIKES, and what HE DISLIKES! This is a verse of scripture, that is often used to serve the purposes of those in our society that have warped minds.
(A) LET ME SHOW YOU HOW THIS SCRIPTURE SHOULD NOT BE USED.
(1) IT IS OFTEN USED INCORRECTLY, TO OPPOSE WARS.
For example, during the Viet Nam War, we had young men fleeing this country, like rats on a sinking ship. Once they were confronted about their lack of courage to fight for their country, they started quoting scripture, and saying, the Bible says, “Thou Shalt Not Kill.”
Those same people, who were so concerned about what the Bible commands, overlooked other scriptures that dealt with their involvement in illicit sex, rebellion against their parents, and illegal drugs.
The scriptures that they were violating by doing these things, did not seem to bother them in the slightest. The reason they were quoting scripture, had nothing to do with what GOD LIKES or DISLIKES. They only chose to quote it, so that it would provide a place of protection they could hide behind, and not reveal what cowards they were.
In their effort to quote scripture, “Thou shalt not kill”, they twisted it to suit their on evil life-style.
For example, this command was not given to the nation, it was given to the individuals. It does not say, “As a nation thou shalt not kill”, it says, “Thou shalt not kill.” God gives the right for a nation to defend itself from its enemies.
Illus: In the Old Testament, we read continuously where God commanded Israel to wipe out other ungodly nations, that were a threat to them.
When God’s Word states, “Thou shalt not kill”, he was not talking about a nation defending itself against its enemies. Those who apply this command to war, are taking it out of context.
(2) ALSO, IT IS USED INCORRECTLY, TO OPPOSE CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
Again, you will never hear anything from the Word of God, from the ungodly liberal, except when they think it serves their purpose.
This crowd never reads their Bible, and they violate almost every scripture in the Bible. However, when it comes to protecting the life of some ungodly person, who has killed innocent people, they start quoting, “Thou shalt not kill.”
This is a misuse of the scriptures. And the Word of God should never be referred to as teaching against WAR, or CAPITAL PUNISHMENT. Those who are killed by capital punishment, are a threat to any society. They fall under the same category, as an ungodly nation that is a threat to a godly nation. God gives us the right to defend ourselves.
As you look in the Old Testament, you find there are many places in the scriptures, where God commands His people to stone people to death. IS IT BECAUSE GOD IS CRUEL?
No, God is not cruel. These people, that he commands to be stoned to death, are cruel, and they are a threat to a society.
(B) LET ME SHOW YOU HOW THIS SCRIPTURE SHOULD BE USED.
God’s Word says, “Thou shalt not kill.” What did God mean by this commandment? There are many ways this scripture can be violated.
(1) THROUGH ANGER.
Some people operate on anger everyday. Soon their anger begins to control them.
Perhaps to start with, they will go to the gym, and get before a punching bag, and take their anger out against it. However, some will take their anger out against another human being, and perhaps, take a baseball bat, and beat someone’s skull in. God is very displeased with that. God’s Word says, “Thou shalt not kill.” Another way to violate this command is-
(2) THROUGH ABORTION.
Every year, thousands of innocent babies, that have never done anything to anyone, die in the mother’s womb.
Perhaps the mother went out, and got in the back seat of a car with some man, and she got pregnant. They made the mistake, but they do not pay for the mistake. They conceive a baby, and the baby pays for the mistake with it’s life.
Every day in this country, some of the most horrible deaths imaginable, take place in the abortion clinics across America. The doctors get rich, and the woman goes home and pretends it never happened, BUT IT DID! She murdered her baby!
Illus: When we heard about the Smith woman, in South Carolina in the 90’s, that strapped two of her children down in the back seat of a car, and drove the car into a lake, this nation acted like this was the worst thing they had ever heard. Listen, I do not want to minimize what she did, but what she did, was no more evil, than a mother who murders her child through abortion. And it is hypocrisy, to act as a nation as if we are concerned about what Smith did, when every day poor innocent babies in this nation are cruelly killed through abortion.
For decades in this country, a woman who did these things, was held responsible, locked up and paid the price for killing her baby. But today, they can do it and we think nothing about it.
Another way we can commit murder is-
(3) THROUGH NEGLIGENCE.
Illus: We have an organization in this country called “MADD”. This is a group of MOTHERS AGAINST DRUNK DRIVERS. Their child has been killed, because someone chose to stop by a beer joint, and become intoxicated. Then, they chose to get in their car, and drive on the highways, and they crashed their car into someone and killed them.
These drunks are as much of a murder, as a man who would take a gun and shoot someone. The only difference between them, and the man who chose to use a gun, is that they used different weapons.
Another way we can commit murder is -
(4) THROUGH REBELLION.
Sometimes, you will hear parents tell their children, “You are worrying me to death.” And that is exactly what some teenagers are doing to their parents. Their rebellion is worrying their parents to death, and they are killing them, as much as a person who slowly poisons someone.
There is something wrong with a person who wants to kill. Certainly the Bible teaches it is alright to kill wild life for food, but even then, it should not be something we want to brag about, or place the carcass on the wall, as if we did something to brag about.
Conclusion:
God wants us to know what HE LIKES and what HE DISLIKES, so God gave us ten commandments that reveal:
I. HIS PRIORITY LIST.
II. HIS PUNISHMENT LIST.
III. HIS POLITENESS LIST.
IV. HIS PLACE LIST.
V. HIS PARENT’S LIST.
VI. HIS PROTECTION LIST.
Note: You can hear Dr. Odell Belger preach many of these sermons on Youtube. Just type Youtube Lykesland
