LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD

 UNDERSTANDING THE COMMANDMENTS

 FIRST COMMANDMENT- HONOR GOD
 SECOND COMMANDMENT- RESPECT GOD'S NAME
 THIRD COMMANDMENT- WORSHIP GOD
 OFFENSES AGAINST THE 1ST, 2ND AND 3RD COMMANDMENTS

As candidates for Baptism, we were called to choose between “two ways” one
leading towards life, the other to death.

The Ten Commandments, now completed by Christ, are seen as a priviledge

expression of the “way of life”. They are a classical structure for Chrisitan
Moral teaching.

They express God's will for us, not as a set of arbitrary instructions but as a
loving providence. What God commands to be done, His grace makes it
possible. For Chirsitans, the Ten Commandments take on a whole new
perspective--- that of deep personal faith and loyalty to Chirst.

The Ten Commandments are actually moral imparatives of how to love other
and to follow Christ's own command to love

How to love God with all one's heart, soul, and strength by explaining the
function of the first Three Commandments

I. Understanding the Commandments

Proper Understanding Needed

It is often diffiuclt for the Filipino Catholic because of the manner in which they
have been taught and memorized in cathechism classes.
The Presented characteristic of the “Old Testament, the Ten Commandments
were viewes as the law imposed by a divine Judge who watches everyone with
an all-seeing EYE.

The Ten Commandments are frequently rejected as historically outmoded,

authoritarian, and repressive and spiritually counter to the new creation in
Christ.

When we asked what one must do to possess eternal life, Jesus replied by
quoting the Commandments, For Christ and his apostles, the Commandments
represented the great part of their “sacred scriptures”

Moreover, in instituting his New Law in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus did
not abolish but rather fulfilled the Law and the Prophets. Christ taught that
“whoever breaks the least of these commands and teaches ohers to do shall
be called least in the kingdom of God.”
The Old is not set aside but rather transformed
Why bother with the “Old Law” when we already have the “New” ? What is the
value of the Ten Commandments for the Filipino Catholic today?

First, the Ten Commandments constitute the basic imperatives needed for life
in community.

The Commandments actually point in twi directions: they call for reverence for
God, and respect our fellow human beings.

While requiring these basic moral attitudes as constant and unchanging, the
Commandments far from being a code of rigid rules and don'ts , allow for the
greatest flexibility in interpreting their “spirit” as well as the “letter”

Secondly, the lasting exceptional value of the Ten Commandments can be

grounded in their histprical origin, their covenantal character and their
liberating power.

The Comdments originated not from the concrete historucal events of Exodus
and Mt. Sinai. Therefore, to interpret the legalistically as abstact
generalizations is to wrench them from their living origin in God's creative,
saving will in salvation history.

Moreover, the Commandments are terms of the Covenants, “Ten Words”

revealing the pattern of life which is righteous in God's sight, the way of life
which leads to happiness.

Finally, The Decalogue, set in the context of Exodus, is the great liberating act
of God which stands at the center of salvation history.

Though the Commandments have the form of prohibitions, they are also a
deliverance from the slavery of sin.

The Ten Commandments with Christ's new law of love forming together a
consistent pattern for Christian Moral Living.

a.) Credible and Durable moral norms for everyday life.

b.) A pattern and structure for living according to Christ's Commandment to
love God and Neighbor; and
c.) A universally accessible source for relating to non-Christiansin moral
matters.

It is true that the gospel of God's redeeming grace precedes the Law- the
Decalogue arisen a context of grace. But is is equally true that the Law follows
the Gospel- that Christian life is essentially a morally structured response in
faith, hope and love to God's call in Christ and the Spirit.
II. The First Commandment - Honor God

The First Commandment forms a unity with the two following commandments.

The first Tablet of Law consist of the Three Commandments of the Decalouge
which set out our duties toward God arising from his Oneness and Lorship.

The First Commandment is usually expressed: “I am the Lord your God. You
shall not have other gods besides me”

In today's Idiom, its ,eaning could be expressed in a number of ways: “Give

God your Ftaher His rightful place at the center of your lives. live in faith, hope
and love in God, the Father of all”

This Commandment is “first” not just because it heads the list, but because, it
is the most important. From it all other commandments are derived and
governed.

To know and love God, and gratefully accept his Lordship, is the foundation of
all Christian moral life.

FRUITS OF THE FIRST COMMANDMENT

Liberating Truth for adoration of the one God frees us from slavery to and
idolatry of the world.

God's Unique oneness is also a Reconciling Truth since the one God, as
Father of us all, makes us one family.

Finally, the oness of God is a Loving Truth in that makes possible a genuine
unified love of God. For the One God has no rivals, so we may le Him with our
whole heart, completely and above all. There is but one Lord and Master.

DUTY OF PRAYER/WORSHIP

Christ answered Satan's final temptation with: “for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

Worship is the reconition of God's Lordship expressed in filial devotion and

service. To love and serve God in faith and hope is our first duty and
priviledge.

COMMANDS/PROHIBITS

The First Commandment forbits any other god than the Lord.. that any created
thing should take place God and receive the worship due to him alone. it thus
rules out all forms of idolatry which is “substitution of someone or something
else for God.
“No man can serve two masters... You cannot give yourself to God and Money”
Chirst warned in Mt. 6:24. what the First Commandment does, then is to
repudiate all idolatrous obsession with wealth, human sexuality, politics and
personality cults.
Soli Deo Gloria- to God alone be Glory!

NO CARVED IMAGES

God reserved for Himeself alone the right to express and produce images of
Himself. God creayed Adam His own image.

But the perfect image of God is seen in the life and sufferings of Jesus Christ,
the image of the Invisible God” (Col. 1:15), on whose face “the glory of God
shines”.

