The Story of the Ten Commandments

Posted by on September 16, 2007 under Sermons

When We Were Slaves in Egypt

  • 430 years after Joseph, Israel is in slavery
  • What does slavery do to people?
  • Contest of Life vs. Death
    – Exodus 1-2

Let My People Go …

  • God remembers his covenant (Exodus 3)
    • Israel cannot fulfill God’s mission as slaves
    • God vs. Pharaoh – Who is God?
  • Egypt needs Israel, but not for the reason they think
    • Compare Exodus 12:31-32 and 14:5

… So That They May Worship Me in the Desert

  • Exodus 19 and 20
    In Exodus 19 there’s a lengthy description of how God’s people are supposed to prepare themselves for this encounter with God.

    Finally they get ready for this long anticipated worship in the desert, but how are they supposed to do it? What is the order of worship? It begins with the Ten Words. Worship is about shaping us into the kind of people God wants us to be.
    When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”
    Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”
    The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was.

  • What sort of Worship?
    • The Decalogue is Worship

A Holy Nation

  • The Decalogue is mission
    – Exodus 19:4-6
  • I Peter 2:9-10 is the language of the Exodus

Decalogue Transition