Baptist Catechism 50 & 51

Q. 50. Which is the first commandment?

A. The first commandment is, Thou shalt have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)

Q. 51. What is required in the first commandment?

A. The first commandment requireth us to know and acknowledge God to be the only true God, and our God; and to worship and glorify Him accordingly. (Joshua 24:15; 1 Chron. 28:9; Deut. 26:17; Ps. 29:2; Matt. 4:10)

Scripture Reading: Joshua 24.1-15

“Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac. And to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it, and afterward I brought you out. Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea. And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. And when they cried to the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians and made the sea come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan. They fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel. And he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, but I would not listen to Balaam. Indeed, he blessed you. So I delivered you out of his hand. And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the leaders of Jericho fought against you, and also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I gave them into your hand. And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’ Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.’” (Joshua 24:1–15, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

There is a good reason why this commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me”, is the first. 

It is the first commandment of the Ten because keeping the rest of God’s moral law trully and from the heart starts here. Why should we obey God’s moral law? Well, there are many reasons to obey it, but the greatest reason is because it is God’s law! We obey it because it is from God. We obey it because God is our God. He is our greatest love. He is our Lord. We live in submission to him and for his glory, for he is our Creator and Redeemer. Why should we keep God’s moral law? Because it is God’s law. And so the first of the Ten Commandments does direct us to have God as God, and to have no other gods except him. 

It is not difficult to see that many will attempt to keep the second table of God’s law, but because they neglect this first commandment and the first table of the law which flows from it, even their obedience to the second table of the law is regarded as sin, for it does not flow from faith nor does it have as it’s aim the glory of God. Think of it. The world is filled with people who make it their aim to keep the second table of the Ten Commandments. They aim to honor their parents. They do not murder, commit adultery, steal or lie. They may even pursue contentment. But what is their motive? For many, their motive is a good life, a good reputation, peace in the heart and prosperity in the world. Now, these are not invalid motivations. But neither can they be our supreme motivation. If we are to keep God’s law trully and from the heart we must start, not with the fifth, but with the first, which says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me”. We are to obey God’s law, because it is God’s law, and God is our God, and we are his people. The glory of his name is to be our leading motivation. 

And the first commandment is the first of the first table of the law because here the object of our worship is identified. We have already learned that the second table of the law (commandments 5 – 10) has to do with our duty towards our fellow man, and that the first table of the law (commandments 1 – 4) has to do with our duty before God, but as we consider these two tables of the law more closely we will see that there is a rational and a flow within each table. The first commandment identifies the object of our worship: the one true God; the one and only. The second commandment will  speak to the manner of our worship: no idols. The third will speak to the attitude of worship: do not take his name in vain. And the fourth will speak to the time of worship: one day in seven. 

It is not difficult to understand that before we move on to consider how God is to be worshipped in commands 2 through 4, we must know who it is that we should worship, which is why God begins by saying, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

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Catechism Explained

So what does this commandment require? For the sake of clarity I will remind you that in the next question our catechism will ask, what does it forbid? And after that it will ask, “What are we especially taught by these words, “before me,” in the first commandment?” And so we will not finish with our consideration of the first commandment tonight. But let us start by asking what the first commandment requires of us. What does it teach us to do and to think and to feel?  

First of all, it teaches us to “acknowledge God to be the only true God.” When God speaks negatively saying, “have no other gods before me”, he at the same time speaks positively (by way of implication), saying you are to acknowledge me as the only true God.

There is an awful lot packed into that little statement, isn’t there? Stated negatively: “Have no other gods before me.” Stated positively: “acknowledge God to be the only true God.” If we were to take the time to thoroughly define terms we probably would be stuck on this catechism question for months. 

“God”. Think of all that is signified by that little three letter word. “God”. What does it mean? Who does it refer to? What comes into your mind when you hear that word? Is it merely an abstract and undefinable concept? Or is it left up to us to fill this term with meaning — do decide for ourselves what or who God is? Clearly not. In fact the point of the first commandment is to warn us against doing this very thing. 

When God said, “you shall have no other gods before me”, he was declaring himself to be the one true God, and he was forbidding his people from having gods of their own, either in their hearts and minds or before their eyes. 

