I just wanted some feed back on this.. Should Christians keep the 10 Commandments? Dont, Kill, steal, etc..If so or not, please share why you feel the way you do. Thanks!
Should Christians keep the 10 Commandments? I would say no but then come back and say yes. When dealing with the Ten Commandments, it is very important that we first understand the following:
The Ten Commandments, the law of God, is a very good weapon for evangelism purposes. Jesus, as well as the apostles, used it to evangelize. The bible tells us that Paul sought to convince people both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets. Acts 28:23 reads “
And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.”
The Ten Commandments doesn’t help us man. Instead, it leaves us helpless, because it tells us of our sins, it makes us see our current state and our need to repent and run to God's feet for mercy. The book of Romans chapter 7 verse 7 says “… I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.” By telling and showing us what sin is, our sins are exposed to us so we can seek to be made right and justified by Christ. The law declares all men guilty before God for violating His law. It stops every man from justifying himself saying “I am good enough for salvation,” because no matter how much good one may do, he is still guilty of violating at least half of the Ten Commandments which makes him guilty of all of them. Besides, how can one calculate how much good is good enough for salvation? That’s an impossible task.
What the Law Does.
- It declares man guilty before God. Romans 3:19 - Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become GUILTY before God.
- It converts the soul. Psalms 19:7 - The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
- It was our school master to bring us to Christ. Galatians 3:24 the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.?
So as Christians, the law has already done its job in us already because (1) we have already been declared guilty. (2) We have been converted. (3) We have been brought to Christ. (4) We have been justified by faith in Jesus Christ. (Galatians 3:25-27 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.)
Do we really need the Ten Commandments or the law? We really don’t as long as we understand its relationship to grace. We must not misunderstand that as a license to sin and go against the Ten Commandments. Although we don’t need the law, we are commanded to love God and our neighbor. Going against any of the Ten Commandments would be either not loving God, our neighbor, or both. And if we are really IN Christ, we cannot be going against them. We do not need to worry about every single aspect of The Law because it is now written in our hearts (Hebrew 8:10 - For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.) If our actions as Christians is breaking of God’s Law, we can be assured that His laws are not written in our hearts; we need to be converted.
Jesus’ response to the Pharisee in the book of Matthew 22:36-40 reveal that the whole law is narrowed down into loving God and others. The key to the Ten Commandments is this: iff you love God, you will not have other gods than Him (1). If you love God, you will not worship idols/images/etc? (2) If you love God, you will not blaspheme or take His name in vain (3). If you love God, you will keep the Sabbath day Holy [This requires some more information, but that's a new topic.] (4). If you love your God/neighbor, you will honor your parents (5). If you love your neighbor, you will not murder him/her (6). If you love your God/neighbor, you will not commit adultery with his/her wife/husband (7). If you love your neighbor, you will not steal his/her belonging (9). If you love your neighbor, you will not say false things about him/her (9). And if you love your neighbor, you will not covet (10).
So in truth, the whole law is found in those two commandments.
Furthermore, Galatians 5:14 teaches us that “all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” So all of the law is accomplished into love.
Should Christian keep the Ten Commandments? I'll ask you this: do you have Christ's love and fully understand what it means to love? If your answer is yes, then you do not need the Ten Commandments. If your answer is no, then you need them.