Are you a lawbreaker? Let me be more precise. Have you ever sped? Let me be even more precise. Have you ever, at any time, exceeded a posted speed limit as you were operating a motor vehicle? Wow, that definition kinda sounds like something out of a courtroom scene in an episode of Matlock. If you’ve driven for many years, I’m sure your answer is a resounding yes. Be honest, sometimes as you drive around town you speed and you don’t even know it. A few weeks back I drove up to Fayetteville to the University of Arkansas for a workshop and it was stressful to keep up with the speed limit changes! The drive meanders through 50 small country towns and it seems every town council has a very different idea of what a safe speed limit constitutes. But I noticed something. As much attention and care as I paid to those speed limits, I could never be perfect.
The Ten Commandments have to be one of the most misinterpreted items in God’s Word. Misinterpreted by the world, the unbeliever, the atheist, the pagan and even most believers. Most people just don’t know what to do with them. And on top of that this confusion gets fueled by counties placing marble monuments of the commandment tablets on the courthouse lawn and then sure enough some liberal group sues and they have to remove them. I talked with a guy a few months ago and our conversation turned to God. I asked if he went to church anywhere and out of the blue he tells me, “well I try to live by the 10 Commandments.” Wow, that really made me take a step back. I mean that’s a great guide to strive for, but God never gave us the Law to redeem us. Many people will miss Heaven as they are trying to “live” by the Ten Commandments. Let’s go deeper into God’s Law versus God’s grace and where the Ten Commandments fit into our lives today.
Back to our speeding analogy. If you have ever sped and thereby broken the law are you a lawbreaker? Well…ahhh…no…maybe…yes? I mean come one, I might have gone 38 in a 35 once 9 years ago but that doesn’t define me as a lawbreaker does it? I mean aren’t real lawbreakers those horrible murderers on death row or those mean drug dealers? I heard somebody say that the first time you cheat, you become a cheater for life. Sad but true. You see, if you have sped, even one time, you are now considered a speeder, and a lawbreaker for life. That’s all it takes as James will confirm:
“For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” James 2:10
So, when God issued the Ten Commandments to the people here in Exodus 20, this is what He was wanting to express to them. The Law cannot be kept perfectly, by anyone, anytime…EVER. Think of it this way, do you think that any human in the history of the world has ever kept the entire Ten Commandments perfectly for their entire lives. The answer of course is a resounding no. Most kids have told a lie 10 minutes after their first words are out of their mouth. You see, we all inherited a sin nature and whether we like it or agree with it, we sin, it’s who we are. So, you might be saying, “well, Dan what’s the point of the Ten Commandments if no one can possibly keep them?” BAM! Now we’re cooking with Crisco.
You see God gave us the Law to show us who we really are. We cannot keep His Law. His Law is perfect and we are not. It’s like oil and water. Never the twain shall meet. Think about this picture. You have been out working in the yard planting flowers and you get some dirt on your face, so you head to your bathroom to get clean. There are at least two things here in the bathroom vanity area, a sink and a mirror and you will need them both to get clean. You will need the mirror to show you that you are dirty and exactly where you are dirty. And you will need water to wash that dirt away. Folks, the mirror is God’s Law, the Ten Commandments. You cannot wash your face with the mirror, it merely shows you that you are dirty, that there is sin in your life. But to deal with the sin that the mirror identifies, you need water. And the water is Jesus. Here is where we move from God’s Law to God’s Grace.
You see, no matter how hard you try or focus, you will sin and you will break God’s Law, it’s inevitable. The quicker you accept it, the quicker you can embrace God’s grace. God knew we couldn’t keep the Law and He gave us a way to wash our dirty face. He sent His only Son Jesus. Later in this very chapter we’ll see God follow the giving of His Law with specific directions on how to build an altar to Him. You see sin requires payment. A Holy God cannot and will not accept sin or be in the presence of sin. It has to be dealt with. In the Old Testament the people would offer sacrifices to God. They would kill innocent, blameless, spotless animals and offer them to God as payment for the sins in their life. But as Jesus hung on that Cross 2000 years ago, those sacrifices are no longer needed. God sent the perfect sacrifice. The precious blood of Jesus Christ will cover every sin ever committed past, present and future. If you admit that you’re a sinner, that is, that you have broken God’s Law even once, then you realize that you need this sin to be covered by a sacrifice before you can approach a perfect God. To do this is simple. It’s free, it’s easy, it’s a gift from God, the single biggest gift ever bestowed upon humanity. Admit you’re a sinner, a lawbreaker, and what Jesus did on the Cross can wash away your sins. That His death and resurrection can and will wash away your sins like a spot of dirt upon your face. After you call Jesus your Lord, when God looks at you, He will not see the dirt of your sin but only the cleanliness of where Jesus washed you as white as snow.
The Law was never meant to save, God sent His only begotten Son to do that. So that He and He alone could save sinners from eternal separation from God. So, when you see a speed limit sign today, let it remind you of God’s Law and that it cannot be kept perfectly. As a result of this realization, say a prayer of thanksgiving to Jesus. That He came to this planet as a perfect sacrifice for you, to wash away the dirt of your transgressions against God’s unattainable Law. Praise Jesus for his work upon the Cross.
This is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the message of the Love of God. Your job? Share the Love.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16
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