So who is this God who has claimed to be the one and only God, who has forbidden us from honoring any other thing as a god? Well, clearly he is the God of scripture. Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. It was through Moses that these Ten Commandments were given originally to Israel. They are recorded for in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. And so if we wish to know who this God is who said, “you shall have no other gods before me”, then we must go to the scripture. We must read Moses to find out. And from there we must read the rest of the Old Testament and also New, for God has graciously revealed himself in the scriptures. In other words, the word “God” means something very specific. “God” is not ours to define — he is ours to acknowledge. And this, friends is the starting point of all true religion. 

So who is this God? As I have said, it would take me a very long time to tell you. We must go to the scriptures to find out. But let me provide you with this very brief summary which can be gleaned from the book of Genesis and first part of Exodus alone. 

One, God is the creator of all things seen and unseen. And so if we were to consider all that exists we would have to confess that there is the Creator, and there is the creation. Nothing else exists besides these two things There is the Creator, and there is the creation. The first commandment demands that we properly distinguish between these two things. In other words, we break the first commandments when we allow the line between Creator and creature to become blurred. What are these “gods” that the scriptures speak of? What are the “gods” that God forbids us to have? They are merely parts of the creation that men immagine to be gods. Men, throughout the history of the world and to this present day, have made this fundamental error: they worship they worship the creation instead of the Creator. They treat the sun, moon, and stars as if they were gods. The bow before demons and kings. They form and fashion  for themselves images of gold and silver to bow down before them. They even worship themselves, living for their own pleasure and purposes. This is the thing that God forbids. We cannot live a life that is good and well pleasing before him if we confuse the distinction between the Creator of all things and his creation. 

Two, God is a God who speaks. He revealed himself to man in the garden, and he made his will known. And this has done throughout the history of the world and supremely in Christ. Have you thought much this, brothers and sisters? God is a God who speaks. And this is why we are to know what the word “God” means when we utter it. It is not a nebulous and undefinable term. Though it is true that we cannot comprehend God full and exhaustively, we may know him truly, for he has spoken.

Three, God is a God who redeems. He is a God of mercy and grace. And this is made clear in the earliest chapters of Genesis, and certainly in the book of Exodus. What did God do in response to man’s sin? Well, among other things, he showed mercy and extended grace. He promised to provide a Savior. 

 Of course, so much more could be said about God, who he is and what he is doing. I have only faintly scratched the surface. But I have said this to remind you that when Israel received the Ten Commandments from God’s hand and heard the words, they knew what he meant. They knew what he was forbidding and what he was commanding. They knew who this God was. He is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. He is the God who redeems. And he is the God who speaks, so that he may be known.  

What does the first commandment require? First of all, it requires us to “acknowledge God to be the only true God.” And secondly, it requires us to have God as “our God”. 

So what is the difference between “acknowledge God to be the only true God” and having God as your God. Well, the difference is very great. It is possible for someone to acknowledge the God who has revealed himself in Christ and in scripture to be the only true God and yet to fail to honor him as such. Stated differently, the first commandment does not only require that we acknowledge God mentally or as a matter of fact, but that we also have him as our God. Stated in yet another way, we are to acknowledge that he is God, and we are to honor him as such.

And that is what the last portion of the catechism implores us to do. To obey the first commandment truly we must “acknowledge God to be the only true God”, we must have God as “our God”, which means that we must “worship and glorify Him accordingly.”

How are we to worship God? Answer: in the way that he has prescribed in his word. Commandments 2 through 4 will lay the foundation for the proper worship of God. As it pertains to the particulars, the rest of the law of Moses gave instructions for the proper worship of God under the Old Covenant. And the New Testament gives instructions for the proper worship of God under the New Covenant. But commandments 1 through 4 are foundational to both Old and New Covenant worship.  

And how do we glorify God? Well, in many ways. We glorify God when we worship him in public and in private. We glorify him when trust in his name and testify to his goodness. We glorify God when we give thanks to him and are content in him.  Brothers and sisters, we glorify God when we enjoy his presence and live in obedience to his commandments with love and gratitude in our hearts. 

The first commandment is not kept when we merely acknowledge that the God of the Bible is in fact the one true God. No, we must have him as our God, and “worship and glorify Him accordingly.” 

