MEDITATING ABOUT THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
The Scriptures, also known as the Bible, The Word of God, or God’s Word, are divided into two sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Scriptures is God’s inspired Word for life profitable doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).
The Ten Commandments are laws that apply to God’s mandates to live a perfect in righteousness. Anyone who opens a Bible can find the Ten Commandments written in the Old Testament. To find the Ten Commandments in the Bible, we look in the second chapter of Exodus 20, verses 2-17. The review of the Ten Commandments is found in the fifth book of the Bible, Deuteronomy, chapter 5, verses 6-21.
Indeed, we continually strive to stand on firm ground, living in righteousness; we recognize that we were born into a sinful nature and have grown into it over the years. However, it does not mean we cannot stand firm in God’s will to change our destiny according to God’s purpose. We must learn and adapt accordingly, praying to be safe from committing unlawful sins, transgressions, and iniquities.
In other words, to know ourselves better, we must read, learn, and meditate on the Word of God to lead us always through trials, tribulations, temptations, transgressions, wickedness, and iniquities committed in our generations and from past generations beyond the fourth generations.
For instance, if we know that in the book of Exodus chapter 20, verse 13 says: “You shall not murder,” we should avoid doing so as it will be a transgression of the Scriptures and a sin to God.
Consequently, shame, guilt, remorse, and many other forces of darkness can cloud our mind, soul, body, and strength that belong to our Almighty God. Therefore, the chapter shows us how the Scriptures instruct us to avoid this unlawful sin experience and instead follow His commandments to maintain righteousness, thereby avoiding the despicable and abominable acts that can follow us throughout our lifetime.
God’s Word is so comforting that it shows and guides us to think and discern right from wrong. It takes us to meditate on it, refraining from unlawfully violating the commandments and the Scriptures.
Reflecting on the commandments and regulations can evoke a great deal of remorse and regret for things we should never have done. However, it is essential to read the Bible more frequently and recall the chapters of Exodus and Deuteronomy. So do not hesitate; read either one or the other often to be safe and in agreement with God.
Let us meditate for a second on these commandments:
We shall have no other gods (deities, images) before our Father God. As simple as it sounds. It acknowledges that we should not be praising other gods but the only powerful, faithful, merciful, compassionate, and majestic God Almighty YHWH. He is The Omnipresent, Omniscient, and Omnipotent God.
We shall not make carved images in its likeness for ourselves, in heaven, on the Earth beneath, or under the waters. Our Father God is jealous of our praises and actions toward other lower gods or deities that could take His place in our minds, hearts, souls, and spirits.
We shall not take (misuse, swear, misinterpret, and misrepresent) the name of the Lord, our God, in vain. None of us want our words to be used ungodly and unjustly. Therefore, refrain from using God’s name in vain.
God says we should honor our Fathers and Mothers to make our days longer on Earth. So yes, our parents deserve respect, consideration, and love for all they have done to bring us to life and through it to this day.
We shall not murder because we are sinning, causing our spirit to groan and moan for what we have done. Undoubtedly, this is a heavy spine we could carry in our hearts for the rest of our lifetimes if we are capable of hurting someone to the point of taking away their breath. Although God loves us and loves the world more than we can ever think or imagine, and yes, we may doubt God, which is a sin. However, He sends his only beloved Son into the world, not for condemnation but salvation (John 3:16).
We shall not commit adultery, which makes us feel guilty of committing unfaithful and aggravated crime actions alone or in conjunction with another person to others.
We shall not steal. When we have robbed something from someone, our mindset is not the same anymore; we feel the guilt of such actions, which could be devastating for our future with God if this is not corrected.
We shall not bear false witness against our neighbor’s house. May God help us not to fall into disobedience to His command and to exhibit extremely reproachable lawless behaviors.
We shall not desire our neighbor’s wife, husband, partner, or anything from that house, land, or farm. Whatever our neighbors have, we must not cultivate jealousy, envy, and evil desires to possess the same things. We do not know how or by what means it was acquired, so do not fall into greedy ambitions and desires.
One more thing to remember is that the Sabbath is a Holy day for the Lord. However, in many countries, due to government calendars and laws, we have to work and also fulfill other obligations, but we can dedicate time to meditate on God’s Scriptures and spend time with God. Regardless of our government, school, work, or personal calendar, we must make time for God. We should stand firm and take a solid position to honor God and accommodate our daily time to praise and worship our God. We only need to enter our secret place to honor our Abba-Father God.
Finally, we must read and meditate on the Ten Commandments, consider their application, and refrain from any life-changing behavior that leads to sin and unlawful transgressions. However, we know that because the love of our God is deep to the world, He has given us His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16.) Let our mind, soul, and spirit rest assure that our God is there to forgive us if we come boldly to confess our sins to Him. These sins and transgressions wash away when we believe and transform our lives to be more in His image.
