Lecture 6: Second Commandment

Worship in the Old Testament

Part 3

III.  The Ten Commandments (part 2)

A. Two Reasons the Decalogue is Significant

B. Numbering Systems

C. Preamble - "I am the LORD your God ..."

D. First Commandment - "You shall have no other gods."

LESSON BEGINS HERE

E.  Second Commandment - "You shall make no graven images ..."

1.  False physical images come from false mental images

2.  We craft an image of God in our minds.

3.  Exodus 32

a.  How many idols? One

b.  Word for "God" in Hebrew is Elohim

c.  Idol is created to represent God.

4.  Commandment speaks against the limiting of the glory of God

5.  Positive statement - Worship God as He truly is.

a.  John 4:24 - Worship in spirit and truth

b.  Romans 10:2

c.  Exodus 3:14

6.  Individual Applications

a.  Doesn't matter what we think, God is God.

b.  Some misconceptions about God

i.   God is too remote.

ii.  God must be packaged, put in a box.

iii.  He is a great genie.

c.  We must bow our knees before mysteries of God that we don't understand.

d.  What can we do about it?

i.   Proclaim the whole counsel of God.

ii.  Disciplined approach to preaching

iii.  Be careful in the songs we choose to sing

iv.  Exposure to different theological traditions

v.  Exposure to different cultural experiences

vi.  Public reading of Scripture

7.  Reason behind second commandment - Jealousy of God

8.  What about physical images in the Church?

9.  Key idea - Clarity in worship