Because of circumstances beyond anybody's control, it's been almost two months since I gave the introduction to this message, so I think I'll just give it all over again. I have added to the title of the message, I am going to, if the Lord wills and he tarries long enough, we're going to get to the Ten Commandments, the Ten Commandments. But before we go there, I wanted to lay some background and some foundation that will change, perhaps, our disposition toward these Ten Commandments, our understanding of them and provide a context for them in our lives. It is amazing to me, I was back at the board meeting, the board of trustees meeting for Bob Jones University. And it's amazing to me there are two things that are going on in the generation of young people that are going through the university now. Number one, they're these young people really don't have a biblical knowledge of God, who God is. It's strange, but you would think that people that come out of schools and Christian schools come out of so-called Bible believing churches. They would know who God is. But somehow they don't. And the second thing that happens is they are compartmentalizing their lives and they... God is over here and my life is over here. And I worship God on Sunday and then what I do the rest of the week is a different world. We live in two different worlds. That's what's going on in the hearts and minds of young people today. And may I say that this whole world belongs to God. We'll get there shortly. It's interesting, as I have looked through the Old Testament, when you find this word commandment, King James, I think the New American Standard also uses the word commandment, translates the word commandment. There are two Hebrew words that have to do with speaking and what is spoken. The word Amar is to say. It means you're talking, you're saying something, you're communicating something. But then there's the word davar. It can be translated to speak, but it has to do with the content of what is said. One is the process of speaking. The other is the content of what you've said. OK, this is the davar. Well, the Ten Commandments are the ten davar. And it's the same word for that which is spoken. So technically, it's not the idea of of commandment in that word. So when you look and maybe I should have you turn, turn, please, if you will, to Exodus 34, 28. Exodus 34, 28. Exodus 34, 28. As he was there with the Lord 40 days and 40 nights, he did neither eat bread nor drink water. That's Moses. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten, the ten Devar. The Ten Commandments, the Ten D'var. Have you found it? Exodus 34, 28. The Ten D'var. Now, these are the ten words. If we were going to strictly translate this word for word, the word D'var is a word or a message. The ten messages, the ten words. Now, why in the world did the Bible translators say the Ten Commandments? Where did they get the idea of commandment out of this idea of ten words or ten messages? How did they do that? Why did they do that? Now, I really need a sharp mind right now. Have you got it for me? Sharp mind, yes or no? Okay, sharp mind right now, see? Now, here's a little language in Hebrew, okay? A little lesson in Hebrew. Gertlestone, who is one of the eminent Hebrew scholars, who is one of the most, what shall we say, one of the most respected Hebrew lexicons. He makes this observation, listen carefully, what is spoken either by the Lord, that's by God, or by anyone of high authority. is naturally looked upon as a commandment. For instance, if a four-star general in the army says, I want you to go, he speaks a Debar, I want you to go and I want you to do such and such and pick up that equipment and take it over and take care of that with that guy. How would you regard that statement, that Debar, from a four-star general? Casually? Yes or no? You would not regard that casually at all. You would say that is something I must do. Why, if a fellow, and I don't know all the ranks, but if a fellow private told you that, what would you do with it? You'd go tell him to take a hike. But if it comes from a four-star general, you treat it differently. So, Girdlestone picks this up. What is either spoken by the Lord or by anyone of high authority is naturally looked upon as a commandment. You see, think it through now. With God, to speak is to command. Now, do you remember when God said, and remember in Genesis 1, 1, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth and the earth was without form and void. Darkness was upon the face of the surface of the deep. The Spirit of God moved or brooded literally over the surface of the waters. And God said, that should be Amar. God simply said, let there be light. What was the response? There was light, you see. It was who was speaking that dramatically changed the message of the words. Can you see that? Can you see that? And so it's important to us to understand who is speaking in regard to these ten profound, commanding, life-giving words. Littlestone continues, The ordinary word for obedience in the Old Testament and New Testament also literally signifies hearing. The word obey in the New Testament means to be persuaded. It means to listen, to