The Ten Commandments are important. You hear about them a lot in the media especially controversy over public postings of them. And people are always saying things like "The Ten Commandments are not multiple choice" or "It's the Ten Commandments not the Ten Suggestions." But how many people actually know them? Recently I taught a bible study that included the Ten Commandments to a group of senior citizens. We started off the lesson but seeing how many of the them we could name off the top of our heads. I am proud to say that, they knew them pretty good. They got them all. Not in order but together we were able to recall all 10. But I wonder how the younger generations would fair at the same exercise.

The Ten Commandments are important but most people don't remember what they are. And after all aren't we Christians under grace and not under the law. We are saved by grace through faith. We are not saved by keeping the laws. After all we don't follow all the other 613 or so commandments in the Bible. Most of us eat pork unless our doctors told us we need to lower our cholesterol. We don't follow most of the dietary and clothing laws.

Do we just throw them all out and go with Jesus' 2 greatest commandments: love God and love your neighbor? But Jesus said, "I came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it." So what do we Christians do with the 10 commandments? Should memorizing them be a prerequisite to being a member of the church? Or do we simply post them as an historical document of what God had at one time in the distant past and another land required of His people?

Paul I think helps us with this question. I am sure he could have quoted the 10 Commandments and given you an off the cuff dissertation on what you should do to keep them in every situation. After all Paul was a Jew among Jews. He had gown up in the Synagogue every Sabbath. He was a scholar of the Law and the Prophets. He was even a board certified Pharisee and the Pharisees specialized in keeping the letter of the law to the "t."

But Paul was also a champion of "salvation by grace through faith." In fact Paul seems to be the one who coined that phrase describing how we are saved through Jesus. He wrote extensively and preached in the churches that he founded that we are saved by a gracious gift of God and the gift is received through faith.

So what does Mr. Saved by Grace have to say about the law?

In Philippians he, at first, seems to say the law counts for nothing. After describing himself as "to righteousness under the law, blameless" he says, "Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ." He goes on "I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Later he refers to that previous life of law keeping as "rubbish." He had kept the law, but he considers that lost because of Christ. Or rather he has put that in his past because of Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ his sins are paid for on the cross.

So for Paul, Jesus is more valuable than the law. The difference is that through Jesus we have new life. Paul had done about as good as person could at keeping the law and he did not find new life through the law; however, when he put his faith in Jesus Christ he knew new life.

The new life we experience now is only a foretaste of eternal life that is beyond this mortal existence. Paul wrote, "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead." He wants to know eternal life, in this life and the next, through Jesus. And he is willing to suffer for that new life. Not to suffer so that he can have it, but suffer, I believe, in faithfulness to the one who gave it to him.

So are the Ten Commandments just ancient history for Christians who are saved by grace? No! After saying that he has put his old life behind him so that he can know new life in Christ, Paul goes on. He begins talking about pressing "on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own." He speaks of pressing "on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus." He is not striving for salvation but to be faithful to the call of Jesus Christ.

What is God's will for us as his people? 1. Have no other god's. 2. Make no idols. 3. Don't use the Lord's name wrongly. 4. Keep the Sabbath. 5. Honor your parents 6. Do not murder. 7. Do not commit adultery. 8. Do not steal. 9. Do not bear lie against your neighbor. 10. Do not covet.

So the 10 commandments help us to be faithful to the call of Jesus Christ. Jesus calls us to be righteous and loving and worship God. These 10 laws given to ancient Israel over 3,000 years ago help us to understand that will. They don't save us, but they help us to be faithful and worship the one who did save us: Jesus Christ!

The Ten Commandments are important. But you will not be saved by keeping them. In fact no one has ever been saved by keeping them. The Bible tells us that all have sinned. The only person to live their whole life without breaking the spirit of these laws was Jesus.

So don't fall into the trap of trying to save yourself by keeping the 10 Commandments. But do look to them. If you have given your life to Christ and have been saved, then you will want in gratitude and love to live His way. The Ten Commandments help us to serve God.

So love God by worshipping him alone and respecting his day and name. And love your neighbor by respecting your elders and not doing things that violate or show a lack of respect for your neighbor. After all Jesus said he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. Put your faith in Christ and he will enable you to be faithful.

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20

"Don't cross your eyes. They might get stuck like that." "Don't stand up in that chair. You'll fall. And you'll split your head open and we will have to take you to the hospital."

You know the routine. Especially you parents. You tell your child not to do something for their own good. And to convince them to follow our advice we describe the worst that could happen. I have never seen a child get their eyes stuck when they crossed them, but I suppose that their eye muscles could have a spasm, and as a result their eyes would be stuck for a moment. But it is highly unlikely. And we are all aware that in most cases the child does not fall out of the chair.

