SERIES: 02 Exodus - 2011
MESSAGE: Exodus 20:8-21:36
SPEAKER: Skip Heitzig
SCRIPTURE: Exodus 20:8-21:36

MESSAGE SUMMARY
In this study from Exodus 20, we take a look at the Ten Commandments and the precepts of the Law. We'll learn to apply these teachings to our daily living and gain a greater understanding of its role in pointing us to salvation through Jesus Christ.

DETAILED NOTES

  1. Introduction
    1. Purpose of laws
      1. Primarily for positive reasons
        1. Safety
        2. Harmony
      2. Reveals the truth about self and sin
        1. Would not know sin without the law (see Romans 7)
        2. No man is justified by the law (see Galatians 3)
    2. We are not under the covenant of the law: "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." (John 1:17)
    3. Law shows us how to please God
      1. Supreme devotion to Him
      2. Sincere affection for others
      3. "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment." (Matthew 22:37-38)
    4. The Ten Commandments
      1. Vertical: The first four commandments
      2. Horizontal: The second six commandments
      3. First commandment: No other gods before Me (v. 3)
        1. Whom we should worship
        2. Worship God exclusively
        3. Forbids false gods
      4. Second commandment: No images (vv. 4-6)
        1. How we should worship
        2. Worship God correctly
        3. Forbids false worship of the true God
        4. Images misrepresent God and mislead people
      5. Third commandment : Not take God's name in vain
        1. שָׁוְא, shav: empty something of its meaning
        2. God is to be spoken of in a holy fashion
  2. Principles of the Covenant: God's Top Ten (cont'd)
    1. Fourth Commandment:  "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." (v. 8)
      1. "Sabbath" appears 90 times in the Old Testament; 55 times in the New Testament
      2. שַׁבָּת, shabbath: to stop
      3. God worked for 6 days; the seventh day He stopped
        1. Not tired
        2. His work was complete
      4. Set aside this day to honor God and "recharge your battery"
      5. By the New Testament, keeping the Sabbath had become work
        1. 39 restrictions apart from the Talmud
        2. Talmud: 24 chapters devoted to Sabbath law
        3. More work to keep the Sabbath than to work the other 6 days
      6. Jesus said: "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." (Mark 2:27)
      7. Fulfillment of the Sabbath is Jesus Christ: (See Hebrews 4:4-11)
      8. Only commandment not repeated for the church to keep
        1. "So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths," (Colossians 2:16)
        2. Only non-moral commandment
        3. Early church met on the first day of the week (See Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:2) because we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus
        4. "One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind." (Romans 14:5)
    2. Fifth Commandment: "Honor your father and your mother" (v. 12)
      1. First commandment related to horizontal relationships
      2. Commandment mentioned 8 times in the Bible (2 in Old Testament; 6 in the New Testament)
      3. Everyone has parents
    3. Sixth Commandment: "You shall not murder" (v. 13)
      1. Murder: The intentional taking of human life for personal reasons (not national or judicial reasons)
      2. To God, life is sacred:
        1. Death must be viewed through the lens of the value placed on life
          1. If you believe God created life, then murder is an insult and assault against God Himself
          2. If you believe man is a biological animal, by accident, to end a life is simply a biological process
      3. Our forefathers said in the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights...life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
    4. Seventh commandment: "You shall not commit adultery." (v. 14)
      1. A fence around marriage
      2. The sexual impulse is God-given
      3. Because it is God-given, it must be God-governed
      4. Sex is beautiful in its proper domain (marriage); like soil in a garden
      5. Taken out of context it is ugly; like soil on the carpet
    5. Eighth commandment: "You shall not steal." (v.15)
      1. A problem from the beginning
        1. Watchtowers to protect property
        2. Moving boundary stones
      2. Stealing' s many forms
        1. Steal from employer: take office supplies, call in sick, phone calls
        2. Steal from government: taxes
        3. Steal from God: tithes and offerings
    6. Ninth commandment: "You shall not bear false witness" (v.16)
      1. No lying
      2. Based on the Character of God Himself
        1. God loves truth
        2. God hates falsehood
      3. "These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren." (Proverbs 6:16-19)
    7. Tenth commandment: "You shall not covet," (v. 17)
      1. This commandment is different from the rest: it deals with what no one sees: the hidden attitude
      2. This command helped Paul realize it was an issue of the heart: (See Philippians 3:4-6; Romans 7:7)
      3. The law was given to govern not only the outward action, but the inward attitude
      4. "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:27-28)
  3. People of the covenant
    1. The mediator
      1. Moses was the mediator
        1. Represents the people to God
        2. Represents the words of God to the people
      2. Mediator needed between distinct parties: Holy God and sinful man
      3. Jesus is our mediator
        1. "For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus," (1 Timothy 2:5)
        2. "The LORD is my shepherd" (Psalm 23:1)
        3. Never settle for second best: Jesus is the only mediator
        4. Pastors called shepherds regarding their role of feeding the flock, not mediators
    2. "Do not fear; for God has come to test you" (v. 20)
      1. The test
        1. Will they see their own sin?
        2. Will they see the gap that exists between God and man?
      2. Fear
        1. yirah: reverence; Yahweh
        2. Reverential awe; fear of not pleasing Him
        3. Keeps people from sin
    3. Earthen altar
      1. Not hewn stone
      2. Ornate altars
        1. Thought: "Only the best for God!"
        2. Glorify man rather than God
  4. Application of the Commandments and the Old Testament Law
    1. As a compass: give you bearing, plot your way
    2. As a thermometer: gauge your love for God. ""If you love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15)
    3. As a mirror: show you yourself
      1. The mirror is not the soap!
      2. "But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith." (Galatians 3:11)
    4. As a road sign: points the way to Jesus Christ
    5. According to Jewish tradition, Moses received the law on the day of Pentecost; The birth of the church was Pentecost.  "For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17)

Hebrew terms: שָׁוְא, shav: empty something of its meaning; שַׁבָּת, shabbath: to stop; יִרְאָה, yirah: reverence; Yahweh
Publications Referenced: The Declaration of Independence
Cross References: Psalm 23:1; Proverbs 6:16-19; Matthew 5:27-28; Matthew 22:37-38; Mark 2:27; John 1:17; John 14:15; Acts 20:7; Romans 7; Romans 7:7; Romans 14:5; 1 Corinthians 16:2; Galatians 3; Galatians 3:11; Colossians 2:16; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 4:4-11

Topic: The Ten Commandments

Keywords: Moses, law, capital punishment


Exodus 20:8-21:36 - Exodus 20:8-21:36 | SkipHeitzig.com/917
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