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Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, this is God’s law. And so it is right for me to exhort you just as Joshua exhorted the Israelites, staying, “Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness.” And may we all say what he said: “But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” This is to be our resolve. 
But I may also ask you, have you kept this law perfectly? And all must confess, no we have violated this law in thought, word, and deed. All must confess this, except one — Christ Jesus our Lord, who kept God’s law perfectly on our behalf, and died in our place so that we might be reconciled to God, and serve him faithfully all the days of our life. Amen.

Baptist Catechism 47

Q. 48. What is the preface to the Ten Commandments?

A. The preface to the Ten Commandments is in these words; “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.” (Exodus 20:2)

Q. 49. What doth the preface to the Ten Commandments teach us?

A. The preface to the Ten Commandments teacheth us, that because God is the Lord, and our God and Redeemer, therefore we are bound to keep all His commandments. (Deut 11:1)

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 10:12–11:1

“And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good? Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. Yet the LORD set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn. For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the LORD your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven. You shall therefore love the LORD your God and keep his charge, his statutes, his rules, and his commandments always.” (Deuteronomy 10:12–11:1, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

As you know, in the weeks and months to come we will be learning all about the Ten Commandments. We believe that the Ten Commandments summarize God’s moral law. And we believe that God’s moral law applies to all men. All men have this law written on their hearts. All men are bound to keep it. And all men will be judged by this law on the last day, if not in Christ. More was said about this in previous sermons. But I do hope that you would agree with me that God’s people — those who have been redeemed by God, and who bear his name — do have a special kind of obligation to obey their God. 

Really, this is what the preface, or the introduction, to the Ten Commandments teaches. And this is the message that our catechism is trying to get across. If we are in Christ — if we have been rescued by him and washed clean by his blood, then we have a special kind of obligation to keep God’s law. 

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Catechism Explained

Question 48 of our catechism asks, “What is the preface to the Ten Commandments?” A preface is an introduction that sets the tone for what will follow. And the answer to question 48 is simply a quotation of Exodus 20:2: “The preface to the Ten Commandments is in these words; ‘I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Exodus 20:2). That is how the Ten Commandments are introduced in Exodus 20:2. 

By the way, you have probably noticed that the English found in our catechism is old English. That is because this document was written a long time ago, originally in the 17th century. Parents, you are free to modernize the language for your children if you like. As a church, we have decided to retain the original because altering foundational documents such as catechisms and confessions can be tricky. If you wish to memorize the preface to the Ten Commandments, or the Ten Commandments themselves using the language of the ESV or some other modern Bible translation, that would be fine. The point is that we learn them, and hopefully put them to memory. 

But let us think about Exodus 20:2 for a moment and the preface to the Ten Commandments that is found there. What was the setting? Who was speaking? And to whom? These are important questions.  

Well, if you know the story of the Exodus you know that it was God who was speaking. Moses had gone up on Mount Sinai and had received the Ten Commandments from God. The scriptures tell us that these words were written tablets of stone by the finger of God. And Moses brought these tablets down to the people of Israel who, not long before this, were rescued from Egypt. If you wish to know more about that story, you should read the second book of the Bible, called Exodus. 

So these words that we are considering are God’s words. And were delivered in this form to Israel. These were the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The small clan of Jacob has grown to a very large multitude over the span of hundreds of years as they lived and eventually suffered in Egypt. At the time of the Exodus, God rescued them. He brought them out from Egyptian bondage through Moses his servant. He brought them out by sending 10 plagues. He led them into the wilderness and when they were trapped with the Red Sea on one side, and the army of Egypt on the other side, God led them through the Sea by parting the waters. The Hebrews walked on dry land through waters of judgement, and as the Egyptians pursued them, the waters of judgement fell upon them and consumed them. 

That is the setting. In brief, this law was given by God to Israel, whom he had rescued out of Egypt to be his chosen people. The first words spoken were,  “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Exodus 20:2).

This Exodus story should sound familiar to you for two reasons. 

One, it should sound familiar to you because you know your Bible and the story of the history of redemption that is found there. It is important that we know this story and that we teach it to our children. God did really rescue the Hebrews out of Egypt through Moses, and he did really give them his law.  

Two, this story should sound familiar to you because you have experienced it yourselves, spiritually speaking, if you are in Christ. 

Christ is like Moses, only greater. 

And through him, God has redeemed us. He has rescued us, not from Egypt, but from Satan himself, and from his kingdom. As Paul says to the Colossians, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,” (Colossians 1:13, ESV)

You too have passed through the waters of judgement. At your baptism you were brought through the waters, having been washed clean by the blood of the lamb. 