So why do we parents, and grandparents, paint these worst case scenarios? Do we intend to mislead or scare our children about the dangers of the world around them? No, we do it because we love them. We do it because we want to avoid injury or the trauma of having your eyes stuck in a crossed position. We do it to convince our children of the necessity of following our rules because we know that we can't be there every moment to protect them from every danger. We do it in the interest of their safety.

That is what God was doing with Israel at Mount Sinai. God is a parent warning his children about things that might harm them. God said, "Worship me only. Don't make any idols. Don't use my name wrongly. Keep the Sabbath. Honor your parents. Don't murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, or covet." Then God caused thunder and lightning and rumbling and magnificent noises to issue forth from the holy mountain. And the people were afraid. They wondered, "Is God going to destroy us because we have broken most of those commandments already."

Now, why did God scare them? Does God get some kind of perverse pleasure from scaring little helpless creatures like humans? Of course not! Moses said to the Israelites, "Don't be scared. God just wants you to respect his wishes. That way you will keep his commandments."

God was being a loving father. God was being a caring parent who says don't do this or else. God gave Israel the Ten Commandments as a gift of love.

But most people don't see it this way. They think God gave the ten commandments to make our lives miserable and difficult. They think God just doesn't want us to have any fun. But isn't that exactly how many children react to their parents' restrictions. They think their parents lay down rules just to make life hard on them. The reality is that the parents want to make life more pleasant and free of unnecessary pain.

That's God's intention behind the Ten Commandments. You see, God made us and God knows our needs and our limits. Our Heavenly Father knows what kind of behavior will hurt our bodies, souls, and spirits. And so God has told us what to do and what not to do. It is like operation specifications for a piece of equipment. They say don't do this or you will damage it. Well, God's saying don't do this or you will damage yourself and cause yourself physical, mental or spiritual anguish.

But some people say, "Oh, but that was over 3,000 years ago. Times change. Things are different now. The same rules don't apply." It is true that times change, but human beings don't. Oh, any anthropologist will tell you that people are taller, larger, and healthier than they were 3,000 years ago, but the basic model hasn't changed. The same things that exceeded design specifications then, still exceed design specifications today.

Basically we were created to love God and our neighbor. We were not designed to hate or be self centered. So when we do hateful things we damage ourselves just like a tool used for the wrong purpose.

So keep the Ten Commandments - with God's help. If you have trouble remembering them, just remember what Jesus said. He said that the whole of the law was summed up in two commandments. Love God and love your neighbor. If you do these two things you will be doing all that God has commanded in the Bible.

Keep the commandments because God has commanded it. Keeping the commandments will not save you. Only Christ can save you. But if Christ is your Lord then do what he and his Father have told you to do.

But just in case that isn't enough. If the fact that God has commanded these things is not enough for you. Then keep them out of your own self interest. Keep them to save yourself from the pain and heartache that will result when you break them. God didn't give these commandments to make your life difficult or to take your fun away. These commandments were given because your Daddy in heaven loves you.

Matthew 21:33-46

One day Jesus told a parable about a vineyard owner who was having labor troubles. But let's back up a minute. To understand this Parable we have to know its context. Where was Jesus and who was he talking to when he told this parable?

Jesus spoke this parable in the temple the day after he had cleansed it. If you remember Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey on Palm Sunday with the people singing "Hosanna" which means "Save us!" When he got to the temple, Jesus threw out all the money changers and sellers. And he said, "It is written, 'my house shall be a house of prayer,' but you have made it a den of thieves."(Matthew 21:13) These people were using the worship of Almighty God as an opportunity to make money and they were cheating the people in the process. And the religious leaders were charging these money changers and sellers for the right to sell in the temple. Needless to say the religious leaders didn't like Jesus for throwing these business men out and calling them thieves. It was cutting in on their profits.

The next day Jesus came back to the temple and people took notice. Here was the Prophet who the day before had called God's house a den of thieves. When Jesus came to the Temple he began teaching the people. Teaching the people was the job of the Scribes and Pharisees. Who was this Jesus to take over their jobs in the Temple. So they challenged Jesus, "Who gave you the right to teach in the temple?" Jesus responded, "First you answer my question, Was John the Baptists' authority from God or from man?" They could not answer. If they said from God he would ask why they didn't listen to John. If they said from man then the people would be angry because they saw John as a prophet. They said, "We are currently studying that issue quite diligently and hope to be forthcoming with an answer soon" or in other words, "We don't know."

