Exodus 20:1-17 - The Ten Commandments - “And God spoke all these words.”

Reading the Old Testament can feel like riding a see-saw: one minute you’re up; the next, you're down. We excitedly (and repeatedly) read about Israel’s mountain-top experiences, only to watch the people drop into the valleys. 

Before we focus on the Ten Commandments this week, let’s recall some of those top-of-the-see-saw moments that came between Eden and where we are now in Exodus: 

• God promises Eve her offspring would one day crush sin and Satan (Gen. 3)
• God covenants with Abraham to make him a great nation, blessing all the world (Gen. 12,15)
• The miraculous birth and preservation of Isaac (Gen.21, 22) 
• The saving of the tiny Israelite nation through Joseph (Gen. 46)
• The stunning rescue of the Israelites through the parted Red Sea (Exodus 14)

But God’s chosen people repeatedly drop down on the see-saw: disobedience, selfishness, jealousy, and idolatry keep them from God’s best. But God never forgets them, always acts faithfully, always moves to restore Edenic shalom. Now through Moses, God leads approximately one million Jews out of Egyptian captivity toward the Promised Land. 

A few days into their journey, God speaks to them (imagine that!). He reminds His people where they came from and Who rescued them: 

I am the LORD your God, Who brought you out of Egypt. (Ex. 20:1). 

They are still His covenant people, even though they’ve been enslaved for 400 years. 

Now they’ve been delivered, God gives them the commandments to show them how to live as His people: how to love and honor Him and each other. This is going to be a radically new way of living for them. Imagine, over those centuries, how watered down their faith must have become, accustomed to seeing multitudes of gods worshiped and statues of gods everywhere they turned. That explains God’s preeminent commandment: 

You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything…you shall not bow down to worship it. (20:3-4)

Acknowledging the one true God will be crucial to the obedience He expects: 

If you obey me fully, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. (Ex. 19:5) 

That’s the background. So what’s our takeaway from the Ten Commandments other than a list of “thou shalt nots? For me, it’s recognizing God gave the law after He saved the Israelites from Egypt. Following the Ten Commandments was not God’s requirement for freedom from Egypt (and it’s not our requirement for salvation either). Following them is a template for how to live because they (and we) have been freed. Obedience - theirs and ours - is a grateful response to God for salvation, and God intends shalom to be the blessing. 

Israel’s story is our story, too. Where do you see yourself on the see-saw? Moving up, rejoicing in something special God has worked out? Feeling on the downward slant, that maybe God isn’t hearing your prayers right now? God’s presence in the pillar of fire or cloud of smoke comforted, led, and helped the Israelites in their day-to-day ups and downs. So does His Spirit’s presence in us today.