Taking a Stand

for the
Ten Commandments
by Mark A. Finley

It may seem surprising, but the Ten Commandments are creat-

ing a lot of controversy these days. In November of 2003, the chief
justice of the Alabama Supreme Court defied a federal court order
to remove the two-and-a-half ton monument of the Ten Command-
ments from the rotunda of the state courthouse. When the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the eleventh circuit ordered Judge Roy Moore
to remove the Ten Commandments, he argued that the moral law
of God was the basis for all law and, therefore, not a violation of the
separation of church and state. In a statewide poll, 77 percent of the
residents of Alabama agreed with the judge.
 The controversy over the Ten Commandments in Ala-
bama captured national attention. At a pro-commandment
rally in Jackson County, outside of Denver, Colorado,
Darrel Scott, the father of one of the shooting victims at
Columbine High School shared his conviction that “our
meeting is not about the Ten Commandments. It is about
our young people and our children.” Mr. Scott’s point was
clear to the overflow audience packing the auditorium. In a
society of moral relativism burgeoning with violent crime,
the Ten Commandments provide a moral compass. In an
immoral world, they are
Right and wrong are not matters the basis of morality.
of individual opinion. . . . Any The Ten Command-
ments have served as a ba-
society that turns its back on the sis for society’s laws for
moral principles of God’s law is more than three millen-
headed for chaos. nia. Western governments
have modeled their con-
stitutions and established their laws on the moral code of
ethics given on Mount Sinai. The psalmist David reminds
us of the eternal nature of God’s law. He declares, “All
His commandments are sure. They stand fast for ever and
ever, and are done in truth and uprightness” (Psalm 111:7,
8, KJV). He adds in Psalm 119:151, NKJV, “You are near,
O Lord, and all Your Commandments are truth.” The
Ten Commandment law is the foundation of God’s gov-
ernment. It defines right and wrong. Without the Ten
Commandments, all morality is relative. There are no ab-
solute standards. The apostle Paul wrote “. . . for by the
law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20, NKJV). The
law defines sin. It clearly states that some behavior is right

2 and other behavior is wrong. Right and wrong are not

matters of individual opinion. It’s not a matter that’s up
for grabs defined by societal norms or personal prefer-
ences. God has already defined right and wrong. In a so-
ciety which talks about “what’s right for you may not be
right for me” and “each person discovers his own right
path,” God’s law speaks with increasing relevance.
Any society which turns its back on the moral prin-
ciples of God’s law is headed for chaos. Yet we live in a
time in American history when “doing your own thing”
is in vogue, when it has become popular to label anyone
with well-defined moral convictions as narrow-minded.
What has this attitude toward God’s law produced in
our society? What fruits has moral relativism spawned?
The prophet Hosea spoke of sowing the wind and reaping
the whirlwind (see Hosea 8:7, NKJV). This is precisely
what is happening in western society today. “We have
turned, every one, to his own way” (Isaiah 53:6, NKJV),
and we are reaping the tragic result.
The United States Justice Department reports that 1.6
million violent crimes (rapes, robberies, aggravated as-
saults and homicides) were committed in 2004. Four
hundred thousand adults were arrested on drug offense
charges in 1970.
In a recent survey by the Barna Group, 83 percent of
teens surveyed stated that for them, “Moral truth de-
pends on the circumstances.” Only 6 percent said moral
truth is absolute. Perhaps this is one of the major reasons
why 70 percent of all teenagers have experienced premar-
ital relations by the time they are twenty-years old. Per-
haps this is why the United States has the highest rate of
sexually transmitted diseases in the industrialized world
with 15.3 million new cases reported each year. United
States divorce rates are among the highest in the world.
Among western nations the U.S. has the lowest percent-
age (63 percent) of children who grow up with both bio-
logical parents, according to the 2005 annual report en-
titled, “The State of Our Unions” from the National
3
Marriage Prefect at New Jersey’s Rutgers University.
 With moral values crumbling all around us, maybe it is
time to take another look at God’s law. Maybe it’s time not
to debate about whether the Ten Commandments should
remain in the rotunda of a courthouse in Alabama but to
ask if these moral principles are written on our own hearts.
Maybe it’s time for a lot less arguing about the law and a lot
more keeping of the law. It is somewhat contradictory and
confusing for some Christian churches to argue on the one
hand that the law is done away with in Christ while on the
other hand, they decry lower moral standards and shout
loudly about America’s need to take a stand for the Ten
Commandments.
One thing is certain! Christ did not come to do away
with the law as some Christians contend. He came to live out
the principles of the law as an example to believers in every
age. He has sent His Spirit to write the law in our minds and
hearts. Jesus instructed us, “Do not think that I came to de-
stroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but
to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17, NKJV). Jesus did not come to de-
stroy the fifth commandment which declares “Honor your
father and your mother” (Exodus 20:12, NKJV). He came
to reveal throughout his childhood and adult life a loving
example of faithfulness. The Savior did not come to do away
with the sixth commandment which declares, “You shall not
murder” (Exodus 20:13, NKJV). He came to reveal the dig-
nity and worth of all human life. He did not come to do
away with the seventh commandment which declares, “You
shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14, NKJV). He
came to model purity. In addition to dying for us, Jesus
came to teach us how to live. In His life we have a wonderful
model of living in obedience to the Father. Love for Christ

