#2441 (9/26) "Should We Unhitch from the Ten Commandments? - Nope!"

"SHOULD WE UNHITCH FROM THE TEN COMMANDMENTS? - NOPE!" - - by John Stonestreet and G. Shane Morris; Breakpoint.org, Sept 26, 2018;http://www.breakpoint.org/2018/09/breakpoint-should-we-unhitch-from-the-ten-commandments/ [AS I SEE IT: It greatly concerns me that pastors who are known to preach the Word of God accurately suddenly promote ideas such as Pastor Stanley and many others have. Are they simply trying to make the Scriptures more "current" and therefore "more relevant" but in the end detract from Biblical traditions that need to be upheld, traditions that Jesus himself upheld. Believers need to be discerning when hearing such ideas and speak up when our leaders promote questionable teachings. - Stan]

     Is all the Bible relevant to a Christian worldview? One well-known pastor recently suggested it isn’t. But I beg to differ.

     What’s the only passage in Scripture personally written down by God? If you answered “the Ten Commandments,” you’re right on the money. Exodus tells us that God audibly spoke these laws at Mount Sinai and inscribed them on tablets of stone with His own finger.

Of course, that’s not the only reason the Ten Commandments have a central place in the Judeo-Christian tradition. Christians have long understood them to be the clearest expression of God’s eternal moral character. Not to mention, they played an instrumental role in shaping Western civilization, including forming the foundation of our legal system and our understanding of justice. It’s why Moses and those tablets can be found at the apex of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Recently in Relevant Magazine, Georgia pastor Andy Stanley argued that we shouldn’t build monuments to the Ten Commandments in churches or courthouses because these rules are “from the old covenant.” The article was a follow-up, in a sense, to something that Pastor Stanley said back in May when he advised his congregation to “unhitch” their faith from the Old Testament. In this latest article, Stanley writes that “Jesus’ death and resurrection signaled the end” of God’s old covenant with Israel and its regulations, “including the big ten.”
     Now, Stanley argues, Jesus’ “new commandment” to “love one another,” which is found in John 13:34, should replace the Ten Commandments. If Christians obey the new commandment, he says, we “are not required to obey any of the commandments found in the first part of [our] Bibles.”

     I think Stanley is wrong on this, very wrong in fact. But to be clear, it’s not personal. I’ve appreciated much of his ministry over the years. I’m not trying to single him out. I’ve heard many evangelicals suggest, in one way or another at various levels of theological sophistication, that the Old Testament just isn’t relevant to us any longer because all of that was done away with by Christ. This is a tragic misreading of the Scriptures.

     In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his listeners, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets…but to fulfill them.” And in Matthew 22, He says the commands to “love the Lord your God” and “love your neighbor as yourself”—quoting from Leviticus and Deuteronomy—summarize, not replace, the law and prophets. In other words, Christ’s command that we love one another isn’t an alternative to the Ten Commandments. It restates them in simpler terms.

     The moral principles expressed in the Ten Commandments didn’t come into existence at Sinai. They’re part of God’s eternal character which He built into the very fabric of reality itself. Even more, Jesus relied on the Old Testament throughout His ministry and in His teaching, especially when making the moral case for something. The reason, from a Christian worldview, is clear: Whether we’re talking about the moral principles expressed in the Ten Commandments which Christ perfectly kept or the ceremonial regulations of Leviticus which foreshadowed our perfect High Priest, all of the Old Testament is relevant to Christianity.

     Jesus affirmed the God of the Old Testament is our God still, that the Creator of the world and the giver of the law is our loving Father who is both just and the justifier of the ungodly. And who promised to write His law a second time—not on tablets of stone, but as Hebrews says, on our hearts and minds.

     So with all respect to Pastor Stanley, if we’re going to “unhitch our faith” from anything at all, it should be the notion that any part of Scripture is irrelevant to us.

And speaking of the relevance of Scripture, I’m thrilled that this month we’re offering my friend, Dr. Bruce Ashford’s book, “Letter to an American Christian.” He demonstrates how the Scripture has ultimate relevance, from the Old Testament to the New Testament, in dealing with what it means to be a citizen. So come to BreakPoint.org for this featured resource.


