The Ten Commandments God’s “Top Ten” Rules
It seems with all the lawsuits flying back and forth about the posting of God’s “Top Ten” in government buildings and schools, there is a rock solid connection between Americans and the Ten Commandments.
After all they’re taken from The Bible, the most influential book ever written, and best-selling book of all time.
How Many Americans Can Name The Ten Commandments
When the average Joe was put to the test about his or her knowledge of the Commandments and their source, The Bible, surprisingly most people knew little about them.
According to an article from Pew Research, 60% of Americans couldn't name five of the Ten Commandments, and 80% say they believe in “absolute standards of right and wrong.”
Sadly, only a third placed religious teachings at the top of thier list as the source for setting their standards.
When it comes to the reward stages of the Commandments, 74% of people believe that those who have led good lives will enter into a heaven to be eternally rewarded.
Fewer people, 59%, believe those who have led bad lives and die without repenting will suffer the consequences of an eternal hell.
Just read "What are The Ten Commandments And Why They Should Matter To You", to find out what's in store for those who fail to repent.
Those statistics fully explain why 68% said, there is more than one way to interpret the teachings of their religion.
What Americans Believe About The Bible
Maybe they are viewing Jesus' New Covenant as an escape clause, that makes nill the need to follow The Ten Commandments at all. That’s not a good idea, if you ask me.
When you start asking questions about the Bible, you really get a true mental picture of how important it is for Christians to treat the Bible as a living document to be poured over rather than blindly accepted.
Test Your Religious Knowledge
The Pew Research article also pointed-out these facts:
50% of high school seniors think Sodom and Gomorrah were married
49% of mainline Protestants say they seldom or never read their religion’s holy texts.
70% or more of self-professing Christians have no idea what the Holy Bible teaches to be true and 10% think that Joan of Arc was Noah's wife.
How many of The Ten Commandments can you name? If you would like to test your religious literacy here is a link to the religious literacy quiz.
A List Of The Ten Commandments
(Here is a list of the Ten Commandments)
The Bible describes a day of judgment that will be like a red-hot furnace with flames that burn up proud and sinful people, as though they were straw and reminds us to never forget the laws and teachings given to Moses on Mount Sinai (Malachi 4:4).
Those Ten Commandments are part of God's covenant with believers. In Moses' era covenants were a serious matter that involved the shedding of blood and symbolized a life-time commitment.
Despite the promise of their personal success and that of their descendants, people living then and now consistently violate God's laws. Few Christians, if any, can claim that they have fulfilled the requirements for honoring their parents, keeping the sabbath, or not using God's name in vain.
Those who have excepted Jesus will receive forgiveness and those who don't will experience God's wrath which is covered in "What are the Ten Commandments and Why They Should Matter To You."
God's Laws for 21'st Century Christians
The necessity of maintaining these laws for Christians today is just as important as it was over 2000 years ago when they were written by the hand of God.Man has never been able to live in this physical realm without laws, rules and regulations. Adam was told what he could and couldn't eat in the Garden of Eden. He too failed to follow God's command.
Every Christian has a list of rules and laws they follow. Most of us never violate the book full of rules that the IRS uses to govern our taxes, because failure to adhere to any one of them can land you in prison. No one knowingly breaks any of the rules set by their employer, because they want to keep their jobs.
However when it comes to The 10 Commandments, Christians seem to run roughshod over them, breaking some of them on the list, several times a day, without thinking about the real harm they are bringing on themselves. It's not because they aren't posted everywhere we go, to help us remember them either.
Live, Teach and Know The 10 Commandments
The Bible states we shouldn't become fixated with the physical imagery of God and that should include his Commandments. After all none of them are the original stone tablets so it's useless to get all huffy about copies, when it seems that most people would rather forget about them than be reminded of the spiritual consequences of their actions.
Finally what really matters is that The Ten Commandments are written on our hearts and visible through a Christian's character, rather than merely crafted into a work of art and displayed on walls.
What Are The Ten Commandments And Why They Should Matter To You?
Men gnawed their tongues in agony and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.
That scripture is taken from the New Testament Book of Revelations it describes just some of the punishment that awaits those who have failed to keep God's Law and turn from their sinful ways.
