Exodus 20 v 1 – 2 And God spoke all these words. ‘I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other god’s before me…
The words that begin this page are tremendously important. Unlike the gods of the nations surrounding the Israelites, their God actually speaks. The true God is a communicating God who does not leave His people to flounder in darkness.
We are not told in what manner God spoke to His people but if it is true that God is truly God then nothing is impossible for Him. He can and does make Himself known. It seems from Exodus chapter 20 v 18 – 19 that God made himself heard to the whole mass of Israelite people because they were struck with great fear, after hearing His voice. But why should they be fearful? Because God is a great and holy God who is Himself creator and master of the entire creation and before Him were a group of bedraggled ex-slaves who knew almost nothing about him. But they were about to learn.
God prepares the way for the Ten Commandments, the great summary of correct belief and lifestyle, the great moral law that has undergirded society for millennia. Here is the One who has a monopoly on wisdom, about to dictate the standard for all of life and behaviour. In so doing He gives us an insight into what He himself is like, and as we hear His commandments we discover that they are right in every respect and the embracing of them enables us to live in light not darkness.
It is a sad thing to see how in our time something has thrown God’s authoritative word aside with disdain, with nothing to replace it. What has been the result? The moral chaos of a disintegrating society.
Who rules your life? What great principles guide you every day? What answer do you give your children after you have told them not to do something and they ask you “why not?” Who makes the rules?
Prayer: O God, how careless we all are. How easy to forget your ways. Forgive us O God and guide us back to your path. Amen