The overall tone of Haggai 1:2-11 is communicated via the first two words of God’s message: these people. They imply strain, tension, a fractured relationship. If the LORD so desired, He could have called them my people, as He often does through the Scriptures. Yet He distanced Himself instead, calling them these people. It reminds …
My original plan was for this sermon to be a prologue to the Ten Commandments; however, after discovering that I had left a Sunday off my spreadsheet, I decided to make it instead an epilogue to the series after the added standalone Christmas-themed sermon. Since there are no accidents but only providence, I fully believe …
You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's. Exodus 20:17 ESV Although we will definitively conclude our study of the Ten Commandments with an epilogue sermon, we do arrive …
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Exodus 20:16 ESV In our study of the Ten Commandments, we come now to the penultimate mandate: you shall not bear false witness against your neighbor, the Ninth Commandment. Unlike the prohibitions against murder, adultery, or theft, we might be tempted to these final two commandments …
You shall not steal. Exodus 20:15 ESV Having now studied the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Commandments, we are prepared to enter the second half of the second table of the Ten Commandments. As with the previous three commandments, we will continue to seek three things from this text: the explicit meaning of the commandment, the …
You shall not commit adultery. Exodus 20:14 ESV There is an interesting symmetry to be found within our recently studied commandments. The Fifth Commandment presented us with how we must relate to those who gave us life, our father and mother. The Sixth Commandment then dealt with how we actually treat life itself, specifically among …
You shall not murder. Exodus 20:13 ESV With our study of the Sixth Commandment, we now officially move into the second half of the Ten Commandments. As we noted while discussing the Fifth Commandment, the final six commands apply directly to how we treat our fellow humans, whereas the first four consider how we relate …