However, if you’re a good person and have never violated any of The Ten Commandments, right, then you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
How Being A Good Person Can Cost You Your Life
The truth of the matter is, everyone falls short and the Ten Commandments are a mirror to expose the wickedness of our sins and why we need salvation.
No matter how good of a Christian you may think you are or how good you try to be, when you compare yourself to God’s standard, you’ll realize that you should be grateful for his mercy and grace that allows you to be forgiven for your trespasses.
More Of The Ten Commandments
Let’s take a brief look and see what Commandments most Christians seem to have the biggest problem obeying. "Thou shalt not steal," "Thou shalt not covet," and how about this one, "Thou shalt love thy fellow man as much as thou lovest thyself."
Maybe you truly avoid doing any wrong to your fellow man and you haven’t had a problem following any of these Commandments yet, then wait until we get to the remainder of them and you’ll see how good you really have been.
God’s designed the system and principles by which every Christians should live that are based on faith, trust and obedience to his word. The Bible states (Galations 3:24) the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ.
Why God's Law Should Matter To You
Jesus revealed to us, that no on can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again (John 3) and whoever rejects the Son will not enjoy eternal life, for God’s wrath remains on him.
Does it matter, whether the wrath of God is upon you? Don't settle for just being a good person when you can become a new creation?
What Are The Ten Commandments and Why All The Fuss?
You cannot post "Thou Shalt Not Steal," "Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery," and "Thou Shall Not Lie" in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians...It creates a hostile work environment.(quote from the web)
Overview Of The Commandments
I want to continue with the overview of the Ten Commandments to help those new Christians who don’t understand the history and importance these divine laws hold for all mankind.
In the preface to the Ten Commandments or Decalogue, (Deut 6: 24-25) it states “the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day. Then it will be righteousness for us”.
There are only four or five Commandments that are purely theological in content. They have a major influence on the manner of worship and other principles of the Jewish and Christian religions. The Decalogue predates just about all the religions of the world.
Should We Follow The Ten Commandments
The remaining Commandments address moral and ethical rules of behavior.
Although they have traditionally been regarded as the foundational laws for Christians, various text, traditions and tenets of other religions incorporate the Ten Commandments. Although it does not contain the actual text, Islam’s holy book, the Qur'an makes a reference to them that urges they be followed.
No one has openly claimed that abiding by these rules for Christian living is outdated or pretentious, but an attack on their display in public places has been underway for over a decade.
The Clash Over Separation of Church and State
Until the beginning of the Revolutionary War, nine of the thirteen colonies forced colonist to support a particular religion. Thomas Jefferson authored these words as part of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, “the Holy Author of our religion, who, being Lord both of body and mind, yet chose not to propagate it by force”
The clash between proponents of separation of church and state and Christians today, is nothing like the institutionalized religion that once used an iron hand to dominate society.
Free RSS Subscription
The next post will show more about the current battle being waged to have the Ten Commandments removed from the publics view. Click on the RSS button to subscribe to Brother to Brother and have the entire Series on the Ten Commandments and great Christian resources available to read at your leisure.
What Are The Ten Commandments?
Get The Free RSS Feed
The Lord never intended the laws that he gave to Moses to be rules for the godly. These clearly are written to warn the ungodly to change their ways. When you take a look at the things that they address, it's easy to determine that the 10 Commandments are to help sinners see that they are not pleasing God.
All of the laws that have ever been written stem from two important commandments. The main focus of these two important laws remind us, to value the intrinsic need for a personal relationship with God and each other.
The Most Important Commandment
The most important relationship that anyone can ever have is their relationship with God. By including the requirement to love the Lord, as a law, it shows how essential worship and love are to the well-being of humans.
In the Gospel of Matthew, a Pharisee, who was an expert on the law of Moses, asked Jesus which of the commandments was the most important, his reply was, to love the Lord thy God.
Love Thy Neighbor
Jesus told us the second most important commandment is likened to the first one. The command to "love thy neighbor as thy self". This stresses the need for each of us to give and receive an unconditional love. It doesn't elevate any particular group of people, the rulers or the rich over others, but shows that we are all due the same quantity and quality of love.This means Christians should treat everyone with the same level of respect.
