new church life: september/october 2016
thoughts to heavenly frequencies. We
won’t be able to recognize and amplify the
messages that are coming from the Lord
and instead we are tuned in to messages
that have been distorted by selfishness,
materialism and literalism.
The Lord gave us His commandments
to help us tune in to the best frequencies.
If we focus on the Golden Rule, doing
for others what we want done for us
(Matthew 7:12), then that message of love
will guide us in understanding the Bible
correctly. As Jesus said, all of Scripture is
about love for the Lord and love for the
neighbor. (Ibid. 22:40) When a scribe
recognized this truth Jesus told him,
“You are not far from the kingdom of
God.” (Mark 12:34)
We find the same truth mentioned in the Ten Commandments. One table
teaches us to love the Lord and the other teaches us to love (and not harm) our
neighbor. These commandments are central becaus e obeying them tunes our
minds to the Lord’s “channel” and allows Him to work in us. And the Lord’s
teaching and leading involves not just the literal statements of the Bible but all
the feelings, thoughts and ideas, all the music, voices and images that flow in
through the tuner.
This is one reason why it is hard for some people to see how the Lord is
working in their world. They aren’t looking for the inflow of love and the light
of wisdom but are looking for physical evidence or miraculous interventions.
It’s like looking for signs of life in an empty garment, or taking apart a radio
tuner to find the messages inside it.
Since the commandments are what get us tuned in to the Lord’s leading,
they are the first and most central part of the Lord’s Word to the people of
Israel. The ultimate goal of the journey from Egypt was to enjoy freedom and
prosperity in the Promised Land. The first destination on the journey was to
reach Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments. There they would build
an ark and tabernacle to house the commandments, and later it would be the
Ten Commandments that divided the waters of the Jordan River and brought
down the walls of Jericho and the idol Dagon.
The commandments were very important, but it would be foolish to think
that the tables of stone in the ark of the covenant had some intrinsic magical
Jesus fed 5,000 with
a few loaves and
fishes, and they were
satisfied for a day and
then became hungry
again. The miracle
that the Lord asks us
to participate in today
is to share the Lord’s
love for all people.
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