Are the Ten Commandments Authoritative for Christians?
This might seem like a silly question. If you grew up in Sunday School, you will emphatically respond, “Yes, of course!” We’ve created a pedestal for the first ten commands Yahweh gave to Israel through Moses as recorded in the book of Exodus. This is perhaps because of their ability to represent a portion of the Jewish Law (or Torah), or maybe it’s because of their efficacy in solving behavioral issues in our children.
However, we must ask ourselves: is there a valid reason why these ten statutes should be considered authoritative for the Christian life while the rest of the Torah is ignored? The honest answer is no. There is nothing special about these Ten Commandments, other than that they are the first of many in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. They by no means represent the majority of the laws, and nowhere in the New Testament are we told, “Follow the Ten Commandments.”
You might respond, “But we have to teach our kids not to murder and steal and commit adultery and make idols in the shape of created things!” Well, that’s true. But if your answer is to turn to the Old Testament Law, you have two problems. First, if your goal is for your children to behave well, they don’t need Jesus. If you want to lead around an army of nice, clean cut, well-meaning, sociable kids, the gospel is not necessary at all. The purpose of the Law was to show that we all fall short of God’s glorious standard and that apart from the blood of Jesus there is no hope for us.
Teaching the Jewish Law as authoritative for Christians is the fastest way to create little pharisees. It also goes against what Paul said in multiple epistles (especially Galatians). Second, you have to explain why you have the authority to pick and choose which laws to follow. Why should your family obey the Ten Commandments and not the rest of the Torah? I don’t think we would find many people who struggle with misusing the name “Yahweh” (#3), or many parents requiring their kids to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy (#4). So, we’re also arbitrarily selecting eight of the ten based on our cultural trends and weekend schedules. Imposing our own interpretation on the words of Scripture is not only wrong, it sets the example for our kids that we use the Bible as tool to support our own agenda. There must be a better way to approach this section of of the Old Testament.
The Torah is a covenant between Yahweh and his people, Israel; and it must be understood as such. What we learn from every Old Testament story is nothing more and nothing less than God’s nature. He is the main focus of every passage and the main character of every story. If we approach the Law in this way, we can learn a lot about the holiness and the jealous love of our Father.
We also learn the background against which the rest of the Old Testament story is set. Several passages in the historical and prophetic books make no sense at all unless we understand the context provided in the Law: Israel must obey the commands in the covenant in order to receive the presence and blessing of Yahweh. That was the primary function of the Law, and knowing this gives us a clear view of the story God weaves through his relationship with Israel.
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