The Lord our God 

Exodus 20

Exodus 20 had the popular 10 Commandments which God gave to Israel at Mount Sinai to show them what it takes to be His people. But the chapter goes beyond the commandments. God further instructs His people about what it means to fear Him and also sacrifice to Him. Everything in this chapter points to one thing – the Lord is the only God Israel had and the only God we have.

Here are three important lessons to help us love God and our neighbours:

#1. Allegiance to God. (Exodus 20:1-17)

The 10 commandments God gave to Israel is mistaken to be dos and don’ts of the Christian life. It’s far from that. In Exodus 19, God spoke to Moses and declared that if the people pay heed to His word, they will be His special people of all the peoples of the earth. In this chapter, He specifically teaches them what constitutes paying allegiance to Him in real terms. This is not pie in the sky ideas. Jesus summarised the 10 commandments into two parts when He said we must love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and mind and then love our neighbour as ourselves (Matthew 22:37). Exodus 20:3-11 tackles loving God and Exodus 20:12-17 tackles loving your neighbour as yourself. These two laws are the summary of all the over 600 laws God gave His people. To be allegiant to God, we must know His commandments and follow it.

#2. Reverence to God. (Exodus 20:18-21)

God came in the manner of thunder and fire because He wanted Israel to experience the fact that He is different from the other gods they had known in Egypt. He is from heaven, they were from earth. He was not made, they were man-made. He possesses His people, they possess their people. He came from heaven in thunder and fire for His people to revere Him. Fear of God is a doctrine underpinning every Christian lifestyle. If we don’t revere God, we will not pay any allegiance to Him nor honour His word. He wanted the people to have a real encounter with Him so that they will not replicate what they experienced in Egypt and mistake it for God. He is different from the gods of Egypt. In Him we live and move and have our being.

#3. Sacrifice to God. (Exodus 20:22-26)

Lastly, our allegiance and reverence to God must translate into sacrificing to Him. Old Testament sacrifice constituted using animals in place of man. Hence, God gave them guidelines about where He mandated them is where they ought to make sacrifices. In the New Testament, we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to Him. Sacrifice is our reasonable service to God. Indeed, when Moses went to Pharaoh, He told him to let the people go so that they may sacrifice to God. Sacrifice to God is recognising Him as the Lord our God.

God gave His people commandments to live well before Him according to His terms and not their terms.

Take Action: Receive and be obedient to God’s word.