Ten Rules
 A rose by any other name is a rose. Maybe so. Ruth and I are putting a new flower bed in the left corner of the back yard. In the bed we are putting several kinds of roses, one of which is a bright yellow rose named "Henry Fonda." I like yellow roses, perhaps because I am a native Texan. Yet I am sure that this rose would be bright yellow regardless of its name. Is it peculiar to you that it is named "Henry Fonda." It is to me. Did Henry Fonda raise roses? Somehow I can't see Henry Fonda as a rose.
Roses are one thing; God is another. The first commandment tells us in no uncertain terms that God says "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:1). Since the revealed "Name" of God is the primary way God is known to us we cannot say that God by any other name is still God. It doesn't work that way. You may know that the foundational Name of God to the Hebrews was "Yahweh Sebaoth," meaning basically "Lord of Hosts." It is a Name of mystery and power, holiness and terror, salvation and blessing. One of the primary ways God makes Himself to Israel is through the "Ten Commands." [Later the Most High will be revealed through Jesus Christ (John 17:6; Philippians 2:9).]
The Ten Commandments are a political hot potato these days. Gov. Paul Patton recently signed into Kentucky law a bill that calls for posting the Commandments in public schools and restoring a monument to them on the Capitol grounds. His judgment is now being tested in court. The Ten Commands (or Ten Commandments), however, are more than policy statements or mere religious history or a method of religious indoctrination. "The ten commands thus are situated so as to be the bedrock of Yahweh's intention for Israel, from which all other command in Israel is understood to be derivative." This means the ten commands are a call to obedience by those people who desire to follow God. They are the "bedrock" of what God wants from those who call on Him. These teachings are not a piece of ancient history, they are the continuing driving force of the ways we are to relate to God and one another. They are not optional. We cannot drop them if we do not like them.
There are at least three important general meanings to these commandments (cf. Exodus 20:1-17 for a list the commandments). First, they render obsolete any claim to absolute power other than that made by God. Neither Pharaoh's authority, Roman military might, nor the Constitution of the United States equal, much less surpass, the authority of God. There are no other ultimate gods or powers compared to Yahweh. God alone is Ruler. Second, the commandments teach us that we cannot run roughshod over others, take what is theirs for ourselves, or in any way demean or humiliate them. People and property must be protected. Third, the commandment to rest on the Sabbath affirms a human community that values peace above unbridled production and consumption. The commandments speak of an alternative way of life to exploitation, covetousness, and the idea that there are no ultimate values. Human life is precious and peace/righteousness is its basic character.
The Ten Commandments are God's call to honor the divine will, live well, share unselfishly, be responsible, and respect the rights of others. Seen in this light we can understand why many Christians who live in the United States see dropping the Ten Commandments from our national life as a turning from God and a turning to a self-interest value system that threatens the best interests of all people.
Jerry Mercer
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