Exodus 20:1-17

Exodus 20:1-17

¹ 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[a] 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.
⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any alien residing in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
¹² “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.
¹³ “You shall not murder.
¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.
¹⁵ “You shall not steal.
¹⁶ “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
¹⁷ “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
¹⁸ When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”

The Ten Commandments is a great lesson to teach and should be revisited in each age group. I’ve taught it to preschoolers, 1st and 2nd grade, junior high, and this was my first time teaching it to high schoolers. My goal is always to get them to understand how it applies to real life.

I can’t help but mention those people who claim that there’s no problem with putting the Ten Commandments in government buildings because “they’re just good rules for everybody to follow” and that they’re not inherently religious. The first seven verses—half of the Commandments are devoted to how we interact with God. These people must either be unfamiliar with what the Commandments actually are, or literally unable to see how non-Judeo-Christian people see the world.

For a Christian, however, these are the principle rules to follow.

The List

Today, I didn’t bother having the students read the passage. They’ve read it many times in class already. So I started with having them list the Commandments from memory. This is especially tricky because different religious branches number them differently. Even among Christians. Check it out.

The class was able to name nine, which is not bad. They forgot “craven images,” which is an easy one to forget. Then I gave them a handout with the list.

What is the easiest Commandment to keep?

“No murder!”
“What about bugs?”

Exactly. What about bugs? Is murder limited solely to humans?

“What if a mosquito bites me?”

In this translation, it says specifically not to murder. This is the phrasing most churches and temples use now. However, for a long time, it was “Thou shall not kill.” If a mosquito bites you and you hit back, maybe it’s not murder. But if killing bugs could be murder, stomping on ants would be. It’s killing for no reason. In the end, I admit that it’s unlikely that this Commandment would apply to animals, but cruelty to animals is still wrong.

What else?

“Adultery.”

Really? You guys think it’s easy?

“None of us are married!”

Does adultery only apply to marriage? Can it apply to any committed relationship? They hadn’t considered that. Also, how far do you have to go for it to be considered adultery? Is kissing enough? They hadn’t considered. Also, committing adultery may not only apply to the person in the relationship. If you knowingly act with somebody in a relationship, does that count as adultery?

Any others?

“Honor your mother and father.”
“Really?”
“Really?”
“That one’s HARD.”

What are the hardest Commandments to keep?

The Commandment says, “honor your mother and father.” Does that mean obey them? Do you have to do everything they say? What if they’re wrong?

“Today, I was laying down on the pew during the call to worship. My father dragged me up by my ear.”

I don’t want to comment on the methods, but we’re supposed to stand at that point.

What happens when you become an adult? I’m married now and I simply have to put my wife’s needs ahead of my mother’s. That’s how marriage works. Am I still honoring her? The big what if: you have parents who are destructive to your life or even abusive. How much are you required to honor them? I concede that honor is a two way street. You really honor things that honor you back.

The same kid with the ear: “Does this mean I don’t have to listen to my father?”

I know all of your parents. They may not be perfect, but they’re all decent. But maybe honoring and obeying aren’t always the same thing.

Anything else?

“Lying!”

Is it really about all lying? This translation says specifically not “give false testimony.” Does that only mean in court? Many other translations say “bear false witness against.” That may not mean only court, but it may apply to any accusations you make. That sounds a lot like mean rumors. Plus what about false compliments? “You look great! I love your hair!” Are we expected to be honest all the time? Are you even able to be a good person if you’re always honest? This one is tough.

I decide to bring up a few others.

Taking the Lord’s name in vain

Some people think this applies to any kind of vulgarity. But is the name of the Lord really the F bomb? What is even the purpose of this Commandment?

“Is it like when you get angry and shout Jesus’ name?”

It is.

“How is that different from praying?”

Would you like it if somebody shouted your name when they got upset or stubbed their toe? But what if they thanked you when you did something right? Or asked for your help when you really needed it?

Remembering the Sabbath Day

What are you guys going to do after church today?

“Homework.”
“Homework.”
“We’re going to go out to eat, then go to my grandmother’s for dinner.”
“I have to clean the garage, THEN do my homework!”

So, you guys are working on the Sabbath? You’re not supposed to do ANY work. I’m as guilty as they are. I’m going to clean out the fridge, then go food shopping. Not only that, but I missed church almost all of August because I was working. This is tough. We’re supposed to spend the day resting and contemplating God. Doing family stuff is okay, probably, but working is not.

“Why does it mention aliens? You can’t make aliens work?”

It doesn’t just mention aliens—who are foreigners—it also mentions servants. This means you can’t force somebody else to work, even if they don’t believe in the same religion as you. It’s tempting to treat somebody differently just because they don’t follow the same rules as you, but you are supposed to be kind to everybody.

How many Commandments have you broken?

Don’t tell me which ones, just how many?

“Seven.”
“Eight.”
“Eight.”
“Eight.”
“Nine.”

That’s a lot. Are we all sinners? They stare at the ground. Nobody is perfect. While these are the most important rules to follow, we will break some of them. It’s hard to do the right thing. If it wasn’t we all would all the time.

But remember, if we believe all sins are forgiven. But part of believing is to try as hard as you can, to know when you’re wrong, and to try to do better. Belief isn’t talk; it’s action.

So don’t feel so bad!

A promise

I want everybody to pick a Commandment that they’re not going to break this week.

“Murder!”

I should have seen that coming.

Let’s say one you broke this past week. And pick a hard one. It should be a challenge.

“Taking the Lord’s name in vain. I say Jesus Christ when I get impatient.”
“Lying.”
“The Lord’s name.”
“Honor your parents. I’m going to be nice to my mom.”
“Lying.”

I announce to the class that I’m not going to covet. Far too often, I’m jealous of other people, the professional success they have and the money that goes with it. Being bitter hurts me, so I’m not going to do it.

Keeping the Commandments

This was one of my best lessons. With the younger kids, I would be more inclined to give them explicit definitions of each Commandment. With the older kids, I’d rather have them thinking. Being a good person is never black and white and nobody is 100% good. I hope that I left them thinking about how to be a better person.