4 never leads us to disobey His law. Love always leads to obe-

dience, never disobedience. This is why Jesus said, “If you
love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15, NKJV).
All genuine obedience comes from the motive of love. Obe-
dience is a response to His incredible sacrifice on Calvary.
We do not obey to earn our salvation. Our obedience is the
response of love to His great gift of salvation.
We are not saved by our works (Ephesians 2:8; Ro-
mans 3:27, 28, NKJV), but any Christian who declares
that salvation by grace makes obedience unnecessary
misunderstands the gospel. In concluding his discussion
on salvation, the apostle Paul makes this point plain
when he declares, “Do we then make void the law through
faith? Certainly not! On the contrary we establish the
law” (Romans 3:31, NKJV).
The Bible defines sin as “the transgression [breaking] of
the law” (1 John 3:4, KJV). Sin is not based on our defini-
tion, but on God’s. He defines sin, we do not. The apostle
Paul raises a penetrating
question for Christians All genuine obedience comes from
who would attempt to do the motive of love. Obedience is a
away with God’s law.
“What then? Shall we sin response to His incredible sacrifice
[break the law] because on Calvary.
we are not under law but
under grace? Certainly not” (Romans 6:15, NKJV)! While
some Christian preachers loudly proclaim the law is done
away with, the apostle says it “certainly” is not. God’s grace
always leads to obedience, never to disobedience.
When we come to Jesus, the response of our hearts is to
obey Him. According to Hebrews 8:10, NKJV, our Lord
makes this marvelous promise, “I will put My laws in their
mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their
God, and they shall be My people.” What does it mean that
God will write His law in our minds and hearts? He writes
the law in our mind so that we understand it. He wants His
will to be clear. The precepts of His Ten Commandments
speak of our moral responsibility. They reveal plainly how to
5
live. He writes the law in our hearts so that we love it. Obe-
 dience is not some legalistic requirement because an over-
bearing dictator demands it. It is the response of a heart that
loves God supremely. When we obey Him, we are walking
a pathway that will lead to ultimate happiness. This is why
Jesus said, “If you know
Think of how our society would these things, happy are ye
be radically changed if all of us if you do them” (John
lived by the principles of God’s 13:17, KJV). Happiness
comes from doing God’s
Ten Commandments. will. The Ten Command-
ment law describes how
people who love God live abundant, happy lives. All of
God’s law can be summarized in one word, love. The Ten
Commandment law is actually codified love.
The first four commandments reveal how to always re-
spond in love to God. If you love Him, you will abolish all
other gods in your heart and worship Him supremely. If
you love Him, you will place Him first in your life. You
will demolish all idols and worship Him directly. If you
love Him, you will respect and honor His name and always
use it reverently. If you love Him, you will “remember the
Sabbath day.” Most of the world has forgotten the seventh-
day Sabbath. Once His followers discover His truth, they
joyfully keep the Sabbath as the special day he established
as a symbol of His creative and redemptive power.
By taking a stand for His Ten Commandment law, we
take a stand for love—to love God and to love our fellow
man. If we genuinely love, we will honor our parents and
respect each other. We shall treat each person with the
utmost respect and dignity. We will respect their posses-
sions and not steal. We will respect their reputations and

6 not defame their name by criticism or gossip. We will

honor God and accept what we have rather than labori-
ously seeking what someone else has.
Think of how our society would be radically changed if
all of us lived by the principles of God’s Ten Command-
ments. Think of what your life would be like if God’s love
flowed out of your heart in willing obedience to His law.
The last book of the Bible declares that at the end-
time, God will have a group of people who reveal to a
waiting world and a watching universe that God’s way of
life is best. Through His grace and by His power, they
lovingly obey Him. Revelation 12:17, KJV describes
them as “the remnant who keep the commandments of
God.” Revelation 14:12, NKJV pictures God’s last day
people this way: “Here is the patience of the saints; here
are those which keep the commandments of God and the
faith of Jesus.” The Bible’s last message to “every nation,
tribe, tongue, and people” (Revelation 14:6, NKJV) is a
clarion call to obedience. It is an urgent appeal to “Fear
[obey] God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His
judgment has come” (Revelation 14:7, NKJV).
In light of the judgment hour, God calls all of us to mor-
al responsibility. We are accountable for our actions. We are
responsible for our behavior. The final judgment sweeps
away all pretense and sham. It affirms the truth that “He
who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His command-
ments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4,
NKJV). A lot of pretense is evident in Christianity today.
God’s last day believers will take a stand for obedience.
Believers saved by grace willingly obey His command-
ments. With the aged apostle John they declare, “For this is
the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And
His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3,
NKJV). Motivated by love, Christ’s true followers do not
believe the law is a galling yoke around their necks. It is not
a burden too heavy to carry. The passion of their lives is to
please God. In obeying Him, they find their greatest joy. If
obeying God is a great burden, it is only “because the carnal
7
mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law
 of God, nor indeed can be” (Romans 8:7, NKJV). The carnal mind
wants to do its own thing. The unconverted heart only wants to please
itself. If you are struggling to obey God, it is a matter of the heart.
When the heart is fully surrendered to God, obedience is a delight.
The new covenant promise is “I will give you a new heart and put
a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your
flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you
and cause you to walk in My statues . . . I will deliver you from all
your uncleanness” (Ezekiel 36:26, 27, 29, NKJV).
The God who calls us to live an obedient life also gives us the
power to live obediently. Every command is a promise of what He
will do in our lives. His grace not only pardons us from our past
sins, it delivers us from the grip of sin. He is not only available when
we fall, but “is able to keep you from falling” (Jude 24, KJV). When
we take a stand for His commandments, we stand in His grace. We
stand by His power. We stand through His love as a testimony to
His glory that Jesus saves from the penalty and power of sin.
So today—in Him and by Him and through Him—take a stand
for His commandments. When you do, you will take a stand with
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. You will take a stand with Jo-
seph and Daniel. You will take a stand with Peter, James, and John.
You will take a stand with faithful believers of all time. You will
stand with Jesus Himself. Now that’s something worth standing
for, and He is Someone worth standing with.

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