In Christ, you are God’s chosen people, “a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9, ESV).

Friends, the Exodus that the Hebrews experienced so long ago was a type or picture of the greater Exodus that was to come, when Christ rescued his elect from the domain of darkness by his shed blood.

And here is the point that we are making this evening: As God’s people we have a special kind of obligation to obey him, for he is our God, and we are his people. 

Question 49 of our catechism explains this using the preface of the Ten Commandments: “What doth the preface to the Ten Commandments teach us?” Answer: “The preface to the Ten Commandments teacheth us, that because God is the Lord, and our God and Redeemer, therefore we are bound to keep all His commandments.”

Why are we bound to keep all of God’s commandments? Three reasons are given, and each one of them is very important. 

One, “we are bound to keep all His commandments” because “God is the LORD”. 

In the very first words of the preface to the Ten Commandments God introduces himself, saying, “I am the LORD”.  The Hebrew word translated as LORD is YHWH. He is the one true God — the one and the only. The self-existent, eternal, and unchanging one. He is the Creator of all things in heaven and earth, seen and unseeing. Why must we obey God? Because he is the LORD! 

You will notice that this reason does not only apply to God’s redeemed, but to all people. All people are obligated to obey God — to worship and serve him — because he is God! He is our Creator. This is true of all men, even of those who deny his existence and blaspheme his holy name. God is the Creator of all things, and he is the Sustainer of all things. All are obligated to obey him.

You know, over the past few years the phrase “not my President” has grown in popularity in our Nation. And every time I hear it or read it I think, what a silly thing for an American citizen to say. I understand what they mean. They wish to express their strong dislike for the President. And they have the right to do that. But what a silly way to say it. What I hear is this, my dislike for this President is so strong that I must deny reality and create a little reality of my own in order to function. Everytime I encounter the phrase I think, no, he is your President. That is the reality. And saying “not my President”, or living as if he is not, will not change a thing. He is your President, in reality. 

And this is how many live in relation to God. Many will say with their mouths or in their hearts, “not my God”. But this does not change the fact that he is. He is our God. He is our Creator and Sustainer. We live in his world. We breathe his air and eat and drink the food and water that he has mercifully provided. We are “bound to keep all His commandments” because “God is the LORD”.

Secondly,  we are “bound to keep all His commandments” because God is “our God”. 

And no, this does not contradict what I have just said. There is a sense in which God is God to all, even to those who say, not my God. But there is also a sense in which God is “our God”. We  belong to him and he belongs to us in a special way.  

As you are reading through your Bibles, be on the lookout for phrases like this: “I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” Phrases like this are peppered everywhere from Genesis to Revelation. For example in Jeremiah 33:31 God speaks of the coming New Covenant when he says, “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (Jeremiah 31:33, ESV). And Revelation 21:3 says, “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God’” (Revelation 21:3, ESV).

So while it is true that God is the God of all men, it is also true, now that man has fallen into sin and God has determined to redeem a people for himself, that some have God as their God in a special way. 

And please hear this: having God as your God does not lessen your obligation to obey him. To the contrary, the obligation is now greater. You are his. He has set love upon. You are his child. You bear his name. It is only right that you worship and serve him from the heart. This was true of the nation Israel of Israel under the Old Covenant. And this is true for all who have faith in Christ in the Covenant of Grace.  

Why are we bound to keep all of God’s commandments? Because “God is the LORD, and our God”, and thirdly, he is our Redeemer.Not only is God God. And not only is he our God. He is our Redeemer. 

This was true of ethnic Israel in an early sense. God had redeemed, or rescued, Israel from earthly bondage, and so he said “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”

But this is true for you and men and all who are in Christs in spiritual and eternal sense. God has redeemed you, not from Egypt, but from the domain of darkness and the power of the Evil one. He has redeemed you, not through Moses and by ten plagues, but through Christ and by his shed blood, of which the blood of the ram spread upon the doorposts of the houses of the Hebrews was a sign.  

