The Second Commandment
Some Christians are under the
misunderstanding that the Ten Commandments were written for the people of the
Old Testament; since the coming of Christ, these commands are null and
void. They will point out for example
that Peter was ordered to ignore the command against eating unclean animals, so
that he could witness to Gentiles.
The New Testament makes it clear
that obedience to the Ten Commandments is not optional. Note what it says in Revelation 22:14 from
the New King James Version:
“Blessed are those who do His
commandments, that they may have the right to the Tree of Life, and may enter
through the gates into the city.”
The Books of the Law, contain
three types of laws. First, there are
the moral laws, which apply to all people at all times. Second, there are the civil laws, which were
for the governing of the ancient nation of Israel. The third group contains the ceremonial
laws. These surrounded the worship of
God for the nation of Israel. The
ceremonial laws are found in Leviticus, mostly, and since Christians worship
the ultimate sacrifice, Jesus, these laws are no longer binding.
The food laws of Leviticus 11
fall into that category. As a Christian,
I have been a part of more than 10 missionary outreaches and have lived in
Bolivia for more than 5 years. Sometimes
the food put in front of us can be kinda scary, but eating food set before you is one of the best ways to make friends and eventually share the gospel with
them.
Let's get back to the commandments. The Second Commandment is about
worship. It reads like this:
“You shall not make for yourself
an idol 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 father to the third and fourth generation of
those who hate me, but showing love a thousand generations of those who keep my
commandments.”
This commandment deals with our
relationship to God and causes us to ask a lot of questions. How do we perceive God? How do we explain Him and our relationship to
Him to others? It says idols are false,
but may we use pictures and other images to represent God? And most importantly, how is God to be
worshipped?
This commandment reveals to us that
we must be careful not to reduce God down to an image, a statue, or a
painting. It is like God is telling us, “Don’t
tell me what I look like. I will tell
you what I am like.” We can learn about
God by studying his word, most especially through knowledge of His Son, because
Christ is “the image of the invisible God,” Colossians 1:15. When we turn God
into a painting or statue, there is a tendency in our unrepentant nature to
connect to the artwork, rather than the Living God.
God sent His son Jesus, so that
we can know what God is like. “God is
light; in him there is no darkness at all,” 1 John 1:5. In John 14:9 Jesus says, “He who has seen me,
has seen the Father.” If you want to
know what God is like, read the four gospels.
You will see him on every page.
In the beginning, God created us
in His image. His future plan for us is
that one day we will be like Him. 1
Corinthians 15:52 and 53 says it like this: “In a flash, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trumpet. For the
trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be
CHANGED. For the perishable, must clothe
itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.” Our goal, as believers, should be for us to
become more like God, so people can see Him in us.
“Now we are the children of God,
and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be
like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.”
1 John 3:2
Lastly, this commandment shows us
that God holds every one of us accountable.
The Bible makes it very clear that we are not an island. It is not about us, but everybody we meet on
a daily basis. We can’t expect to keep
our heads down and leave everybody alone.
We are accountable for every action and every idle word.
The second command lays the
groundwork for the idea of accountability.
If we choose not to obey this command, there is a promise that not only
will life be difficult for us, but for our children, grandchildren, and great
grandchildren. You might think your sin
is between you and no one else, but it affects others, our families and the
people that surround us. For me, it
makes that lie no longer a white lie, those moments of lust as great as
cheating on my wife, or my anger at the driver next to me as if I have murdered
him. God will always hold us
accountable.
And what if we choose to obey his
commands? The Bible is clear that he
will bless our children. In this command,
it says unto a thousand generations!
This is the secret to obeying the Ten Commandments. Obedience means God will bless. He is not obligated to do it, but He promises
that He will. Grandma is not obligated
to give her grandkids something nice for Christmas, but you are crazy if you
don’t think she will spoil them rotten.
God wants to make our loving grandmas look like scrooges.
So remember these things. God is not a statue or painting. If you want to know what God is like, look at
Jesus. God wants to use us to show the
world what He is like. And God wants to
bless us more than we can imagine.
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