Hope this finds you well! Get caught up with what we covered last week!
Mid-Week Review #1
Exodus 20:13 You shall not murder.
This commandment seems quite apparent, but the extent to which it is obvious proves its importance. No society is able to function if its people are free to murder one another at every slight. However, it implicitly draws a distinction between justified and unjustified killing. There is a word for killing and a word for murder and the latter rather than the former is used. There is a time and place wherein the taking of life is a justifiable act, but it is not taken lightly. For such a law assumes life is inherently valuable and must be protected and treated with respect.
We might feel this is a law we are fully capable of obeying. But Christ instructs us in Matthew 5:21-24 that it is not simply the act of murder that brings judgment, but the intentions of the heart. To be unjustly angry, to insult, to consider another person as worthless puts us in danger of the judgment of God. For He does not see only our actions, but He knows our hearts. What you intend to do, even if the act does not come to fruition, is judged as though it were done.
Christ’s standard is much harder than the Law of Moses, for it goes deeper than what is done on the outside and examines the secrets of our thoughts, will, and intentions. But with this higher standard comes the grace to walk in His ways. Thank God that by His Spirit, we are able to walk worthy not just in what we do, but in who we are in Christ.
Mid-Week Review #2
Exodus 20:14 You shall not commit adultery.
This requirement for the sanctity of marriage is important for numerous reasons. Firstly, the marital relationship is representative of the relationship between God and His people. The closeness and intimacy of the union are often illustrated using the language of husband and wife. Christ is often described as the groom and His church as the bridegroom. Furthermore, marriage acts as an image of the Trinity. It is two becoming one, as the Lord is three in one. Each is equal, yet submitted to the other in humility and love. The Lord takes this relationship seriously and requires fidelity. For He requires our fidelity in relationship to Him. When Israel turned away from the Lord, He described them as an adulterous wife. Of course, He will despise anything which resembles our betraying Him for another master.
On a societal level, this was tremendous for the rights of women. In most ancient cultures, wives had no rights or recourse in regard to the fidelity of their husbands. In contrast, a husband had full rights and control over his wife. This commandment made husbands, as well as wives, liable for the fidelity of their marital relationship.
Again, Jesus brings this principle to a deeper level in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:27-28 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” It is not just the act which the Lord sees, but the intentions of the heart. We may look at others and judge their behavior, but remember the Lord knows what is in our hearts and is not deceived by outward appearance. The heart of man is bare before Him and may find no righteousness of our own. Let us then rely on Him for grace and sanctification so that we may be pure and holy, inside and out.
We love you all! Hope to see you this Sunday!