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Conclusion

I have been using the word “obligation” a lot in this sermon. Why should we obey God? Well, because he is God, and more than that, he is our God! We obey him because it is right that we do. We are obliged to obey him. But there is another word that we might use, and that is the word “gratitude”. We are to keep his commandment because we are grateful for all that he has done for us in Christ Jesus by his mercy and grace. We are to obey God because we love him and are grateful for all of his gifts. You can hear the appeal to grateful and loving obedience to God in that Deuteronomy 10:12ff passage that we read at the beginning of this sermon. Go back and read it for yourself sometime soon to see.

For now, let us recite Baptist Catechism 49:

“What doth the preface to the Ten Commandments teach us?

“The preface to the Ten Commandments teacheth us, [repeat now after me] that because God is the Lord, and our God and Redeemer, therefore we are bound to keep all His commandments. (Deut 11:1)”

Baptist Catechism 46

Question 46: Where is the moral law summarily comprehended?

Answer: The moral law is summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments. (Deut. 10:4; Matt. 19:17)

Scripture Reading: Matthew 19:16–26

“And behold, a man came up to him, saying, ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?’ And he said to him, ‘Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.’ He said to him, ‘Which ones?’ And Jesus said, You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ The young man said to him, ‘All these I have kept. What do I still lack?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.’ When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, ‘Who then can be saved?’ But Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” (Matthew 19:16–26, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

It was very important for us to learn that God’s moral law was written on Adam’s heart at the time of creation and is available to all human beings given that they too are made in God’s image. Everyone has a conscience. And that conscience is, to one degree or another, aware of God’s moral law. And God’s moral law is also observable in the world that he has made. There are certain principles that govern the world, and these principles may be observed and considered by men and women who are made in God’s image. This doctrine is important for many reasons. One thing that it teaches is that no one is without God’s law. Everyone has access to it to the degree that God will rightly judge all men by this law at the end of time. In other words, no one will be able to say on the day of judgement, I didn’t know that it was wrong for me to lie, or to steal, or to slander my neighbor’s name. Everyone has God’s moral law. And it has been revealed to them so clearly that, if they are not in Christ, God will rightly judge them for their breaking of this law on the last day.

There are so many things that we could say to qualify this doctrine though. Yes, I am aware that men and women do suppress this truth that is in them (see Romans 1). Yes, I am aware that men and women do twist this truth that is within them. And yes, I’m aware that the consciences of men and women can be seared through the repeated and unrepentant violation of God’s moral law. This can be said of individuals, and this can also be said of cultures, so that it is possible for image bears of God who have God’s moral law written on their hearts to grow exceedingly wicked.

When I say that all mankind has God’s moral law in common I am not so naive to think that we will be able to suit down with just anyone and have perfect agreement concerning what is right and what is wrong. Far from it! In fact, some people and cultures have grown so corrupt that it may seem as if God’s moral law has been completely obliterated in their soul and scrubbed from that place. But if we believe the scriptures then we must believe that God’s moral law is there. It may be badly distorted and buried under many layers of grime and filth, but it there, for all who are made in God’s image do have a conscience, seared as it may be. God’s moral law has been revealed clearly enough to function as that standard by which all will be judged.

This evening we turn our attention to another revelation  of God’s moral. God’s moral law is written on the heart of every man. All have a conscience by which they may distinguish between good and evil. But God has also revealed his moral law in another place. He has graciously given us his word. 

Remember the question that is driving this entire section of our catechism is, “What is the duty which God requireth of man?” And the answer is, “obedience to His revealed will” (BC, 44). And we have learned that one of the places God has revealed his will is in nature. His law is written on the hearts of men and is observable in the created world. But now we learn that God has revealed his will in another place, namely scripture.

Let me very briefly compare and contrast the two sources of revelation, which go by the names general and special revelation.

General revelation is called general because it is available to all.Special revelation is called special because only some have access to it. How many men have God’s law written on their heart? All men do! But how many have heard the word of God? How many have the scriptures? Only some.

General revelation is called general because it reveals general truths. Special revelation is called special because it reveals much more about God and what he requires of us than general revelation does. All men may know that God exists through their observation of the natural world. But not all men know that we must come to God through faith in Jesus the Christ. The stars in heaven reveal the glory of God, but they do not reveal the way of salvation. 

And general revelation is called general because what it does reveals, it reveals generally. Special revelation is much more clear. All men may know that it is wrong to murder. But special revelation reveals this truth more clearly.  In fact, through special revelation we learn that not only is sin to murder, but to harbor hatred in our hearts towards another.