III. The Second Commandment - Respect God's Name

“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”

You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

The second commandment prescribes respect for the Lord's name.

Like the first commandment, it belongs to the virtue of religion and more
particularly it governs our use of speech in sacred matters.

THE NAME OF THE LORD IS HOLY

Among all the words of Revelation, there is one which is unique: the revealed
name of God. God confides his name to those who believe in him; he reveals
himself to them in his personal mystery.

The gift of a name belongs to the order of trust and intimacy.

"The Lord's name is holy." For this reason man must not abuse it. He must
keep it in mind in silent, loving adoration. He will not introduce it into his own
speech except to bless, praise, and glorify it.

The faithful should bear witness to the Lord's name by confessing the faith
without giving way to fear. Preaching and catechizing should be permeated
with adoration and respect for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

TAKING THE NAME OF THE LORD IN VAIN

The second commandment forbids false oaths.

"You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve him, and swear by his
name.
Taking an oath or swearing is to take God as witness to what one affirms. It is
to invoke the divine truthfulness as a pledge of one's own truthfulness. An oath
engages the Lord's name.

Rejection of false oaths is a duty toward God. As Creator and Lord, God is the
norm of all truth.

Human speech is either in accord with or in opposition to God who is Truth

itself. When it is truthful and legitimate, an oath highlights the relationship of
human speech with God's truth.

A false oath calls on God to be witness to a lie.

A person commits perjury when he makes a promise under oath with no

intention of keeping it, or when after promising on oath he does not keep it.
Perjury is a grave lack of respect for the Lord of all speech. Pledging oneself
by oath to commit an evil deed is contrary to the holiness of the
divine name.

In Brief

The second commandment enjoins respect for the Lord's name. The name of
the Lord is holy.
The second commandment forbids every improper use of God's name.
Blasphemy is the use of the name of God, of Jesus Christ, of the Virgin Mary,
and of the saints in an offensive way.
False oaths call on God to be witness to a lie. Perjury is a grave offence
against the Lord who is always faithful to his promises.
"Do not swear whether by the Creator, or any creature, except truthfully, of
necessity, and with reverence"
III. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT

The Third Commandment

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

Six days you shall labor, and do all your work;
but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord
your God; in it you shall not do any work, you,
or your son, or your daughter, your manservant,
or your maidservant, or your cattle, or the
sojourner who is within your gates; for in six
days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that is in them, and rested the seventh
day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day
and hallowed it
- Exodus 20:8-11 (RSV)

“Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day” (Ex 20:8; Dt 5:12) is usually
formulated for Christians as: Remember to keep holy the Lords day.

Five Comments:

At least five things in these verses need special comment.

1. Remembering

First, Israel is to remember the rest day. Sabbath means rest. "Remember the
sabbath day," means, "Don't forget to take a day off."

2. Keeping It Holy

Second, "Keep it holy," means set it aside from all other days as special.
Specifically, as verse 10 says, keep it "to the Lord," or "for the Lord." In other
words, the rest is not to be aimless rest, but God-centered rest. Attention is to
be directed to God in a way that is more concentrated and steady than on
ordinary days. Keep the day holy by keeping the focus on the holy God.

3. One Out of Every Seven

Third, the holy rest day should be one out of every seven. Verse 9: "Six days
you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the
Lord your God.

4. No Fudging

Fourth, no fudging on the commandment by saying, "Well, I will keep it, but I
will put my maid to work, or set my ox to threshing with a carrot in front of his
nose at 6 PM the evening of the sabbath so that it will thresh the grain all day
while I rest." God says, No. You miss the point if you try to keep the business
running by using servants or animals or relatives. What point?
5. God's Rest After Creation

Fifth, verse 11 leads us to the basic point of the commandment. It is based on

God's rest after creation: "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the
sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord
blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it."

God "Blessed" and "Hallowed" the Seventh Day

Both Genesis 2:3 and Exodus 20:11 say that God "blessed" and "hallowed"
the rest day.

It means that he makes the day a time of blessing. When God blesses a man,
the man becomes rich with blessings. When he blesses a land, the land
becomes rich with blessings. So when he blesses a day, that day becomes
rich with blessings.

"Hallows" is the same word as "sanctifies." It means set the day aside for
special focus on what is holy, namely, God and his holy works.

God's Rest

The reason given in both Genesis 2:3 and Exodus 20:11 why God blessed and
hallowed the seventh day is that "on it God rested from all his work which he
had done in creation." What does it mean that God rested? It means at least
that he was satisfied that his work of creation was complete and was "very
good." His rest means that he wanted to now stand back as it were in leisure
and savor the beauty and completeness of his creative work.

Summary of the Sabbath Command

In summary then, Exodus 20:11 and Deuteronomy 5:15 and Exodus 31:13
teach that the sabbath is a way of remembering and expressing the truth that
God is our creator and deliverer and sanctifier. We are dependent on him for
all we have in the world, for our deliverance from enemies, and for our holiness.
He has indeed designed that we work. But our work neither creates, nor saves,
nor sanctifies. For these we depend on the blessing of God. All things are from
him and through him and to him. Lest we ever forget this and begin to take our
strength and thought and work too seriously, we should keep one day in seven
to cease from our labors and focus on God as the source of all blessing.
IV. Offenses Against the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Commandment

First Commandment:
“I am the Lord your God. You shall not have other gods besides me”

1.
IDOLATRY
5.
2.
SUPERSTITI
IMPIETY
ON

4. 3.
HERES APOSTA
Y SY

Second Commandment:
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in Vain”

1.
3. BLASPHEMY
PERJURY

2.
VOLUNTARY
DOUBT
Third Commandment:
“Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day”

1. FAILURE TO
ATTTEND MASS
ON SUNDAY

2. FAILURE TO
ATTEND HOLY
DAY
OBLIGATION