The 10 Commandments and the Faith

As a student, I had a hiccup in history that I could not get past. It had to do with the whole idea that our nation is a Judeo-Christian nation. Judeo-Christian means that our roots are based upon not just Christianity but also Judaism. What confused me about the term was that none of the founders were Jewish. They were Christians or perhaps deists, though I think that perhaps is revisionists’ history. Jefferson had some pretty strong things to say about Christianity and the Bible. So given that we were founded by Christians, I wondered how we became a Judeo-Christian society. Then I learned that we are “Judeo-“ because of the shape of our government and justice system. In Isaiah, God is called our lawgiver, our judge and king. This gives us the three branches of government. Then of course the Old Testament Law, an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth, became the bases of law for our society. But unlike most others, our justice was tempered with Christian grace.

So to say that our government is Judeo Christian is fair. To say that we are as a people? Well we started using that term more readily so that we would come across as inclusive of the Jewish immigrants fleeing Europe not too long ago. And that is where we became snagged as a Christian people. I am not talking about the government because Judeo-Christian principles worked for the structure of this republic.

In churches across the country, if you asked the average preacher if the 10 Commandments are something that should be taught and followed, most of us would say yes. Ask the average member, you would get nearly 100% saying yes. And this is nothing new.

Where the Law of Moses comes into the picture of faith has always been a hot topic. It was what was happening in Antioch with the Pharisees who went down from Judea.  But I wonder, even speculate, that there was more going on than just merely arguing the finer points of the 10 Commandments. Let’s read the passage this morning.

Now I will add a disclaimer here. Yes, I’ve added more. The argument was circumcision. But the circumcision is tied to the Law of Moses, which is often in short referred to as the Ten. When one point is argued and accepted, it becomes easy to accept other points as well. I equated the three into the term “Ten”. And since I am a big fan of advocating that we do not live by the Old Testament, since we are saved by faith alone, the Old Testament is still a useful tool of showing how Jesus was foretold as early as the Garden. It is complete with glimpses of God’s love, grace and justness. It shows glimpses of people who struggle with life no differently than you and I do today. But when we start following and adopting it, then we can run into trouble.

If the Ten is so important to follow, then may I ask who has a tattoo? All of us men here have beards that are way too short. And then there’s the clincher: who here likes pizza or catfish? Yep, both are unclean foods. All of us are wearing poly-blends. My point is that it’s all the same. If you argue circumcision, you argue the Law, you argue the Ten. That is where I am coming from in my message.

Now what is really going on here is something more than just arguing the Law. The critics could be hung up on the tradition. For as long as they knew, the Ten was part of their lives. The Ten was the first thing they learned past the names of their siblings as well as mom and dad. Now here is Paul and Barnabas out away from Jerusalem, away from Judea, teaching that the Law was no longer needed. I can see these men, themselves no longer needed back home, thinking that they could go to one of the new churches and become teachers, teaching what they knew, the Ten.

We never do well with change. But that is the nature of life. The only constant is change. Yesterday morning, an icon in the El Paso skyline fell. There was an old copper smelt that had two smoke stacks. One was as tall as the Empire State building, and the other was nearly 20 stories taller. They both came down because change happens.

So here we can see people who are having trouble letting go. Perhaps more than that, they perhaps still wanted the power that they no longer had. I am not saying that they set out to be bad people. But once one is used to being something, when he has to let it go, it is extremely difficult.

However if these men went out as enemies of the church, seeking to destroy those who are new in the Faith, then there is a lesson to mark. It teaches us that we need to be careful and on watch for those who’d want to sneak in and destroy the church. We need to cling to strong doctrine and appoint leaders over us who are as committed to the faith.

This is about the ego. Something that not only did the early church have to deal with, but we still have the ego to deal with today, be it the preacher’s ego or your own ego. Sometimes we can be well meaning, but when we allow our pride to step in, then we find ourselves creating a huge mess.

And there is another lesson for us about faith. Why circumcision mostly? I had originally intended to talk to you about the difference between baptism and circumcision, but that is not what this passage is about. This act is different from baptism in a couple of manners: women are not circumcised, and wet people dry.

So on one hand, by holding to this, we can have an outward sign that we can point to. “See? I am a Christian!” Um, yeah, I think they did that. “See? I am a Jew.” But outward signs are nothing according to Paul. What is important is the change of the heart, or the circumcision of the heart.

Like outward signs, the Ten is really about the minimal.  I am Christian because of the sign I wear, or the plastic fish icon on my bumper, or because I shared the “I love Jesus” poster on Facebook. Because I have done of the listed, then I am free to do what I want for the rest of the time.

Take for example the job description. They are a list of rules one must keep in order to maintain employment. As long as you stay within the job description, you keep your status. It is the same with the Ten. These are rules of minimums. Love God by not having any idols, by not using his name in vain, by honoring your parents, but not doing the five things to your neighbor. These are the minimums God wants you to keep in order to achieve a right standing. But there are just under 300 commands in the Law of Moses. If you live to keep the law, then you’ve violated the first, have no other gods. Why? Because God wants us to live for Him! God desires to have fellowship with you and I, AND He wants us to want that fellowship with Him as well. So Jesus grabs the only two ambiguous commands when asked of the greatest.

He said, “Love God with all your being and the second is like it, love your neighbor as you love yourself.” What does something like that look like? Instead of do not commit sexual impurity, Jesus said do not lust. Don’t even entertain such thoughts. And impurity is any relationship outside of marriage between a man and a woman. Instead of do not murder, Jesus said do not be angry with your brother. Do not hate, but show your enemy love by allowing him to compel you the extra mile, which gives us, “Going the extra mile.” Give more than what is asked. This is why Jesus tells us to rethink our self importance. If you serve your neighbor, than you are loving him. If you are loving him, the Apostle John says, then you are loving God. Well, no one can hate his neighbor and love God is more accurate. But my claim is still true.

Faith isn’t about the minimums. It is about the max. This is why living with the Ten is bad advice for Christians because we tend to confuse ourselves into believing that holding them, we have done our duty. But our Father doesn’t want our duty. He wants us to aim as high as possible for the Kingdom. Faith is taking steps that everyone says is not there, that everyone says is impossible. But for the size of a mustard seed, you can cast by faith the mountain into the vast sea.

Again, in the parable of the talents, did you notice the only failure in that parable was the one who sat on the money. He didn’t aim and fail. He just didn’t aim. That’s the ten. Faith is like the one who invested his 5,000 and had 10 to show, or the man who invested his 2,000 and had 4 to show. They doubled because they had faith.

Now we must ask ourselves, but not just today, are we living minimally for God, or do we truly have faith in the Father? When we set aside rules and traditions, when we aim high, let me tell you: that speaks volumes more than some outward appearance. People do notice when someone truly walks a life of faith. Would you like to have such a life of faith?