Preaching the Ten Commandments

In recent years we have seen the escalation of a kind of religious war in America. Thankfully it has not been the kind that has resulted in bloodshed and perhaps even the loss of life – as we see so frequently in other countries. The war of which I speak is the effort to distance the USA from its Judaeo – Christian beginnings, despite the abundance of evidence contained in the writings of the founding fathers. History shows that those who founded this great nation were guided by the truths of the Bible.
The band of English settlers who came ashore on the Mayflower in Massachusetts in 1620 drafted a document for their self-government acknowledging their voyage to have been for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith. The vast majority of the representatives that met in Philadelphia in the summer of 1776 to draft the Declaration of Independence were Christians. In their declaration they spoke of truths that were self-evident, the first being the biblical understanding that all men were created equal. Eleven years later when the Constitution was written Washington signed it specifically labelling the date "in the year of our Lord.”
It may surprise you to know that the constitution of every one of our fifty states includes a reference to God, or almighty God, or simple divine guidance. Now the war being fought today has centered around the Ten Commandments. Activist judges and liberal organizations like the ACLU and Americans United for Seperation of Church and State have succeeded in having public displays of the Ten Commandments removed. Perhaps the most notable case was that of Alabama's Supreme Court Chief Justice, Roy Moore, and his fight to keep a two and a half ton granite monument of the Ten Commandments in the judicial building. What a sad day in American history when workers began removing the monument!
Today it is not uncommon to hear late night comedians ridicule and make fun of the Ten Commandments. Multi-millionaire media mogul Ted Turner on a number of occasions has derided the Ten Commandments as being old and obsolete. He has also said that Christians are losers and bozos.
The truth is we need the Ten Commandments more now than we have ever needed them. The lawlessness of our times necessitates their being made a priority once again. Man’s lack of respect for his fellowman and his inhumanity to his fellowman make the Ten Commandments more needed than ever.
Travel back in time with me. For four hundred years the Children of Israel had been in bondage in Egypt. It was not always this way in that at first they were welcomed guests in Egypt. Joseph was there first and had risen to prominence because of God’s favor in his life. His family eventually joined him because of famine in their homeland. Unfortunately in time a new Pharaoh came into office who did not know Joseph. Immediately the status of the children of Israel changed from invited guests to that of slaves, confined to hard labor.
God saw their suffering and raised up a man by the name of Moses, commissioning him to confront Pharaoh with the demand to let God’s people go free. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened and he refused, prompting God to inflict a series of plagues upon the Egyptians. Pharaoh still would not relent, forcing God’s hand in sending at last the tenth plague, the death of every firstborn in the land. Finally, with so much weeping and wailing because of death in his land, Pharaoh at last relented in letting the people go free.