Posts

Showing posts from March, 2011

The Seventh Commandment

“You shall not steal.” What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not take our neighbor’s money or possessions, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his possessions and income. You shouldn’t take what does not belong to you. That is a basic rule which we have all been raised to adhere to. People everywhere know that you shouldn’t steal. Thieves are looked down upon and punished in cultures around the globe. God’s law is universal. Stealing takes on various forms in a complex economy such as our own. It is not simply a matter of taking the jewels out of someone’s safe or robbing a bank at gunpoint. Stealing refers to any time when we take anything from an unwitting partner. While all Christians should be encouraged to be generous, we, as Christians, should not “take advantage” of the charity of others (II Thessalonians 3:10). If you are in need of assistanc

The Sixth Commandment

You shall not commit adultery. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and descent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honor each other. This is a commandment that in our day and age is becoming increasingly marginalized and forgotten. The clear command from God is that we refrain from any sexual conduct that is not honoring to God or our spouse. (If you are not married then consider God in Christ as your “spouse” even if you are a man.) This excludes a whole range of activities from blatant sexual affairs to “harmless” flirting with others. Homosexual behavior is not honoring to God or to other human beings. Fornication and pornography do not give respect to the other people involved, even if they are consenting partners. The key here is that we are to love and honor our spouse over any human being. Obviously God is to be loved and honored over all. But our spouse