Living the 10 CommandmentsSecond Commandment

2nd commandment

• Exodus 20:4“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them…”

What’s new?

• 1st Commandment: You shall have no other gods before Me. (Exodus 20:3)• 1st Commandment tells the people WHO

to worship• 2nd Commandment tells them HOW to

worship• How do we know this? Deuteronomy 4

restates the 10 commandments.

2nd commandment revisited• Deuteronomy 4:15-19

“Take careful heed to yourselves, for you saw no form when the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure: the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any animal that is on the earth or the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground or the likeness of any fish that is in the water beneath the earth. And take heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which the LORD your God has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as a heritage.

So what does this mean?

• 1st Commandment says don’t worship other gods and don’t make idols of other gods to worship• 2nd Commandment says not to worship God

through carved images• Why is this relevant? What does it mean?

What did polytheists believe?

• There are both visible and invisible causes at work in the world• There are also natural and personal

causes• Natural causes• Water is essential to plant life• Water runs downhill• Day-night cycle• If you drop an object it falls to the ground• Predictable, repeatable, and anticipated

Polytheism

• Personal causes – actions of other human beings• Killing• Stealing • Lying• Governed by hidden desires• Unpredictable and not mechanical in nature• We might try to predict someone’s actions based on

what we know about them, but they could always surprise us

Polytheism• Visible• Natural: Observable physical laws• Personal: Human beings (wild, free, uncontrollable)

• Invisible• What exists here? Natural or personal causes?• The ancient polytheist believed that the invisible realm was

“peopled” by personal forces just like the physical realm• In their mind, invisible forces were more like the unpredictable

behaviors of humans than they were the predictable natural laws• Example: Sometimes rain came in spring, sometimes it didn’t• This decision would be attributed to a rain god

Gods in polytheism

• These gods acted largely in an unpredictable way to bring about their desires in the physical realm

• There were many such gods, all interacting with physical reality• They were at cross-purposes with each other• Some were stronger, some were weaker• The outcome in human affairs was the net result of the actions

of all the gods working with (or against) one another

Gods in polytheism

• Thus life was totally unpredictable, and it was best to remain in good standing with the most powerful of gods• Gods are finite and imperfect. They are simply

invisible forces that affect human affairs in a personal way.• They are not above the cosmos, but a part of it• A god can be defeated or nullified by other gods,

or even by human ingenuity

Amun-Ra

• Amun-Ra was the sun god in ancient Egypt• He was a personal being with a mind• The Egyptians did not believe that he was in fact

the sun, but that the sun was a physical representation of him in the physical world• He (and the other gods) actually operated in a

completely different realm• To the Egyptians, the sun’s nature and character

accurately represented Amun-Ra’s personality and nature

Amun-Ra

• They felt that the sun represented him best, whereas other elements such as water or air did not• Therefore they did not worship the

sun itself, as much as they worshipped Amun-Ra who was represented by the sun

What IS God saying?

• Do not create an image that represents Me and worship it as the other nations do for their gods• I am not limited to just one aspect of nature, but

have created and am in all things• I am not a finite or limited god that only has

dominion over one aspect of nature• I am not just one influence in your life, but the

Pantocrator

What IS God saying?

• Nothing in this visible realm is like Me• Do not conceive of Me as a God who can

be represented as a finite image• If you do, then it will not be Me you are

worshipping, but a shrunken deity of your own imagination

Purpose of the commandment• God is not saying that we should not have

representations of Him (icons, pictures, crucifixes, etc)• He wants us to worship Him as the

Pantocrator, the creator and sustainer of all things, and not limit Him in any way

How do we limit God?• Fear• Disobedience• Forgetfulness• Complaining• Unbelief• Insincerity• Unfaithfulness

Fear• Psalm 78:9 - The children of Ephraim, being armed and

carrying bows, Turned back in the day of battle.• St. Peter walking on water• God is not able to protect and preserve us

Disobedience• Psalm 78:10 - They did not keep the covenant of God; They

refused to walk in His law,• Genesis 3:4-5

Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.“

• God’s commands are overly restrictive. He is not looking out for my best interests

Forgetfulness• Psalm 78:11, 42

11 And forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them. 42 They did not remember His power: The day when He redeemed them from the enemy,

• Do we remember God’s deliverance and His promises?

Complaining• Psalm 78:19-20 - Yes, they spoke against God: They said, "Can

God prepare a table in the wilderness? Behold, He struck the rock, So that the waters gushed out, And the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide meat for His people?“

• Not content with what God provides or our situation in life

Unbelief• Psalm 78:22,32

22 Because they did not believe in God, And did not trust in His salvation. 32 In spite of this they still sinned, And did not believe in His wondrous works.

• Do we still doubt God even after He continually reveals Himself to us?

Insincerity• Psalm 78: 36-37

Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, And they lied to Him with their tongue; For their heart was not steadfast with Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant.

• Do we think we can trick or fool God?

Unfaithfulness• Psalm 78:57-58

But turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers; They were turned aside like a deceitful bow. For they provoked Him to anger with their high places, And moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.

• Do we play the harlot with God by the idols we worship?

Conclusion• 2nd Commandment tells us not to worship God with carved

images, and not to limit Him to our own imaginations• It’s easy to believe that God can manage the galaxies, but hard

to accept that He can manage my life• God wants to bless us and change us, but we have to be

willing to trust in His character and follow His commandments