give attention to and to follow. Do it, do it. To disobey in the New Testament is apetace, not to be persuaded, not to listen. Very interesting how all of this works together. God spake all these words of our saying. OK, so the 10 words become 10 Commandments. The title Commandments came not. Hear me now, the title Commandments that we put on these things, 10 Commandments, that title or that translation came not from the content of the sayings, but from the authority of the one speaking them. Now, this has profound implications for what you do with what you read in the Bible. Honor thy father and thy mother. That is one of the devars. But because of who is speaking it, it becomes tremendously significant to all of us tonight. You don't stand before a four-star general and he tells you, go and get this thing and bring it back to me. and say, I've got a headache, I'm sorry, I've got a sore foot, I'm sorry, my jeep has a flat tire. You don't tell him any of those things. You find a way to do it. Now, if you do that for a four-star general, how in the world do you think we can treat so lightly, so casually what God says in His Word? See? The ten words of the Ten Commandments. The title commandments came not from the content of the sayings, but from the authority of the one speaking them. These were the words of God. Inherent in them was creative power. Now, do you understand that every scientific law All existence, animal, material, spiritual, all existence is the product of God speaking it into existence. Reality exists because God said it. It was simply the Word of God that made it that way. And it cannot be changed. It will not be changed. These were the words of God. Inherent in them was creative power, totally consistent with the order God had set in place by his creation of all things. Still awake. This is intense stuff now. You still awake? Shake your head to something. Let's get relaxed. Let's go on here now. Now, hear me, hear me. You don't understand this. I don't understand how it works, but I know one thing. When properly applied, you got that part. Got that? When properly applied, God's promises in His Word create the outcome of that for which we trust Him, not the circumstances. God's Word has creative power. God's Word endures. God's Word creates reality. God's Word sets all reality in place. And without it, there is no reality. That means, and I've got notes here, we've got to get on with the message, but that means when God promises me eternal life, that means that creates that fact in my heart and in my life, and that cannot be changed, altered, amended forever. It's the Word of God. God's Word creates reality. All of God's words are spoken with His divine power, His divine wisdom, His divine authority. Not only are they binding, you just try to get out from underneath them, you cannot. Not only are they binding, but they guarantee the outcome of my life. Believers live in certainty, not uncertainty. So we need to be grateful that there is an unchanging God whose unchanging Word settles every issue in advance. That's to our benefit. That's to our benefit. How would you like it if you sat in an airplane and you're going down the runway and all of a sudden the law of aerodynamics changed? How would you like that? It's called a crash. It is the certainty of the Word of God. that enables all of life to consist, to hold together, to continue and to exist. The ten words. That, to me, is an amazing phrase. That's a wonderful phrase. Aren't you glad you can count on God? Aren't you glad He's predictable? Totally predictable. Along the line. Now, I must move on. We talked about the reasons for the ten words. Let me give you this further note, just to restate what I just said. When God gives us a command, when God says, do this, OK? With His command, now get this, please get this. With every command of God, there is a promise and a commitment of God to uphold His word. Yes? And the outcome is always and without exception predictable. God, there are certain things God cannot do. And one thing God cannot do is change his mind and he cannot deny himself. And do you know what it means if God didn't keep his promise to you? If you do right and God does not honor you, God dishonors Himself, and God can't do that. You ought to be happy about that. This is wonderful. So we talked about the reason for the ten words, and I've got another thing underlined here. Those who love life... You ought to write this down. Those who love life must of necessity love the laws that govern life. Huh? Those who love life must of necessity love the laws that govern life. And that means that you and I ought to have not only respect for the Ten Commandments. We have a great love for them in our hearts. We ought to have an affection for them. We ought to say this is our God. This is his way. This is the way he's made things. This is more awesome and wonderful than any other thing we could do in life. Let me repeat again that God's law does not diminish life. It enlarges it. God's law does not restrict life, it broadens it. God's law does not stifle creativity, it makes creativity totally productive and worthwhile. God's law does not detract from the meaning