KNOWING ‘SELF THROUGH GOD
Most of the time, humans believe in knowing everything about themselves, except to discover at some point in later life that we do not know. We discover it when the godly or sinful nature of trials and tribulations leads us to acceptable or regrettable events.
Some people seek the unknown to fill their lives. Sometimes, when the unknown is not defined, it creates lives filled with unrealistic fallacies, which increases the wrong desire in one’s mind and heart. For instance, we always sought to encounter the perfect human male or female for life marriage, a perfect match to fit forever with our persona.
For some, the beginning always seems like a Cinderella dream, a life acceptable to one’s desire. For others, the beginning could be an unexpected nightmare. The truth is that everyone is looking for perfectionism. An existence life path downgraded to zero challenges with no massive tragedies, no fatal incidents, and no significant worries. In other words, freedom from trials and tribulations.
However, through faith, believing, and the Scriptures, God shows us He is there for us. Our reactions to unreasonable circumstances could lead to dangerous temptations when things are not working according to our needs. Moreover, society puts pressure on individual life expectations. For instance, society questions whether marriage does not happen at the right time. They question whether we live with someone without marrying by law, whether it is by a religious ceremony or a civil one.
Our response to the questioning can be unexpected. Did we know our response would be harsh to the questioning? Do we know if annoyance or an angry attitude will appear? Maybe not if that is not the way people know us. However, when we know God and have a daily relationship with Him, we know better ourselves because our attitude changes to God’s image, to a Christ-like mindset, to show the fruit of the Spirit growing in us.
We know ourselves better when we know God. Therefore, we are more careful to ask God for knowledge in His will and wisdom and understanding (Colossians 1:9-12, James 1:5, and Proverbs 3:5-6. ), which allows us to build an intimate relationship with God, even to learn how to answer each person (Colossians 4:6.), God helps us in all our decisions and purpose for your life. However, we have the liberty to choose, and we can make wrong choices if we are not careful in developing a close relationship with God.
Unfortunately, when we do not consult the Creator of the Universe, our Almighty God, knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, many things can be out of place in no time in everything we want to accomplish. We suffered every misunderstanding, every disagreement, every misconception, every misinterpretation. Looking back, we realize that along the way, we had lost numerous magnificent friends and relationships cultivated throughout the years, and worse, we could even lose our close ones.
Indeed, some relationships could be highly dysfunctional. In many other ways, dysfunctional relationships include culture, background, education, language, finances, love, and religion. Consequently, what do we do when everything is going in the wrong direction? How do we get back to the point where everything is under control? Nevertheless, God controls our dysfunctional life. Remember God, trust Him, and He will lead us in everything according to His plans and will for a prosperous and successful life.
Furthermore, we can construct a relationship under a thin string of enormous mistakes. Knowing God’s desire and purpose for our life can change it. In the Bible, Psalms 25:4-5 says,
“Show me Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths.
Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my Salvation;”
Consequently, consulting God is the first and ultimate option for abundant blessings. We get joy-filled in a unique relationship with Him and through Him. A life of blessings from the Heavenly Father changes any flaming poisonous afflictions, trials, and tribulations. Therefore, knowing ourselves through God is the maximum expression of an exciting and blessed life and experience.
I
ACTIONS LEAD CLOSER TO GOD
First and foremost, knowing the Word of God is an excellent response to the question that all of you should also answer to move in the right direction in your lives–reading the Scriptures, committing the Word of God to memory, and applying it. It essentially means getting wisdom and understanding from no other book but the inspiration of God, the Bible.
To receive wisdom and understanding, read the Scriptures daily, meditating regularly on the Words in it for you, which will provide prosperity and great success in all your doings. In the Bible, Joshua 1:8 emphasizes the complete activation of your conscious, subconscious, and unconscious mind, causing you cling to the Scriptures and activate your mouth to speak the Word.
Joyfully learning the Bible should help you understand what God wants and what He has planned for your life. The Scriptures provide outstanding mental, emotional, spiritual, and behavioral wisdom and discernment for your daily life and the whole future. For instance, learning to read the Word of God is extremely important because it can help you avoid making the wrong decisions. If your neighbor hates you, it has been written that a believer should not pay back hate with hate, but instead, it is an expectation that you love your neighbor as you love yourself, as the second most enormous commandment demands from you (Matthew 22:39).
Secondly, you want to know yourself by learning the Bible’s commandments. Read, meditate, and practice these commandments continuously (1 Thessalonians 5:17), which shall prevent you from sinning. You and I are born in a sinful world to carry the sins committed by past generations, including our ancestors.
Nevertheless, you can break the cycle by learning these Heavenly Laws that the Bible shows you. As an illustration, if someone from your prior generations, an uncle, a brother, or a sister, killed another person, you shall be able to cut off the curse upon your generations by not doing the same. Consequently, you know that you shall not murder anyone (Exodus 20:13). Therefore, the commandments will support the Spiritual renewal in you that transforms your character, building a mindful, thoughtful, and heartfelt human being with godly-like behavior.