When striving for faithfulness in the context of American politics, turning to the Ten Commandments may come as a bit of a surprise. If we’re honest, we often view the Ten Commandments as a list of “thou shall nots.” They seem a bit staid. The fact is, as a summary of God’s moral law, the Ten Commandments have abiding relevance for all times. The purpose of this article is to show that relevance as well as the motivation for keeping and applying them. This can be done utilizing the Westminster Shorter Catechism’s teaching.
The Preface to the Ten Commandments establishes the motivation.
Q43. What introduces the ten commandments?
These words introduce the ten commandments: "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery."
Q44. What does the introduction to the ten commandments teach us?
The introduction to the ten commandments teaches us that, because God is Lord and is our God and redeemer, we must keep all His commandments.
Motivation: Because God is the Lord, because he is our God, and he is the redeemer.
Each commandment includes a requirement, an explanation of what is forbidden, and a list of possible relevant issues to which we could apply it:
The First Commandment:
You shall have no other gods before me.
Q46. What does the first commandment require?
The first commandment requires us to know and recognize God as the only true God and our God, and to worship and glorify Him accordingly.
Q47. What does the first commandment forbid?
The first commandment forbids denying God or not worshipping and glorifying Him as the true God and our God. It also forbids giving worship and glory, which He alone deserves, to anyone or anything else.
Relevant Issues:
- Pragmatism: putting pragmatic political benefits ahead of Kingdom principles (i.e. the end justifies the means).
- Education: placing God at the center of creation and therefore the source of knowledge.
The Second Commandment
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand (generations) of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Q50. What does the second commandment require?
The second commandment requires us to receive, respectfully perform, and preserve completely and purely all the regulations for religion and worship that God has established in His word.
Q51. What does the second commandment forbid?
The second commandment forbids our worshipping God with images or in any other way not established in His word.
Relevant Issues:
- Freedom to worship as he has ordained.
- Freedom from government’s binding our consciences in what we preach and how we conduct sacred services.
- The Environment: abusing it as an idol.
The Third Commandment
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
Q54. What does the third commandment require?
The third commandment requires the holy and reverent use of God's names, titles, qualities, regulations, word, and works.
Q55. What does the third commandment forbid?
The third commandment forbids our treating as unholy or abusing anything God uses to make Himself known.
Q56. What is the reason for the third commandment?
The reason for the third commandment is that the Lord our God will not allow those who break this commandment to escape His righteous judgement, although they may escape punishment from men.
Application:
- Irresponsible use of language (e.g. pronouns).
- Incivility and ad hominem
- Regarding others in the image of God.
- Attributing to political leaders attributes or abilities which belong to God alone.
The Fourth Commandment
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Q58. What does the fourth commandment require?
The fourth commandment requires us to set apart to God the times He has established in His word - specifically one whole day out of every seven as a holy Sabbath to Him.
Q60. How do we keep the Sabbath holy?
We keep the Sabbath holy by resting the whole day from worldly affairs or recreations, even ones that are lawful on other days. Except for necessary works or acts of mercy we should spend all our time publicly and privately worshipping God.
Q61. What does the fourth commandment forbid?
The fourth commandment forbids failing to do or carelessly doing what we are supposed to do. It also forbids treating the day as unholy by loafing, by doing anything in itself sinful, or by unnecessary thinking, talking about, or working on our worldly affairs or recreations.
Q62. What are the reasons for the fourth commandment?
The reasons for the fourth commandment are these: God allows us six days of the week to take care of our own affairs; He claims the seventh day as His own; He set the example; and He blesses the Sabbath.
Application:
- Fair employment laws.
- Mistreatment of animals.
- Work and rest.
The Fifth Commandment
Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
Q64. What does the fifth commandment require?
The fifth commandment requires us to respect and treat others, whether above, below, or equal to us, as their position or our relationship to them demands.
Q65. What does the fifth commandment forbid?
The fifth commandment forbids being disrespectful to or not treating others as their position or relationship to us demands.
Q66. What is the reason for the fifth commandment?
The reason for the fifth commandment is the promise of long life and prosperity, if these glorify God and are for the good of those who obey this commandment.
Relevant Issues:
- Government overreach.
- Honoring and praying for elected officials.
- Law enforcement.
- Parental responsibility for children’s actions.
- Care and respect for the elderly.
- Proper guardrails for online gaming, social media, etc. for youth.
The Sixth Commandment
You shall not murder.
Q68. What does the sixth commandment require?
The sixth commandment requires making every lawful effort to preserve one's own life and the lives of others.
Q69. What does the sixth commandment forbid?
The sixth commandment forbids taking one's own life or the lives of others unjustly or doing anything that leads to suicide or murder.
Relevant Issues:
- Death penalty.
- Violent crime.
- Safety and dignity for the vulnerable.
- Border security.
- Just war.
- Accountability/oversight for Artificial Intelligence and Social Media.
- Accountability for responsible use of medicine.
- Just and merciful immigration laws/treatment.
- Adequate care for veterans.
- Gun laws
The Seventh Commandment
You shall not commit adultery.
Q71. What does the seventh commandment require?
The seventh commandment requires us and everyone else to keep sexually pure in heart, speech, and action.
Q72. What does the seventh commandment forbid?
The seventh commandment forbids thinking, saying, or doing anything sexually impure.
Relevant Issues:
- Marriage and good of children.
- Justice for sexually vulnerable.
- Public accountability for mistreatment of women.
- Pornography, adult entertainment industry.
The Eighth Commandment
You shall not steal.
Q74. What does the eighth commandment require?
The eighth commandment requires that we lawfully acquire and increase our own and others' money and possessions.
Q75. What does the eighth commandment forbid?
The eighth commandment forbids anything that either does or may unjustly take away money or possessions from us or anyone else.
Application:
- Crime and prosecution
- Poverty (e.g. Policies that keep the poor, poor and disenfranchised).
- Intellectual and creative theft using AI.
- Businesses which prey on the poor and charge exorbitant interest.
- Unjust housing policies.
- Theft of personal information for advertising purposes.
The Ninth Commandment
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
Q77. What does the ninth commandment require?
The ninth commandment requires us to tell the truth and to maintain and promote it and our own and others' reputations, especially when testifying.
Q78. What does the ninth commandment forbid?
The ninth commandment forbids anything that gets in the way of the truth or injures anyone's reputation.
Application:
- Primacy of pursuing and telling whole truth.
- Ruining someone’s good name with falsehoods or partial truths.
- Compromising personal convictions in order to advance career.
- Use of AI to spread misinformation, tarnish reputation of others (e.g. deep fakes).
- Criminal justice system.
- Right to vote.
The Tenth Commandment
You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Q80. What does the tenth commandment require?
The tenth commandment requires us to be completely satisfied with our own status in life and to have a proper, loving attitude toward others and their possessions.
Q81. What does the tenth commandment forbid?
The tenth commandment forbids any dissatisfaction with what belongs to us, envy or grief at the success of others, and all improper desire for anything that belongs to someone else.
Application:
- False advertising used to entice purchases.
- Unjust labor practices which enable online retailers to sell at deeply discounted prices.
- Algorithms that prioritize products online.
Conclusion
Q42. What is the essence of the ten commandments?
The essence of the ten commandments is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind, and to love everyone else as we love ourselves.
Q82. Can anyone perfectly keep the commandments of God?
Since the fall no ordinary man can perfectly keep the commandments of God in this life but breaks them every day in thought, word, and action.