10 Commandments

     Exodus 20 presents God's commandments as given to Moses on Mt. Sinai.  These commandments are the way of life God intends for His people to apply to their lives.  We all need to read the Scriptures as written; however, since I enjoy rhyme, below is a little something that came to mind regarding the 10 Commandments:

        Commandments

Obey the laws of the Lord;

Write them on heart and mind; keep them stored.

There is to be no other God; just the Almighty One.

Placing Him first is how life is won.

He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.

There is no greater Father and friend.

Do not bow to graven images or idols of any kind

Lest God slip from your mind.

Silver and gold, wealth of any form,  

In the heart and soul, it will not warm.

Do not take God's precious name, nor that of His Son, in vain;

Keep it holy, without stain.

Watch the tongue

From which your words are sprung.

As did He,

Six days He worked, then He rested. Test it!

Do the same!  On the Sabbath rest.

While giving praise to God, enjoy the day with zest.

Love and honor Mother and Father.

Enjoy them whenever you gather.

Respect and grow within their wise direction;

Fill the heart with parental affection.

Do not your friend, neighbor, or others kill

Nor cause unnecessary ill.

Instead, love friend and foe;

Sow seeds of peace wherever you go.

Do not steal;

It lowers character appeal.

Rather, work for your living, food, and what you wear,

Giving God His fair share.

Stay away from worldly desires and adulterous ways.

They'll snare and destroy your days.

Human touch is sweet when mixed with faithfulness;

Keep it pure, and God will bless.

Lies, deceit, false witness; It's trashy talk

and has no place in the daily walk.

Heaven's eyes take notice of gossiping faults,

Plots, and schemes throughout life's waltz. 

Do not covet anything or anyone;

Look only to what God, for you, has done. 

Be ever thankful for blessings on each bestowed;

It's God who decides what each is owed.    

Daily; second, minute, hour

God's laws hold power.

Through the ages they prevail;

A map to guide your trail.

Obey the laws and win God's applause.

Ten Plagues

      When God has a plan, nothing or anyone can stop it.  When Moses was sent to deliver the Israelites from the cruel hand of the Egyptians, he had to deal with a hard-hearted Pharaoh.  In fact, Pharaoh was so against what God requested that God actually issued 10 plagues  upon the Egyptians.  Why did God use 10 plagues, since He had the power to impose His will at any time?  Scriptures tell us, "I have planned this in order to display my glory through Pharaoh and his whole army.  After this the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord!" (NLV-Exodus 14:4)  
     I pray it does not take anything like these plagues to wake us up to what the Lord wants us to do; although, I must admit, we are having a lot of devastation  and turning from God today.    What will it take to wake up the souls of man to God and His wonderful salvation plan?  God did not send His only Son to earth to be crucified in order to be rejected. 
     As a reminder, here are the 10 plagues God used against the Egyptian people:

1.  The Nile turned to blood.  The fish died and the water stank.  There was none to drink.

2.  Frogs covered the land, entering bedrooms, jumping into ovens and kneading bowls. They tormented the poor Egyptian souls.

3.  Dust turned into swarms of gnats, covering everyone, people and animals alike.  They came from the dust and spread with the wind's gust.

4.  Next came swarms of flies.  They filled the houses and the palace.  No one was spared from their malice.

5.  The livestock died; horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, sheep, and goats.  None were spared.  For this the people were unprepared.

6.  Festering boils infected the Egyptians and their animals.  The boils spread by soot and ashes in the air which was more than they could bear.

7.  A devastating hailstone blew in killing people and animals, wiping out plants and trees.  Yet it did not bring Pharaoh to his knees.

8  The East wind brought in swarms of locust which covered the whole country and darkened the land.  They devoured the plants and the fruit which had survived the hailstorm.  Not a single leaf remained, in any form.

9.  Deep darkness so thick the people could not see was brought upon the land.  No one moved, and all went un-soothed.

10.  It took death to break the stubborn heart as all the first born sons and animals were struck down.  This brought crying and loud wailing never heard before, all lasting for hours and more.   

The One God

    As I rested in “A Friendly Shade” I looked at the symbol used by our pastor on the front of our church bulletin and thought about the service of, One Church and One Mission, and how we should be united as One.  The symbol was so fitting with the service.

     In fact, I like the symbol so much, I hope he does not mind if I borrow his idea to use it for my blog today.  

     I see the number “1” forming the last leg of N, and being near the center of  the word “One”, as the # 1 emphasis that should be in our lives.

 

1           God should be # 1 in our lives and He should be in the center of it all.  He is the first one we should talk with when we wake up each morning and the last one we should talk with before we go to sleep at night.  He is the First and the Last, and He should be in the center of all we think, do, and say. 

Isaiah 41:4  "Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he.”
Isaiah 48:12 “Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last"
Revelation 22:13 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."

ONE  The ONE tells me God is omnipotent – He created all things and holds the power over all creation.  He is ever present.

 Revelation 19:6 “And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!”

Breaking it down further:

O-  is for the Omega, the Only God.

Revelation 1:8 “ I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

 

     We are told in the scripture not to look to other Gods.  He is the  Only God who is in control of all things. 

Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.”

Psalm 72:18   “ Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, Who only does wondrous things!”

N- is for Jesus, who was born a Nazarene. 

Matthew 2:23 “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

     Because of His birth, death, and resurrection, those who believe in Him shall forever have a God who is near at all times.

Hebrews 13:5 “For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

E- If we believe, we will have an Everlasting Father

Isaiah 63:16 “Doubtless You are our Father, Though Abraham was ignorant of us, And Israel does not acknowledge us. You, O Lord, are our Father; Our Redeemer from Everlasting is your name.  

     There is a promise given to us from the ONE- and that is, an everlasting life.

John 3:16  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

 

Malachi 2:10  "Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously with one another ..."