These laws were surely written by a just and merciful God and not designed by man.
Get The Feed It's Free!
I plan to continue this discussion on the remaining commandments in the next blog post. You can click the RSS button to get all of the great resources listed on this site and any new stuff sent by Feedburner straight to your My Yahoo, Newsgator, AOL, Google or any other reader by signing up for the free RSS feed.
The 10 Commandments For Redneck Christians
I wanted to add a little humor to your day with this gut busting redneck version of the 10 Commandments I spotted over at Godtube.com.
It's always fun when you can laugh at yourself like these guys are doing in this Christian comedy video from SundayNightTV's.
The credit goes to You Tube for making it possible to show it here on Blogger. When will we be able to post Godtube videos directly to Blogger.
3 Key Things Christian Businessmen Need to Know About Doing Business Online.
If you’re a Christian businessman who would like to know the proper way to establish a web presence for their business. Let me shed some light on a few of the things that must be addressed for your website to be successful.
According to Pew Research “Almost 93% of internet users say they have done something related to E-commerce”. That means people are shopping and searching online for information to make a purchase everyday.
To achieve a web presence and capitalize on new streams of income by doing business online, Christian businessmen have to remember,
the principles of selling never change.Here are three key things you should know.
Know your target audience.
Just like with any business do your research to define your ideal customer. This will help you narrow down the best prospects and where on the web they are spending the most time.
Know how to develop an identity for your online brand.
Creating a user friendly experience is essential if you expect to keep your customers coming back.
Know how to use technology to enhance the functionality of your site.
Flash and bling should be used to ease your customers shopping experience and not just to show off your product.
Each of these dimensions should accent each other in your web presence and aid in building strong relationships with your customers and visitors.
In a recent interview best selling author and Super bowl winning head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, Tony Dungy, stated that you can be successful at anything, if you make God a part of it.
Couple that first hand encouragement from Tony with Matthew 7:7-9, that says “ask and it shall be given unto you,” and the knowledge that the online market has grown to over $34. billion in the third quarter of 2007.
Then ask yourself. Why shouldn’t more Christian businessmen be considering taking their products online?
How Christian Men Can Tell A Good Idea From A Business Opportunity
Just about all of us have had those moments when the light bulb goes off inside our head, so how can you know whether yours is a money making venture and not just a good idea?
Whatever great idea or business opportunity Christian men get from God, selling your product to Christians should be part of your marketing strategy. A study conducted by a major Christian retail channel shows the retail value of Christian products sold by its members through all distribution channels reached $4.63 billion in 2006.
These are not just Bibles and books. Their members offer a wide range of products and services from apparel, curriculum, gifts, greeting cards, music software and videos.
There are 5 questions that Christian men can ask upfront to uncover some key points before you sink your hard earned cash into any business.
1. What is your unique selling proposition?
Yes, you do have to sell your product Virginia Wolf and knowing what makes your product better than it’s competitors is crucial to its success.
2. What makes your product appealing?
A good product should have some kind of sensory or emotional appeal to consumers, in other words, it should make them look or fell better.
3. How will your products show value?
Value isn’t only about pricing. What about quality and there is the emotional aspect that's important too.
4. Is your product idea interesting and exciting?
Your product will be competing against lots of other established and new brands and being a dull "me too" won’t motivate sales.
5. Product features.
A good product has to deliver in more ways than one. It should be able to last longer or offer more uses than your competitors.
These are just a few of the many considerations every product should go through before it can take it's place on the shelves of any store. The Bible reminds Christian businessmen in Proverbs 21:5 to have well developed plans, so do lots of research before spending too much money on any business.
If you want more information on deciding if your product is a great idea or a business opportunity, I recommend Christian men take a few minutes to read, "Is Your Great Idea a Real Business". Melanie Lindner hits on a few more things you may want to consider about going from an idea to a viable business.
If you already have a product you would like to introduce to the Christian market, check out the website for the CBA it's one of the leading Christian retail channels. Christian businessmen should make every effort to attend one of the many trade shows and conferences they host for retailers of Christian products.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)