The First Commandment

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You Shall have no other gods before Me. Exodus 20:2-3

How anyone would think that Christ, by His sacrafice on the cross would annul the word of His Father, shows we have a lack of biblical knowledge. We don't speak this to slight or slander, but the relationship between Christ and the Father is the example we have between we and our parents. We cannot annul or do away with our parents, but rather through honoring them we fulfill, we glorify and praise them.

This is why Christ responded to which of the commandments was the greatest, " You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." ( Matthew 22:35-38; also see Deuteronomy 6:5).

He also showed who is due the greater respect when asked by the rich young ruler,"Now behold, one came and said to Him, " Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?"

So He said to him," Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you enter into life, keep the commandments" Matthew 19:16-17

Jesus immediately drew the attention of the man away from Himself and placed the yound mans attention squarely on the Father. Upon salvation, the Father and the praise of Him, and obeying Him should become a major priority. The Bible is very clear on this point.

But, unfortunately centuries of Satan and his ministers of light (see Minister's,Priest's,Pastor's,Preacher's) influence upon men have muddled the glaring truth of this commandment. Predjudice on man's part have claimed this and the other nine commandments as being - for the Jews - but we believe this first commandment was in effect before the foundation of the earth, and therefore even the creation of man. For when Satan was still Lucifer and had yet to fall, one would be safe to assume that this was a statute to be followed by all created beings...aka, angels at the time. So when Lucifer attempted to exalt himself above God, he broke this commandment.

God, in His infinite design gave this commandment to the Israelites, but note the language in which He gave it,' who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, ' though He says Egypt, He uses this as a type of - house of bondage. Paul wrote in Galations 4:9 ,' but now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage,' the bondage Paul speaks of here, is the bondage of sin. Of placing other gods before the One True God. John 8:34 says,' Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin,' and practically the entire 2nd chapter of 2 Peter covers this subject and how it is brought in by false teachers.

We should be in mind throughout this study just how God has defined sin,' whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.' Sin is the breaking of God's moral commandments.

All that we are, and everything we have or will have, ultimately comes from one source - God. Paul spoke,' not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy' 1 Timothy 6:17.

We must realize how fragile our existence truly is. Of how we are constantly relying on God to care for us, and the first commandment was given for that focus. For believrs it is a reminder that it is He who frees us from bondage, and that it is on Him our attention for substance should be. Everyday we rely and depend on the balance God provides for keeping His universe in control. He is the being ,' who made the world and everything in it ' and is ' Lord of heaven and earth,[who] does not dwell in temples made with hands,' The true God is not,' worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things' ( Acts 17:24-25).

We come to know God by praticing His ways, and by emulating the love for others,' now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments' ( 1John 2:3). The Bible and His commandments tell us what we need to know about God for Christ told us,' Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God' ( Matthew 4:4). To know God, we must study the word of God, it is there that we find the relationship that God desires with us is that of children with their Father,' I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty ' ( 2 Corinthians 6:18).

There is the awesome purpose for our existence: the continuing development of a righteous character with an eye to the ultimate destiny of being a member of God's family. It was for this purpose that Jesus Christ was born to us as Savior,' but we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one [Father], for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren' (hebrews 2:9-11).

We were born to become a member of the very family of God. We should love and respect Him so much that He alone is the supreme authority and model in our lives. He alone is God. We should allow nothing or no-one to prevent us from serving and obeying Him.

As stated above, we should not be lulled into the sense that Christ did away with these ten moral laws of His Father ( see To Obey, Or Not To Obey or Was The Law Nailed To The Cross), this is important if for nothing else because one of the things the devil will seek to do during the tribulation period, will be to change God's Law's( see Daniel 7:25 and The Last Days). Worship that is exclusively reserved for God will be at issue when the beast seeks for mankind to worship the image which was wounded but lives, Revelation 13:11-18.

A day is coming soon brother's and sister's when the Spirit of Truth is going to be removed and men will be turned over to their own,' for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming' 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8, and ,' the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not recieve the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, and they all may be condemned who did believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness,' 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12.

We should know what this righteousness is that the Spirit speaks of - the word of God clearly speaks that righteousness is being in obedience with God's will: plainly speaking - being right with God.

And the simplest way to know if one is in compliance with God's will is to observe His moral commandments. If we seek God first we can have His righteousness (Matthew 6:33). Why is this important? It is vital that we understand God, because He wants to create in us His character - His divine nature. Peter tells us that God has ' given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature...'(2Peter 1:4).

This comprehension involves a major shift of mind-set. As paul tells us,' do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind...'( Romans 12:2). What kind of renewal should occur in our thinking? Paul explains,' let this mind be in you which also in Christ Jesus,' ( Phillipians 2:5). God wants us to become like Him, by example of His Son in our thinking, attitudes and outlook toward life.

This is the First Commandment's powerful message. We are to worship and serve our Creator - the miracle-working God who led ancient Israel out of Egyptian bondage, and has given us His Son to lead us out of the bondage of sin. And we are to credit our existence to no other source. We are to love, respect and honor Him - to have a genuine and personal relationship with Him.

go to the 2nd Commandment

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