The Forgotten Ten Commandments
The ten commandments were first given to Moses by God at Mount Sinai.
I believe that the ten commandments are as relevant today as when they were first given to Moses all those years ago.
Today our society is in a serious moral decline and the Ten Commandments need to be rebuilt into the fabric of our community life. They need to be rebuilt into the structure of our government and institutions – for example, immigration, the police, schools, and our communities. They should also be discussed in our homes with our children. The core values of the Ten Commandments apply to all the communities in this country. We would all agree with the basic values of them, whatever our cultural background.
The ten commandments are as follows:
Commandment 1:
God says, “No other gods, only me”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
We are to worship God, and God alone, and nobody else or anything else. There is only one true God. He is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. And we are to bow down to him alone.
Dear God
I bow down to you
And worship
You alone
I want you
To be number one
In my life
In Jesus Name
Amen
Commandment 2:
God says, “No carved gods, of any size, shape or form”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
God must come before every human relationship and everything else. The only way to have this relationship with God is to spend time with him. Anything that comes before God in our lives is an idol, or a carved god, and it must be given over to God.
Dear God
I give over to you
Any idol in my life
That comes before you
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 3:
God says, “No using the name of God, your God, in curses or silly banter. God won’t put up with the irreverent use of his name”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
God is present everywhere. He listens to every conversation that we engage in. We are not to use any kind of offensive language or use God’s name disrespectfully in our conversations. Our every conversation is to be pure and holy in his sight.
Dear God
May my every conversation
Be pure
and holy
before you
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 4:
God says, “Observe the Sabbath day and keep it holy”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
God gives us seven days a week. We are to at least give him back one day a week to honour him and to attend a place of worship. Today commercialism has invaded our lives to such a degree that we have 24 hour access to almost everything we need physically. For example, the TV, the supermarkets, the internet, and even the pubs are open 24 hours. In the invasion of commercialism there appears to be no time for prayer or God. God has been pushed out of our lives and that is reflecting in the moral decline of our society.
Dear God
I want you back
In my life
I want to find you again
My first love
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 5:
God says, “Honour your father and mother, so that you live a long time in the land”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
We are to honour our parents, whether it is a father or a mother, or a single parent, because they have fed us, clothed us, and looked after us in our sickness. In return we are to speak respectfully to them and to be there in their time of need. And in return God says he will reward us with a long life. That is not a bad deal.
Dear God
Help me to honour
My parents
or parent
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 6:
God says, “No murder”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
God is the giver and taker of life. It is God alone who decides who lives and who dies. That decision does not rest with us. Hate is another form of murder. We are to love all nationalities, and to break down barriers that exist between different communities. Jesus challenged us to love our enemies.
Dear God
Invade my life
With your love
Until I love people
Of all nationalities
And there is no prejudice
Left in me
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 7:
God says, “No adultery”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
Jesus sets a very high standard of inner purity when he said:
“and I tell you that a man that even looks at a woman with the purpose of lusting after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart”
(Matthew 25 v27 Jewish New Testament)
Job in the old testament also set himself such a high standard of inner purity when he said:
“I made a solemn pact with myself never to undress a girl with my eyes”
(Job 31 The Message)
If we are to follow the examples of Jesus and Job then we must guard ourselves against what we think and what we look at. Television and media have had a great influence upon our lives. We are to be very careful what we watch on TV, the newspapers that we read, and the conversations that we engage in. Our imaginations should be filled with God alone.
‘Dear God
Please create in me
A pure heart’
(Psalm 51 v10 The Good News Bible)
Commandment 8:
God says, “No stealing”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
Everything we have and own comes from God. And if we do not share with our hungry neighbour the food that we have, in a sense, we are stealing from God. Today in this society there is a credit crunch which is affecting millions of people and the need to share with one another is much greater now than ever before. Also there are thousands of children dying of starvation every day in this world, and it is our responsibility to share with those who are starving.
Dear God
Teach me to share
What I have
With those in need
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 9:
God says, “No lies about your neighbour”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
Jesus never told a lie in his entire life on earth. We are to follow his example. Our aim must be always to tell the truth, in all situations. We are also not to spread gossip and rumours about our neighbours. This is not the way of God.
Dear Jesus
You are my role model
You never lied
Please forgive me the times
I have not told the truth
I want to follow you
In Jesus name
Amen
Commandment 10:
God says, “No lusting after your neighbour’s wife or house or anything else he or she has”
Exodus 20 (The Message)
The grass will always look greener on the other side. We often think if only I had that I would be much happier. It is not true. We are to go after God rather than desiring what someone else has. It is God alone who can give inner peace and happiness that we strive for all the time.
Dear God
I want to strive after you
And not the physical things
That tempt me
In Jesus name
Amen
By Harbajan (Servant of Jesus) 02-04-2010