Brothers and sisters, it is important for you to understand that God’s moral law is written on the heart of all men. But it is also important for you to know that God has spoken even more clearly. He is gracious and kind. Though we have fallen into sin, and though we have suppressed, distorted, and disobeyed his law within our hearts, he graciously revealed his will to us with even greater clarity.   

And where is this special revelation found? It is found in the Holy Scriptures. And where is God’s moral summarized so that it may be understood? Our catechism is right to say,  “The moral law is summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments.”

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Catechism Explained

The Ten Commandments are found in two places: Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. So where are the Ten Commandments found? Repeat after me: Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. 

Exodus 20 tells us about when the Ten Commandments were first given, and Deuteronomy 5 tells us about when Moses reminded Israel of God’s law many years later. 

Let me read the Ten Commandments from Exodus 20. I think it is right that I do this for we will consider each of these commandments one at a time for a while. Listen carefully to God law.

“And God spoke all these words, saying, ‘I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s” (Exodus 20:1–17, ESV).

Our catechism is right to call this a summary of God’s moral law. It is a summary because many of these commandments establish principles that may be expanded upon to apply to different situations. For example, when children are commanded to honor their father and mother, this also means that honor is to be shown to all who have authority over us. 

And the Ten Commandments are also called a summary (and are not strictly equated with God’s moral law) because there are some things stated in them that were unique to Israel and the Old Covenant. For example, in the preface Moses addresses Israel and reminds them of their deliverance from Egypt. He also mentions “visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation…” This applied to Israel as a nation, and does not apply in the same way to the people of God living under the New Covenant. As Jerimiah says, “In those days they shall no longer say: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ But everyone shall die for his own iniquity. Each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge” (Jeremiah 31:29–30, ESV). And also consider that the Sabbath day was to be kept on the seventh day under the Old Covenant, but under the New Covenant the first day of the week is the Lord’s Day, the Christian Sabbath. 

The Ten Commandments are a summary of God’s moral law. His moral law — the same law written on the heart of man at the time of creation — may be comprehended there.

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Matthew 19:16–26

That Mathew 19 passage that I read from earlier teaches this. 

There is much to learn from that passage. If we were on the topic I would draw your attention to the way that Christ used the law of God to show that rich young man his sin and to convince him of his need for a Savior. That young man thought he could earn his way to heaven through the keeping of the law. He thought he was righteous. After Jesus recited some of the Ten Commandments he said, “All these I have kept.” But then Jesus exposed his covetousness, saying, “‘If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.’ When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”

But the thing we must recognize today is the way in which Jesus answered the question “what good deed must I do to have eternal life.” Or, to use the language of our catechism, Jesus was asked, “What is the duty which God requireth of man?” And how did Jesus respond? How did he answer the question, what is good and right? He pointed immediately to the Ten Commandments. ForJesus, the Ten Commandments were a summary of God’s moral law. They reveal what it is that God requires of man. 

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Conclusion

Why do we need to know the Ten Commandments, brothers and sisters?

Let me give you three reasons:

One, so that we might clearly understand what it is that God wants from us. What is good and what is right and what is just? Yes, these things are dimly revealed in nature. Yes, all men do have a conscience and may know something about the answer to that question. But God’s word reveals what is good, right, and just with great clarity. This is why the Psalmist says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:105, ESV)

Two, so that we might clearly see that we need a Savior. When you hear the Ten Commandments you should definitely not say what that right young man said to Jesus, “All these I have kept.” No, the proper response is to say, I have violated this law in thought, word, and deed. And then afterwards to run to Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins.

Three, we need to know the Ten Commandments so that we might properly use the law of God in evangelism and when seeking the good of the society in which we live. When we preach the gospel we must also use the law. The law and gospel are not contrary to one another. No, the sweaty comply. The law is used by the Spirit to pave the way for the gospel — the good news that Jesus has kept the law and has died in the place of sinners. Cleansing and forgiveness is found through faith in him. And the Ten Commandments are also useful as we seek the good of our city and nation. Societies will flourish when they are good and just. And Christians are called to be salt and light. We have God’s law, brothers and sisters. We ought to share it, along with the gospel.

Question 46: Where is the moral law summarily comprehended?

Answer: The moral law is summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments. (Deut. 10:4; Matt. 19:17)