Resolutions That Really Matter: Spiritual Challenges From The Ten Commandments

Let’s open our Bibles together to Exodus 20. We are continuing our sermon series “Resolutions That Really Matter: Spiritual Challenges from the Ten Commandments.” Various biblical passages and church history remind us that spiritual renewal often begins with spiritual resolutions. In this series of messages, our goal is to allow the Ten Commandments to challenge us to make specific resolutions that can lead us to spiritual renewal. So far, we have looked at the First and the Second Commandment. The First Commandment challenges us to focus on the greatness of God. In the First Commandment, God provides four descriptions of Himself that emphasizes why He alone is truly worthy of our worship. “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt,

Is there a story behind it? If you are a parent, how did you come to decide on the names of your children? When God created Adam and Eve, He gave them the power of authority over all living things on the earth. The first exercise of this authority was when Adam gave names to the animals. God brought various types of animals to Adam and asked him to observe how they behave and then name them accordingly (Genesis 2:20). Through this God was emphasizing that names are important. Names have meaning. They invoke associations of ideas and images. Generally we can say that a name speaks of the reputation of the person who bears it. Solomon in the book of Proverbs frequently contrasts the reputations of wise and foolish people. He summarizes the discussion with these words: “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.” (Proverbs

The Third Commandment reminds us that the name of the Lord is to be respected because it reflects His reputation. That is the reason God takes very seriously the use and the misuse of his name. Did you notice that there is a warning attached to the Third commandment? God says, “I will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses my name”. What was the punishment for misusing God’s name in the OT? In Leviticus 24:16 we read, “Anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.”. In the Bible, God’s name is a means of His self-revelation. The most important name for God is found in Exodus 3:14-15. In Exodus 3:14-15, God says to Moses: “I am who I am…This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation.” What does “I am who I am” mean? That name emphasizes that God who exists is “the God upon whose existence all that exists depends” (The Moody Bible Commentary, p.120). The rest of the Bible provides explanation of that concept of God. In the First Commandment, God provides four descriptions of Himself to reveal his work and character to us. God declares that He is a God who desires to reveal himself clearly in order that we might enter into a