This sermon was preached at the 10:30 Service on Sunday 26th October as part of my Pastoral Placement in St.. Bartholomew's Stranmillis Belfast. It Concluded a sermon Series on the 10 commandments.
1 Kings 21; Ephesians 4;
Heavenly Father,
I pray that you would take my lips and speak through them, take our minds and think through them and take our hearts and set them on fire with love for you – In jesus name we pray - Amen
I wonder if I asked anyone in church this morning to recite the 10 commandments – would you be able to do it?
Maybe you learnt them in school, maybe before your confirmation. Could I invite you to turn with me in your prayer books to page 767 and see that they are written in the context of the catechism. The teaching of the church.
Clearly there is some importance we give to these laws – In this sermon I would like to consentrate on three areas
Firstly old testament
Then Paul’s understanding of the laws
And then what does it say to us here in Belfast many thousands of years later.
In our first reading this morning we read of one of the so-called evil kings
If you are ever looking for political intrigue and scandal – Take a study through the book of first kings!
So Let me introduce you to King Ahab:
* Son of the evil King Omri
* Married the infamous Jezebel and bought into her cultic practices worship of Baal and Asherah.
* Let his people through 2 wars assisted by YHWH
When you read the story of Ahab you see that God sent people to try to warn him that he was on the wrong track but he just doesn’t seem to listen. One of the biggest characters was Yahweh’s man Elijah through whom God showed his power – continually giving Ahab the chance to change. And eventually he did repent.
In marriage, he married someone who was a foreigner and who brought their religious practices with them – even though it was forbidden by the Lord. Ahab then introduced the idol Baal and built places for the worship of Asherah. This was the Beginnings of his problems.
Elijah told him that there was to be no other God’s but the Lord and that he needed to repent – He didn’t – Elijah prayed for no rain and no rain came - exile
Then Elijah again confronted Ahab – contest on Mount Carmel – Prophets of Baal v’s Elijah. YHWH triumphed BUT Jezebel ordered Elijah Killed!
Then there was the Battles against Benhadad – A prophet calls Ahab to lead the attack if they are to be successful – he did and they were
The prophet hold Ahab that there would be another battle – there was and again that was successful – The lord had given them the victory – one problem was that he didn’t finish off the job – and for that Ahab would have to suffer. So it is with this background that we meet and can understand some of what is going on when it comes to Naboths vineyard
Ahab has had tremendous success he has, through the power of God, saved his country from being taken over by the Syrian army. He has seen God cause famine, but when he has listened to prophets the Lord acted powerfully.
Now about 20 miles north of his capital – he had his eyes on a vineyard – it must have been a very good vineyard to Ahab to have wanted it. He offered to pay high price for it – but Naboth the owner was having none of it! – it was his inheritance and – the king could not demand that!
What happens next contravenes a number of our covenant laws
Firstly there is out right coveting of literally his neighbours house – he does this by what we would say – going into a great big SULK.
Then we see his wife getting involved and writing a death warrant for poor naboth and sealing it – Bearing false witness and then ultimately murdering.
So on top of all the things which went before – this king, who is meant to be ruler of God’s people has literally contravened the laws he was meant to be upholding!
That said – we see that his actions are not without consequence. He does undergo, a period of penitence, he realizes the stupidity of his actions and repents.
As we flick over to we see Paul writing to a people who are trying to make sense of a culture – not to dissimilar to our own in terms of being a polytheistic society where personal desire and ambition are ruling the minds.
Take a look at Pauls Description of the prevailing culture
v19 Having lost all sensitivity they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity with a continual lust for more.
When we look at magazines, shops, credit cards, gossip mags is this the prevailing culture. When we look at the news headlines – shootings, affairs, hate crime, under currents of distrust … do the ten commandments have any relevance to us today … surely they do … they must!
They under pin our legal system.
But what are we as Christians to do? … When I was putting the conclusion to this sermon in my study room in Dublin – it was Thursday when there was heavy wind and rain and I imagined a boat on the sea – being tossed about on the waves. Without a compass, without having a fixed point of reference it is extremely easy to loose one way, ones route through life.
Paul in this passage is reminding the Christians that they are different – they are to stand up to the culture – they are to put on the new self – a self which is not ruled by the prevailing culture, not caught up in selfish ambition nor any of the other characteristics of the world – he gives a couple of examples which are relevant to our studies into the 10 commandments
Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbour – why? For we are all members of the same body
He who has been stealing must steal no longer
He goes further … Get rid of all bitterness rage and anger, brawling and slander along with every form of malice and then the new self
Be kind and compassionate to one another; forgiving each other as Christ forgive you.
That was Paul writing in the 1st Century
How about 20 Centuries later?
I am a natural rebel – if someone lays down the rules I look for away around them: in Banbridge High – we had a double A4 page of School Rules – To this day I know the first 20 of them because I had to write them out so many times – for forgetting homeworks etc.
Some were really silly – Schoolbags must be carried on the right way from the wall, some were strange and long – respect must be shown to teachers, office staff, principal, caretakers, cleaners, secretaries
A basic list of do’s and don’t
When we look at the 10 commandments it can seem like school rules, a list of dos and don’ts however I do believe that there is something beyond them, something more of a relationship.
Please turn in your prayer books to page 222
On this page we see the 10 commandments which are the basic do’s and don’ts but with the relationship through Christ who is the fulfilment of the law added – As Christians we keep the 10 Commandments not out of Duty but out of love and our personal commitment to Christ who draws us all into that relationship
As we reflect upon Ahab who directly contravened the commandments and Paul who urged the Christians in Ephesus to put on their new selves so we turn to ourselves – what changes do we need to make to be living within the spirit of the law.
As we conclude I have asked Ron to read the commandments and I will read the New Testament commentary. I would invite you to take a few moments to about your own response to them and what you need to change, or do.
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