In When People are Big and God is Small, Edward T. Welch points out in his fifth chapter that the ten commandments are not just a list of rules:
The law is wonderful in that it reveals the holy character of God. The Ten Commandments and their many applications teach us about the Lawgiver. They reveal that God's ways are profoundly higher than the ways of the nations that surround the Israelites. What may seem like nitpicking to us is actually a beautiful revelation of the God who protects the oppressed and poor, hates injustice, loves mercy, offers forgiveness and cleansing, and is morally pure.
If the law reveals the character of the Lawgiver, then let's take a look.
Scripture
Full Passage: Exodus 20
And God spoke all these words:
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 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 parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 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 male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 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.
Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
Breakdown of the ten
#1 You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
#2 You shall not make idols.
You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 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 parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
#3 You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
#4 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 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 male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 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.
#5 Honor your father and your mother.
Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
#6 You shall not murder.
You shall not murder.
#7 You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not commit adultery.
#8 You shall not steal.
You shall not steal.
#9 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
#10 You shall not covet.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Your turn
Welch gives his audience a challenge at the end of the chapter. It is much like this:
Write in your notepad or copy/paste the commandments from above into a new document. Determine what the commandment means to you about God's character. What do you learn about God from each commandment?
Matthew 22
One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Adding this passage to this activity tells us a lot about God's character. Out of love, the law exists.
As I was doing this on my own, here is some of what I came up with:
God is loving and faithful.
God is supreme.
God is jealous.
God is just, orderly, and righteous.
God is holy.
God is a provider and caretaker.
God is respectful.
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