Firm Foundations

Lesson 25:

Giving of the 10 Commandments

Key verse: James 2:10

Introduction• The Israelites (like

us) were born sinners, unable to please God

• We still think we are able to please God– Israel thought they

could keep the 10 commandments

– People think they can keep the 10 commandments today

• Let’s look at the 10 commandments in the Bible

The Ten Commandments• Where did God give Moses the 10

commandments?• What are the ten commandments

sometimes called?• What do the first four commandments

teach?• What do the last four commandments

teach?• What is the sum of the ten

commandments?• Who is your neighbor?• Is God pleased with those who love and

obey Him?• Is God displeased with those who do not

love and obey Him?

The first commandment• Exodus 20:3• God should be our only

hope, our highest authority

• Worship God alone– Worship – “worth”– Only God is completely

worthy• The highest, greatest

authority– God will not allow

anyone to share His place as God

– People must not depend on anyone or anything except Him for their needs

– Isaiah 45:5

The first commandment (cont.)• Begins with your

heart– Do you ever put

yourself first?– …others first?– Do you ever give

yourself or someone else the first credit for success?

• Punishment– Separation from God– We are all guilty of

breaking it

Which one is obeying the first commandment?

“To continue believing in yourself, believing in the doctors, believing in the treatment, believing in whatever I chose to believe in, that was the most important thing, I decided. It had to be.”

"The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of Heaven."

The second commandment• Exodus 20:4-6• God does not have

a body– Can’t make an

accurate image of Him

• Don’t worship in your own way, worship God’s way– Must worship in

“spirit and in truth”

• Isaiah 42:8

The third commandment• Exodus 20:7• God’s name

represents His character– God takes His Name

seriously– Respect God and

His Name

• Reverence God’s name, word, and works

• Watch your language about God

The fourth commandment• Exodus 20:8-11• Keep a rest on the

seventh day• What did God do on the

7th day?– God alone is Creator

• Psalm 24:1

• Keep the Sabbath holy• What day of the week is

the Christian Sabbath?• Why is it called the

Lord’s Day?• How should we spend

the Lord’s Day?

What commandment is Calvin trying to obey?

The fifth commandment• Exodus 20:12

– Honor your parents– Honor authority

• What does the fifth commandment teach us?

• What are some examples of breaking the fifth commandment?

• One act of disobedience separates us from God

The sixth commandment• Exodus 20:13• What does the sixth

commandment teach us?

• God is the creator– Giver of life– No one has right to take

life from another unless God gives that right

• Hate = murder– Matthew 5:21-22

• God judges not just what we do, but what we want to do– He knows our thoughts,

motives– Hebrews 4:13

The seventh commandment• Exodus 20:14• Sin to have sex with

anyone but your spouse

• What does this teach us?

• Punishment: everlasting separation from God

• God knows our thoughts, motives– Matthew 5:27-28– Every sin will be

judged, even lust

The eighth commandment• Exodus 20:15• Never take anything

belonging to someone else

• What does this teach us?

• God gives right to keep and own property

• Even if thief pays back, his sin is still against God

The ninth commandment• Exodus 20:16• Tell the truth about

everything• What does this

commandment teach us to do?

• God never lies• Liars who have never

been caught will be known to God

• What about…– little lies? “white”

lies?– Not telling whole truth

The tenth commandment•Exodus 20:17•The sin: Wanting what others have•What does this commandment teach us to do?•Advertising encourages this

Conclusion• God gave these

commandments to the Israelites

• These commandments are the same for all people, everywhere

• All sin will be punished by God– God hasn’t changed

His mind about sin

• What do you think about the ten commandments?