Why?
1st Commandment: it’s impossible for the existence of more than one God with all power, all knowledge, and to be present everywhere. One will have to yield or defer to the other. Thus, God said, “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other” (Isaiah 45:22) and “Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me” (Isaiah 46:9).
2nd Commandment: making a “graven image” or idolatrous likeness of God insults Him. That’s fashioning God according to man’s desired perception of Him. Different men see God in different ways which breeds polytheism (many gods). “God is spirit (invisible) and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Therefore, an idol is a blatant lie about who God is, and every lie is essentially irrational because they don’t reflect reality.
3rd Commandment: God’s name (Yahweh) reflects who He is, the self-existing, eternal, holy, and covenant-keeping God. Therefore, It is irrational to take His name in vain (empty; lacking substance). Such reflects a disdained attitude toward God who “will not leave (a person) unpunished who takes His name in vain” (Exodus 20:7). Therefore, associating His name with unholiness is irrational. God regards it as also being mental illness (Isaiah 1:5).
4th Commandment: it is irrational to violate the principle of the Sabbath Day because God gave it to mankind as a rest day separated (holy) from the other weekdays (Ex. 20:11); Mark 2:27). It is a stress-free day to get our thoughts refocused on the holiness of God. Under grace, any day is optional (Rom. 14:5-9), but everyday it is rational for our conduct to reflect His holiness (2 Tim. 2:19; 2 Peter 2:12). Under the Law, violating the sabbath merited the death penalty (Ex. 31:14). Why? Because, as a holy day, the Israelites were to meditate on God and acknowledge Him for who He is. Should believers in Christ, although we’re not under the Law, do any less? Yes, but not in a legalistic sense.
Take time to meditate on those Commandments. 5 thru 10 are forthcoming.
Blessings!
Commentaires