of life, it rather gives the true meaning of life. And it makes noble, it elevates all of life. Now, I don't know how many of you, let me find out. Let's do a survey here tonight. I think I have an idea of the outcome of the survey. How many of you, at one time or another in your life, memorized the Ten Commandments? Okay. When you memorized them, under what conditions did you memorize them? How many of you memorized them as a family matter with parents? How many with the church? Anybody at school that learned them that way? I guess I'm at school. You memorize the Ten Commandments. What is the general attitude toward the Ten Commandments? Take all the joy out of life. Totally restrictive. All the things that I can do and all the things I've got to do. Now, how many of you, when you sat down and you ate today, you said, God is so horrible, I have to eat and I'm going to blame God and be bitter the rest of my life because I had to eat. How many of you felt that way when you ate today? How many of you could live very long without eating? You couldn't. You could not. You see, there is a moral disposition in the heart that causes real problems. Let's take a look tonight, see how far we can get here at the true essence of the 10 words. What is the bottom line of the 10 words? What does it take to love the 10 words? What does it take to respect the 10 words, the 10 commandments? What is the bottom essence of all of this business of why does God think he's got any right to run my life like this? Okay, what's the bottom of this? Are you ready? Got your Bibles ready? Go to Deuteronomy, please. Find the book of Deuteronomy. Let's take a quick trip through just a few verses here. And may the Spirit of God just write this indelibly on our hearts and minds tonight. When we talk about the law of God, the Word of God, the words of God, the devour of God, the commandments of God, when we talk about these things, what is their true essence? What's the bottom line? Are you in Deuteronomy? Try chapter 6. Chapter 6, find it, verse number 5, Deuteronomy 6, 5. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might. Go to chapter 11 and verse number 1. Chapter 11 and verse number 1. You shall therefore love the Lord your God. Always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances and His commandments. Go to chapter 30 in verse number 6. Move right along, if you will, please. Deuteronomy 30, verse number 6. Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, so that you may live. You ought to underline that, so that you may live. Same chapter, verse number 16. Deuteronomy 30, verse number 16. In that I command you today to love the Lord your God. To walk in His ways, keep His commandments, His statutes, His judgments, that you may live and multiply. The Lord your God may what? Bless you in the land where you're entering to possess it. We went into some of the reasons for in the last message on the subject. Now go to the next book. After Deuteronomy comes Joshua. Try chapter number 22, please. Joshua, chapter number 22. Joshua 22, verse number 5. Verse number 5. Only be very careful to observe the commandment of the law, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you, to love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, and keep his commandments, and hold fast to him, and serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. One more chapter, Joshua 23, and verse number 11. This is a sampling now. These are not all of them. Is there a sampling? Joshua 23, 11. Take diligent heed to yourselves to love the Lord your God. Now go to Matthew 22. Matthew 22. Matthew 22. We begin with verse number 35. Matthew 22, verse number 35. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked the Lord Jesus a question, tempting him and saying, Master, the word master is teacher, which is the great commandment in the law. Christian Standard Bible translates it this way. Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest? OK, we go on verse 37. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. Literally, this is the greatest and most important commandment. And the second is just like it. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself on these two commandments. Hang all the law and the prophets. Look this way for just a moment, if you will, please. I don't know how we do it. Jeremiah says the heart is deceptive. It's deceitful. It's incurably wicked. I don't know what's wrong with our hearts. Have you ever heard anyone say, I lied to my teacher because I love my teacher. I lied to my wife because I love my wife. I lied to my husband because I love my husband. I lied to my children because I love my children. I lied to my parents because I love my parents. I committed adultery with another woman because I loved her husband and I wanted to honor and respect him. I committed adultery with another man's wife because I loved my wife. Now hear me. Every violation of the devars of God is a violation of love. You cannot, must not, ever bifurcate, make a difference, divide between love and love. Those who love keep the law. If you don't keep the law, it's because you hate, and to hate is to destroy. Hatred is the emotional desire to murder, to destroy someone. You lie, you destroy. You dishonor your parents, you destroy. You commit sexual sins, you destroy yourself and others. Hear me. If we love God, we ought to love His law. Love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself. Nobody violates the law who loves those involved in whatever is the issue at hand. Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. We excuse ourselves. Oh, you fundamentalists, you are so strict. What do you mean so strict? We don't like people killing other people. Is that the kind of strict object? We don't like people hurting their husbands and wives by lying and committing adultery. Is that the kind of strictness to which you object? You are so strict. You expect me to treat somebody else like I want to be treated. You are so strict and out of it. Did you hear what I just said? Did you hear it? Do you get it? There are certain things that love does not do. And the law of God defines how love operates toward God and how love operates toward men. And if you don't like the law of God, you do not want to be restrained from your destructive capacities in your relationships with other people. Don't come to me and make that look nice and sound nice and feel nice. Teacher, what's the greatest commandment? Why, Jesus said, that's simple. You are to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, all your strength. And by the way, your neighbor is yourself. Now, it seems to me if everybody loved everybody, this world would be a better place. In fact, people that live this way voluntarily, it's the involuntary thing that makes this so onerous. Preacher, I don't want to live that way. Well, at least admit that what you want to do is destroy yourself and everybody else. You have no respect for your own life. You have no respect for anybody else's life. Be at least honest enough to admit that. But what is wrong with loving people? What is wrong with loving God? What is wrong with letting God be God in your life? Tell me, please, what is your objection? You shall love. That's agapa'o love. It means to serve and to give your life, lay your life down for God and for your fellow man. This statement captures the proper relationship. Now, hear me. It is not a sacramental relationship we are talking about. It is not a church membership relationship we are talking about. You shall love the Lord your God. This statement captures the proper relationship between God and man, between the creator and the creature. Is it too much for God to expect that we would love him? I mean, is that unreasonable? I mean, look, He gives you air to breathe, food to eat, clothes to wear, shelter. He keeps the ecosystem working so that we're able to exist and enjoy life. He gives us strength. He gives us our life. He gives us the context of our lives. He presides over all of this. Is it too much that we should love Him? May I ask you quickly, what is your attitude toward a child. Let's say we've got a mom and a dad. There are no perfect parents. I was going to be that perfect parent. I decided when I was a teenager that I knew some mistakes my parents had made and I was not going to make them. And I didn't. I made worse ones. But let's say we have a good father and a good mother, loving parents, not indulgent parents, but a balance with discipline and love in their home and great respect, always respect for their children, love and respect and discipline in the home. What a combination that is. And these parents provide, the father works two jobs. The mother, whether she's at home or, you know, this business of asking the mother, do you have a job? Somebody ought to be a mother before they ask that question. And if they ask that question after they are a mother, they're insane. But you have a hardworking mother, you have a hardworking father, and they devote their entire lives. They do without the new car. They do without the motorboat. They do without vacations. They sacrifice for their children's education and upbringing. And they serve their children. And then the child, when the child becomes 18, looks at the mother and says, Mother, who do you think you are? Who do you think you are trying to tell me what to do? I've got better ideas. I've grown up in a new generation. And out the door they go. What do you think of a child like that? And if you're a teenager or a child here, how would you like to have a child that did that to you? How would you like to be treated that way? I think that's despicable. But that's exactly how men treat God. We breathe His air. We eat His food. We enjoy. blessings of life that He has provided for us. Never thank Him. We feel no obligation. We think we know more about life than He does. I do remember in my perfect childhood many times saying to my mother or my father, Do I have to? Now, none of you ever said that. Do I have to? And my parents did a pretty good job. They got that out of me. He said, son, you are going to do what you do willingly and with a joyful heart. And I found out that that was good teaching. What is our relationship with, what is your relationship with God tonight? God, do I have to? Do I have to tithe? Do I have to deprive myself of all of these