“I am the Lord your God,
Commandment 1
The Ten Commandments are a summary of “the conditions of life to
be free from the slavery of sin”. They must be understood in relation to the
“law of love”: Love of God and love of neighbour summarizes all of Christian
morality. The law of love is also the first principle and source of moral law.
It contains “all the law and the prophets” (Mt 22:40). It is a description of
the minimum that love requires. Christian life itself requires much more than
simply following the Ten Commandments.
Key Strands
The first commandment has three key elements that need
focus
1. I am the Lord your God
2. I am the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out
of the house of bondage.
3. You shall have no other gods before Me.
This could be capsuled in three R.
God Relates
• There is a solemnity about this statement where God declares,
'I am the Lord' In this statement God relates to his people. He says, 'I am
your God'. God owns His people. This God believes in a relationship. In the
history of Israel God never ceases to relate himself with the people. He says
in Jeremiah 30:22, "'So you will be my people, and I will be your God.'
This clearly proves that God wants to relate all the time. Here we experience a
god or relationship.
God Reveals
• God revealed to the Israelites that he was the one who set
them free from the bondage of slavery and brought them out of the land of
Egypt.
• Later the same God through Jesus brought us out from the
slavery and bondage of sins
• He defeated the new Egypt called Satan and its power and
defeated death.
What God revealed to us is that He is the one who sets us free
from the bondage of sin. In case someone finds it difficult to zero in on one
God and does not have any clue how to arrive at the one true God, one has to
question himself or herself who was one who set us free from the bondage of
sin. Ofcourse Jesus.
God Resists
God categorically says that there is no other God. 'I am the
LORD, and there is no other; apart from me, there is no God. I will strengthen
you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that all may know, from the rising
of the sun to the place of its setting, that there is none but Me; I am the
LORD, and there is no other'.(Is 45:5-6.) God solemnly declares that He is the
one who knows everything and challenges that there is no one. He forbids us
worshipping other demigods.
I have not read any other so-called gods solemnly declaring
himself God and questioning the existence of other gods. Yahweh questions and
challenges other deities in Is 43:9 onwards
All
the nations gather together
and the peoples assemble.
Which
of their gods foretold this
and proclaimed to us the former things?
Let
them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,
so that others may hear and say, “It is true.”
10
“You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD,
“and my servant whom I have chosen,
so
that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before
me, no god was formed,
nor will there be one after me.
11
I, even I, am the LORD,
and apart from me, there is no saviour.
12 I
have revealed and saved and proclaimed—
I, and not some foreign god among you.
You
are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “that I am God.
13
Yes, and from ancient days I am he.
No
one can deliver out of my hand.
When I act, who can reverse it?”
He
is also known as a jealous God. "I
am the LORD; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise
to idols. Is 42:8.
So dear friend, be sure that there is only one God and there is
no other God.
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