You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below


“Because I Live”



Exodus 20:1-7



20 And God spoke all these words:

2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

3 “You shall have no other gods before me.

4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.



Today’s Title is “Because I Live”



Today's passage shows the first three of the ten commandments that God has given to Israelites. Through these momentous commandments, we know what God wants us to do and how we should live. That’s the general goal of commandments. The commander directs those who receive the commandments in the way that he wants. But I believe that there is the deeper goal of ten commandments that God has given to us. God wants to reveal who He is or what kind of God He is. The first four of the ten commandments are more specifically focusing on it. On the surface, those four commandments also tell us what to do and what not to do. But in fact, all these commandments were given to show who He is. So who is God according to these four commandments? If I may summarize it, He is one true living God who is always in action for His people unlike all the lifeless idols. What stands out most among those key characteristics of God is “Living”. To me, it seems that God repeatedly says through the commandments that He is “living” God. Even before God gave the commandments, He introduced Himself as God who brought them out of Egypt the land of slavery. Why was He saying that? I believe He said that to reassure Israelites that He is living God who’s “in action”. In fact, all of the first three commandments emphasize that He is the living and acting God. The first commandments tells that they should not have any gods before Him because He is the only living God. The second commandment says that they should not make any lifeless image because He is living. The third commandment says that they should not take God’s name in vain as if God doesn’t care because He is living God. Who is your God? If you don’t remember anything about God, Just remember this: “He is the living God”. Because He lives, He is always with us. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow without fear. Because He lives, we should be humble and faithful before Him all the time. Because He lives, we live in His presence all the time. What a joy it is! What a wonder it is! Are you living with this living God?