[italics and colored emphasis mine]

RESOURCES
Letters to an American Christian- Bruce Riley Ashford | BandH Books Publishing | 2018; https://colsoncenter.christianbook.com/letters-to-an-american-christian/bruce-ashford/9781535905138/pd/905130?event=ESRCG
"Andy Stanley and the Emmaus Road" - Timothy D. Padgett BreakPoint May 16, 2018; http://www.breakpoint.org/2018/05/andy-stanley-and-the-emmaus-road/

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PRAYER MATTERS:

"To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world." - Karl Barth; "Prayer is inviting God into a seemingly impossible situation and trusting/resting in His love and grace to accomplish His perfect will in His perfect time and for His greatest glory. Intercession is the one of the great privileges AND responsibility for EVERY believer." - Stan 

“INTERCESSORS ARE THE RUDDER” – A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT - Wanda Alger, June 28th, 2017; https://www.getamericapraying.com/blog/

I was recently given a word by my good friend, Bill Yount. His word greatly encouraged me as an intercessor. Working for Intercessors for America, I soon realized it was not just a word for me, but for all who have been praying for our nation, wondering if their prayers are truly making any difference. Bill told me, “I kept seeing you as a small rudder on a huge ship. Hidden, but giving guidance. Although it seemed slow it was turning the whole ship. Patience was needed to see the impact of your…ministry. I sense the Lord saying, ‘Don’t jump ship! I’ve made you the rudder!’ ” I was immediately touched in my spirit by this encouragement, knowing that our seemingly small place in prayer was having a great impact.

James 3:4 talks about the power of a small rudder to steer a large ship. In this scripture about the power of our tongue, consider the power of prophetic intercession! In the Forerunner Commentary on this verse we read, “…rudders manipulate the course of immense ocean vessels with a slight movement of a pilot’s hand. Since it is underwater and aft, the rudder of a ship does its work UNSEEN. A passenger is ignorant of its movements most of the time. Yet, when it is in proper working order, the rudder holds more power over the ship than the wind. The wind will blow, toss, even destroy the ship’s rigging, but the rudder guides the ship exactly where it directs.”

This is God’s promise to the intercessors in this hour of national turbulence. Don’t stop praying! Your prayers have great power to turn the ship! Continue praying, interceding, and discerning the workings and movements of the Holy Spirit, being faithful to God’s commands. As we come together to declare God’s faithfulness, this nation will, once again, head in the direction that God intends. Don’t give up and don’t give in. Regardless of the winds of adversity and the fires of the enemy, God’s people have a power that cannot be matched. Let us join in faith and continue to pray and speak of God’s faithfulness in order to bring God’s people and this nation into the fullness of God’s plans. Note this additional encouragement from God’s word:

Colossians 2:15 – “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him” (ESV). 

Psalm 33:8-11 – “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” 

Wanda Alger, IFA Field Correspondent

PRAY FOR AMERICA: THANK GOD for His many blessings on America throughout it's history. May we then ask that AMERICA once again be a blessing TO GOD, by once again submitting to HIS will in our affairs - both personal and national - that He may truly "heal our land." (2 Chron. 7:14) Short of that, we should not be saying "God Bless America"but instead "God be merciful towards America!"

PRAY FOR OUR LEADERS:  1) Pray for President Trump and his advisers, that they would select Godly leaders at the federal level who will be accountable to do an excellent job (or be fired!) ; that he would seek God's wisdom and be enabled to lead our country effectively in the years ahead; and 2) Pray our leaders at every level of government will Spirit-filled, leading us with Godly wisdom and integrity; that they will  only pass legislation and enact policies that will benefit Americans today as well as future generations and NOT do any lasting harm.

SUPREME COURT: PRAY that the justices will only hand down decisions that are Constitutionally sound and in the best interests of our country now and for future generations.

World-Wide Prayer Requests:

1/1 - PRAISE GOD for the continuing recent successes against ISIS! Pray that coalition forces will be able to  fully destroy the leadership and infrastructure of ISIS.
*For believers in Syria and in this region as they navigate so much uncertainty. May they remain faithful to God through these most difficult times as He sustains them with peace and His Spirit's strength.

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Praying Through the Open Doors World Watch List for persecuted believers:To learn more, please go to -https://www.opendoorsusa.org/take-action/pray/monthly-prayer-calendar/

Praying for Iran At #10 on the 2018 World Watch List and with a Church of 800,000 strong (out of 80.9 million), the main threat for believers in Iran comes from the government. The regime sees Christians, especially converts from Islam, as a threat and frequently imprisons believers for reaching out to Muslims— “crimes against the national security.” Throughout September, we’ll be focusing on our persecuted family in Iran. Please join us in praying with these secret believers.
September 26 | NIGERIA - Pray for the community of Ukpor-Mbalom in Benue State where militant Hausa-Fulani Muslim herdsmen attacked a church, killing 19 believers. Pray for comfort and restoration. 
*Name has been changed to protect identity.