things? Do I have to? You shall love the Lord your God. This statement captures the proper relationship between God and man, between the creator and the creature. Now, hear me, hear me, hear me. To love God is man's greatest need. No man has ever loved God supremely who has not lived a fulfilled life. Did you get that? We have preachers all across this country trying to tell people how they can have their lives fulfilled, how they can get the promotion at work, how they can solve this problem and solve this problem, and how they can have this taken care of and this taken care of. And God becomes a water boy following after us just to do what we think he ought to do. God's too big. Man's greatest need. Your greatest need, my greatest need tonight, is to love God with all our heart, all our mind, and all our soul. And if we do that, the questions and the issues that surround us are going to dry up in a hurry. Yes or no? The things that bug us, the things that bother us, the things that drive us nuts. Don't you live there? The relationship things. This is man's greatest need. Man needs to give himself and his world, everything he owns, all of his potential, all of his capacities, man needs to give himself and his world completely to God. Now, hear me, hear this, hear this, hear this. He needs to give himself and his world to God completely with no expectation of return. Now, believe me, there will be return, but it won't be what you expect. It will be of a higher, more blessed order than you can ever, ever, ever imagine. Man needs to give himself and his world completely to God with no expectation of return. All of man's life and world is to be brought into the service of his Creator. To fulfill the pleasures and the plans and the purposes of the One who made him. My fulfillment is not fulfilling my pleasures and my plans and my purposes. That is totally selfish. It's opposite of love. When I bring my life and my world into the service of my Creator to fulfill His plans and His pleasures and His purposes, my life gets so rich and full. that I can't contain it. God is the one who fills life full. Are you getting it? God is the one who fills life full. Man's life belongs completely to his Creator. When I give my life to the point of everything belonging, I die to self. I die to self-desire. I die to self-pleasures and plans and purposes. I die in this sense for God. I find the richest, most abundant, most fulfilling and most joyful life that is possible. I'm telling you the truth. It's the opposite of what you've been taught. It's the opposite of every billboard that you see in town. It's the opposite of all the advertising in the magazines. It's the opposite of all the promises of the electronic media, that they are godless and they are upside down. To love God is man's greatest need, exclamation point. If I were Victor Borga, I would go, that's how he does it, exclamation point. Man's greatest need. Now, I'm about done here. I'll finish with this. I hope you can absorb one, just the rest of this. Man's greatest need is to love God. Loving God provides for me purpose, focus, meaning, identity, joy, confidence, stability, and power for life. Nothing else will do that for a believing child of God. The answer to our needs in life are not formulas, psycho formulas of various kinds. God is the answer to my needs. Let me repeat again, man's greatest need is to love God. Loving God provides purpose, focus, meaning, identity, joy, confidence, stability, and power for life. And the law of God is the way that God teaches us to express love to Him and everybody around us. And I hope nobody objects to that tonight. What a God! He's called us to live life on a higher plane, and may I say, that living life on the plane of loving God and loving our fellow man is a much higher plane than living for ourselves. Much higher. May the Lord encourage us. I promised you I would stop there. I will. And love one another, all of our obstreperous families, neighbors, fellow workers, all the people in our world. Love God and love people. It's a hard way to live, but boy is it rich. Is it wonderful? Because He's God. He's in charge of the outcome. We go with hope tonight. I hope certainty. You know the Lord. I hope you do. Trusting Him because His Word is yours. No other foundation for life. We can trust Him. A great blessing, our Father, in every life. We beg you, teach us how to live. We are ashamed tonight that we do not love you as we ought, and we do not love others as we ought. Spirit of the living God, fill us, quicken us, enable us to live for your glory, to be what you would be, to do what you would do if you were in our place, in our shoes as we go through life in this coming week. We don't ask for an easy week, but we ask for a blessed week. We ask for one in which you are at work in our lives, where we see the hand of God, and where the glory of God is revealed to us and to all of those around us as we love you and serve you. Give great joy, great help, great wisdom, great strength, whatever that need might be as we go our way tonight. Thank you for the time together. Give blessing and the fellowship to follow. We ask it in Jesus' wonderful name. Amen.