10 commandments for believers?

[Guest]

Hi Steve,

Most Christians (I think) believe that the 10 commandments given to Moses still apply to Christians today. I heard you make a good case in one of your lectures (I think it was on the authority of scriptures) why they do not apply to Christians. Since Christ replaced the old covenant with the new, Christians are obligated only by what Jesus commanded and nothing in the old covenant (including the 10 commandments). You qualified that by saying that Jesus re-affirmed in His teachings 9 of the 10 commandments, all except the Sabbath observation. I think that is a great argument against those who insist that we need to keep the sabbath day.

I was wondering if you could list the various scriptures where Jesus did this for each of the commandments that He reaffirmed. I think I know some of them, but not all. I'd like to put that in my bible for times that I'm talking to staunch sabbatarians. I don't want to send you on a scripture hunt or anything, but I'm betting you probably already know this off the top of your head.

I'd sure appreciate it. Thanks.

[_Steve]

Jesus essentially reaffirmed the moral code of the Old Testament, but not the Sinaitic rituals of worship, or those defining ceremonial cleanness and uncleanness. His affirmation of the continuing validity of the moral code can be found in His summary statements, such as:

"Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Matt.7:12)

Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt.22:37-40)

Was Jesus simply restating what the law had required of the Jews, without reaffirming its validity for Christians (as was the case, for example, with His statement about tithing—Matt.23:23)? Apparently not, since these things are reaffirmed in the Epistles:


"If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' you do well." James 2:8

"Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery,' 'shall not murder,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'You shall not covet,' and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. And do this..." (Rom.13:8-11)

It is clear that this teaching establishes the necessity of keeping every one of the commandments in what is commonly called the "second table" of the law...not because they are in the second table of the law, per se, but because, if we love people, we will definitely not wish to wrong them.

As for the "first table" of the law, it is clear that one who loves God with all his heart, soul, mind and strength will not place anything above Him or desire to worship what He regards as an abomination, nor would such a person have any inclination to dishonor his name.

These things would be fulfilled by anyone who loves God and his neighbor, even if that person had never even heard of the specific commandments in the decalog.

However, even if a person loved God with all his heart, he would not intuitively keep a seventh day of each week free from labor, since this is not a behavior intrinsic to, or instinctively dictated by, love. The only way one would know to keep such a day would be if it were specifically commanded. It is not an essential demand of love, but only of bare obedience.

While it is true that a person who loves God might possibly think on his own of setting aside time from normal activities to worship God, there is nothing intuitive about doing so one day out of the week (as opposed to three days a week or one day in ten), nor of singling out Saturday as the mandatory day. Therefore, the specifics of sabbath observance do not fall into the category of what love dictates (as the other nine commandments do), but is more akin to other dates that are set aside by decree for special observance (e.g., New Moons, Passover, and other festivals).

Each of the other commandments (excluding the observance of sabbath) is commanded either by Jesus, or by the apostles, or by both, in the New Testament. No ceremonial laws are commanded in the New Testament, including the sabbath. The sabbath is specifically linked with other ceremonial laws by Jesus (Matt.12:1-7) and by Paul (Col.2:16-17).

Here are some New Testament references to each of the other nine commandments:


Commandments #1 & 2: No idolatry (Matt.22:37/ 1 Cor.6:9; 10:14, 20-22/ 1 John 5:21)
Commandment #3: No dishonoring of God's name [blasphemy] (Matt.6:9/ Mark 10:22/ Rom.2:24/ Phil.2:10/ James 2:7)
Commandment #4: No work on Sabbath (no references)
Commandment #5: Honor of parents (Mark 7:9-10/ Mark 10:19/ Eph.6:1-2/ 2 Tim.3:2)
Commandment #6: No murder (Matt.5:21-22/ Matt.15:19/ Mark 10:19/ Gal.5:21/ 1 John 3:15)
Commandment #7: No adultery (Matt.5:27-30/ Mark 10:19/ Matt.15:19/ 1 Cor.6:9; etc.)
Commandment #8: No stealing (Matt.15:19/ Mark 10:19/ 1 Cor.6:10/Eph.4:28)
Commandment #9: No false witness against neighbor (Matt.15:19/ Mark 10:19/ Rom.13:9)
Commandment #10: No coveting (Mark 7:22/ Luke 12:15/ Rom.13:9/ 1 Cor.6:10/ Heb.13:5)

These are just a few of the relevant New Testament references. The great number of times these nine moral standards are mentioned is certainly in starkl contrast to the total absence of any command concerning the sabbath—and seems quite significant.

[Guest]

Awesome! Thanks Steve.

[Guest]

Just like to add that the reason the 10 commandments IMHO are different then the law of Moses is that they were in the front of the Ark whereas the Laws of Moses were on the side and the 10 were written by the finger of God whereas Moses wrote the laws by his hand. I think in Psalms it says something from the mouth or hand of God is forever. Sorry i don't recall which Psalm.
However Jesus did reinterpret many on a higher spiritual plane such as murder becomes anger without cause except of course the Sabbath because it is a physical ritual which changes to "do everything unto the Lord" IMO. Jesus is not interested in physical rituals and the first 9 commandments were flesh commandments but the last one regarding coveting was the only one concerning the heart perhaps pointing to something greater. And in Matt 28 He said "remember everything i commanded you" but he never did command the Sabbath.

[RND]

Mar 2:27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

The sabbath was made for "man" and not just "Jews."

Mar 2:28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath. He created it and honored it. Thus He is still the Lord of the Sabbath.

[darinhouston]

Mar 2:27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

The sabbath was made for "man" and not just "Jews."

Mar 2:28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath. He created it and honored it. Thus He is still the Lord of the Sabbath.

He's also the Lord of the Temple sacrifice -- that doesn't mean it is still to be followed. Also, the Mark 2:27 passage doesn't necessarily suggestion the sabbath was made for all men at all times -- it could easily refer to the Jews and Gentiles pre-Christ.

[RND]

Mar 2:27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

The sabbath was made for "man" and not just "Jews."

Mar 2:28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath. He created it and honored it. Thus He is still the Lord of the Sabbath.

He's also the Lord of the Temple sacrifice -- that doesn't mean it is still to be followed.

I'm not familiar with that verse.

Also, the Mark 2:27 passage doesn't necessarily suggestion the sabbath was made for all men at all times -- it could easily refer to the Jews and Gentiles pre-Christ.

I think that's a stretch, a guess if you will, not supported by scripture. I don't think God is a God that deals in should'a, would'a, could'a.

Torah-based Messianic Judaism is the only "religion" God ever created. It is the faith of Yeshua and the faith of Paul (more properly Rabbi Sha'ul) before AND after his Damascus road conversion. It is the faith of the rest of the "New Testament" writers and the faith of the original Messianic community in the first century.