As even a peripheral reading and consideration of the above should show, these commandments reveal much about what is sinful beyond the specifics they relate. For example, the need for proper respect and sanctified behavior towards all authority is clearly implied in the fifth commandment (so that it should come as no surprise that this is explicitly taught elsewhere in scripture: Rom.13:1-7; Tit.3:1; 1Pet.2:13-25). Whether in the case of behavior directed towards God, towards our own attitude to life, towards authority, or towards others in general, the perfect standard of sanctification and sinlessness in all things is the rule by which our Lord measures us. For as Christians, this constitutes our "normal" behavior. Finally, we also see a crucial, basic rationale at the heart of this overarching command to avoid sin: inevitably, sin hampers the search for God and His truth, both in the case of the sinner and all those who are affected by his or her sin. Nothing should give us stronger motivation than this knowledge, for it is, after all, to this purpose that we have been called, and it is this purpose that fills our hearts: learning, believing, and serving the truth of Jesus Christ, and helping others to do the same.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Oct 2013 22:18:55 +0000
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