The Ten Commandments

Q.     What are the Ten Commandments?

A.     The Ten Commandments are the laws given to Moses and the people of Israel.  

Q.     What do we learn from these commandments?

A.     We learn two things: our duty to God, and our duty to our neighbors.  

Q.     What is our duty to God?

A.     Our duty is to believe and trust in God;

                I. To love and obey God and to bring others to know him;

                II. To put nothing in the place of God;

               III. To show God respect in thought, word, and deed;

              IV. And to set aside regular times for worship, prayer, and the study of God’s ways.  

Q.     What is our duty to our neighbors?

A.     Our duty to our neighbors is to love them as ourselves, and to do to other people as we wish them to do to us;

               V. To love, honor, and help our parents and family; to honor those in authority, and to meet their just demands; 

              VI. To show respect for the life God has given us; to work and pray for peace; to bear no malice, prejudice, or hatred in our hearts; and to be kind to all the creatures of God;

             VII. To use our bodily desires as God intended;

             VIII. To be honest and fair in our dealings; to seek justice, freedom, and the necessities of life for all people; and to use our talents and possessions as ones who must answer for them to God;

               IX. To speak the truth, and not to mislead others by our silence; 

               X. To resist temptations to envy, greed, and jealousy; to rejoice in other people’s gifts and graces; and to do our duty for the love of God, who has called us into fellowship with him.  

Q.     What is the purpose of the Ten Commandments?

A.     The Ten Commandments were given to define our relationship with God and our neighbors.  

Q.     Since we do not fully obey them, are they useful at all?

A.      Since we do not filly obey them, we see more clearly our sin.

Q.     How does sin have power over us?

A.     Sin has power over us because we lose our liberty when our relationship with God is distorted.  

Q.     What is redemption?

A.     Redemption is the act of God, which sets us free from the power of evil, sin, and death.  

Q.     How did God prepare us for redemption?

A.     God sent the prophets to call us back to himself, to show us our need for redemption, and to announce the coming of the Messiah.

Q.     What is meant by the Messiah?

A.     The Messiah is one sent by God to free us from the power of sin, so that with the help of God we may live in harmony with God, within ourselves, with our neighbors, and with all creation.  

Q.     Who do we believe is the Messiah?

A.     The Messiah, or Christ, is Jesus of Nazareth, the only Son of God.