Lesson #43–44—Preface to the Ten Commandments

Shorter Catechism Q & A #43

Q. What is the preface to the Ten Commandments?

A. The preface to the Tten Commandments is, in these words, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. (Exodus 20:2).

Shorter Catechism Q & A #44

Q. What doth the preface to the Ten Commandments teach us?

A. The preface to the Ten Commandments teacheth us, That because God is the Lord, and our God, and Redeemer, therefore we are bound to keep all his commandments.

Memorize Q & A’s 43 & 44—Exposition

“The commandments all have their origin in God, who, as the sovereign lord, issues the law to govern his realm” (R. J. Rushdoony, The Institutes of Biblical Law). Therefore, all lawbreaking is against the Lord; “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned and done evil in thy sight” (David, Psa. 51:4). The law is given to those who by grace belong to the Lord. He is our Redeemer, and therefore we are bound to be obedient to all his commandments.

What does it mean?

Discuss the meaning of “being delivered out of the hand of our enemies” (Luke 1:74–75) as the motivation to serve Christ in “holiness and righteousness.”
Holiness = emphasizing the keeping of God’s instructions and rules of law.
Righteousness = the character or acts of the Christian as one who has been justified before God.

Discuss the Christian’s standing before his Redeemer as taught in 1 Peter 1:15–19.

What is our practice?

Since God is Thy GOD, who has called us to himself, united to the Father by Christ Jesus, we owe him our full allegiance;. “For with thee is the fountain of life; in thy light shall we see light” (Psa. 36:9). We therefore give our Lord and Savior true worship, service, and praise. We seek our Lord’s teaching that we might grow in the knowledge of him who has redeemed us. We have a great interest in our Lord for he holds our souls in his hands.

Quotes for thought and discussion:

“…the reason for the giving of these commandments is to awaken the fear of God, and that fear might prompt obedience. Because God is God, the absolute lord and law-giver, fear of God is the essence of sanity and common sense. To depart from a fear of God is to lack any sense of reality.” (Rushdoony, Commentary on Deut. 6:1–3)

“By his essential greatness, ‘I am the Lord:’ or, as it is in the Hebrew, Jehovah. By this great name God sets forth his majesty. …The name of Jehovah was held in more reverence among the Jews than any other name of God. It signifies God’s self-sufficiency, eternity, independence, and immutability. Mal. 3:6.” (Thomas Watson)

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