It was in this context that Jesus told a parable that went something like this. Once upon a time there was an business man who decided to go into the wine business. He bought some land and planted a vineyard. And he fixed it up real good. He put a wall around it to keep animals out. He installed a winepress so that the grapes could be processed on the spot. And he set up a security system to keep out any grape rustlers.

Since this business man was a busy man he found a manager to watch over the enterprise for him. Then the man went off to see after his many other business ventures. After a while he sent someone to the vineyard to audit the books and get his profits. But when the manager saw him coming they made sure that this auditor disappeared. So the owner sent some more men and they were mistreated too. So finally the owner sent his son thinking they wouldn't dare lay a finger on him. But the manager said, "Here's the heir lets get rid of him and the place will be ours."

When Jesus finished telling the parable he turned to the people there including the Scribes and Pharisees and said, "What do you think that man will do to that manager when he gets his hands on him?" They said, "He will put that man to a miserable death and find someone else to manage his vineyard." Then Jesus said, "Don't you read your Bibles? God will take the Kingdom away from you and give it to someone else who will serve him. At that the Chief Priests and Pharisees knew he was talking about them.

Once you know the situation the meaning of the parable is rather clear. The religious leaders of that day had been using the Temple and worship of God to their own advantage. They were supposed to be serving God but instead they were serving themselves. They were like the tenant or manager that refused to give the profits to the owner. The Temple was God's house and Israel was God's people; they were God's vineyard meant to produce fruits of love and justice for God. The Priests and Pharisees were using God's Temple and people to their own political and financial advantage.

They were like the people in Jesus' parable who mistreated the messengers. The religious leaders in Jerusalem had rejected God's messengers the prophets over and over again. Sometimes they even put them to death because their messages did not benefit their personal political and financial goals. That's what happened to John! So God had sent His Son, Jesus, to bring them the message that they had better give glory to God. But in the end they would eventually play an important role in having Jesus killed.

And what would become of them. They would be replaced. Worship of God would be placed in the hands of others. The leading of God's people would be placed in the hands of others. And in 60 AD the temple was destroyed and worship of God was placed in the hands of the Christians and the Synagogues.

The mistake that the religious leaders of Jesus' day made was they thought that the temple was theirs to use as they wished. People today make that same mistake with the church. Some church people think they own the church. And some preachers and church leaders think the people belong to them; that the congregations are there to serve their needs. I know it is common for people to say "My church" or for a pastor to say "My congregation." But in truth they are God's church and God's people.

Christianity - the church - the people of God are all here to serve God. They are God's creation and God put us here to manage and maintain the church with his help. And at the end of the day the honor and glory for what we do should go to God alone. This is God's vineyard and its produce belong to God.

But people are always trying to used the church for their own gain and advantage. I cringe when I hear the name "Christian" attached to a political party of group. Too often the attitude is that Christians ought to support and vote for everything that they stand for. This being an election year you will hear politicians using the name Christian and the Church to their own political advantage. Some of them may very truly be trying to serve God. But some, on both the left and the right, will be serving themselves.

And there are plenty of individuals who try to use the church and Christians to their own personal ends. What about people who only go to church or contribute so that they will look good? Did you know that there are actually people who join a church just so that they can say they are members of a church. They are using God's church to make themselves look good. And there are people who come to church just when they feel like it or when it is to their advantage. They don't give to the church of their time or money and yet when they are in need they eagerly ask for help.

Whose vineyard is this anyway? We had better be careful. You know God took leadership away from one group and God could do it again. If the church today will not produce fruit for the kingdom then God will make a new church that will. Isn't that how the Methodist church got started. The Church of England in Wesley's day was not reaching the masses. So God moved Wesley and Whitefield and others to take the Gospel out into the streets. And they brought forth fruits of the salvation of millions. The established churches in Wesley's day were silent in the face of slavery. But Wesley and others preached against it. The result was an eventual end to the practice. They brought forth fruits of justice and mercy.

Who do we think we are to come and sit in our comfortable pews and expect to be served. We don't own the church. It belongs to God. We are simply the hired hands here. We are supposed to produce not just consume. We are called to give and not merely take.

We are blessed by being here and God's Holy Spirit does comfort us. There is nothing wrong with seeking the guidance of God and the help of fellow Christians. But we must keep in mind whose house this is. This is God's vineyard. We may partake of its fruits as we need. But we must also produce fruit. God can always find new workers so let us be faithful to the One who gave us this glorious opportunity to serve God in the church.