Exodus 20:1-17 & John 2:13-22
How do I receive and embrace? Lenten Preaching Series III

Today is the third in our Lenten preaching series, and since we are talking about spiritual disciplines, the receiving and embrace that we focus on today are about God’s commands and our response to them. Our Old Testament reading is from Exodus, it tells us of Israel receiving the Ten Commandments through Moses. I know that all of you know the Ten Commandments, nonetheless, let me recall them again for us. It starts by God declaring to Moses and the Israelites, “I am the Lord your God.” Not just any God, but the one “who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” Then He goes on to say;
You shall have no other gods before me
You shall not make for yourself an idol
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of your God
Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy
Honor your father and mother
You shall not murder
You shall not commit adultery
You shall not steal
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor
You shall not covet your neighbor's wife nor shall you covet anything that belongs to your neighbor.

If we look at them closely, out of the Ten Commandments, six of them have to do with our relationship or interaction with others. Three of them have to do with our relationship with God directly. And even the one that we could claim as something to do with our wellbeing and rest, about not working and keeping the Sabbath holy; it is really more about how we should make others, like your son, daughter, your male and female servants, the immigrant workers and even the working animals rest. On examining them closely, especially the ones starting from number four, we find that every single one of them is something that we would or would not want others to do to us. For instance, we would like our employers to give us rest from work, we would like our children to honor us, we would not like to be murdered, and we certainly would not like our spouse to be unfaithful to us. I have been a victim of theft and I know just how horrible and violated that made me feel. And, I am sure none of us wants to be accused of something we did not do. And of course, we are right now experiencing the end result of our covetousness, which made us buy and live way beyond our means. We also know just how disastrous it can be to get into a relationship with someone just because he or she looks like someone else you wish you had. Now, we begin to understand what Jesus meant when he summarized the commandments by saying, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

I know that the word “commandment” often invokes a certain tension in us because it brings for us the image of someone else being in control of our lives. But I would like to say to you today that Gods’ commandments are in fact the symbol of Gods’ concern and faithfulness in our lives. They are not just some random rules that exist so that there can be some peace around us. No doubt most of them are universally understood as basic civic responsibilities. But that is all the more reason why we should look to see what is the underlying thing behind Gods’ commandments. Why do we need to embrace and imbibe them in our lives? Why are they more than just rules? The commandments are not only a constant reminder of Gods’ deep love for us and His profound sense of justice, the giving of the commandments to God’s people is also about the special covenant between God and his children. It is about transforming and creating a holy people who will stand witness to God’s love and justice in this world.

Let me tell you a story; when our older daughter was about ten years old, she went out on their first mission trip to one of the soup kitchens in the city. Our younger daughter who was four at that time wanted to go out with her, but she was too young to go. When Senti came back from her trip, she brought for her sister a deep red beanie baby bull. Our younger one is now twelve years old, but she still sleeps with the soft red bull. The red bull is called “piggy” because when she first saw it she thought it was a pig! Piggy has gone for sleepovers, to India, Paris, Rome, Berlin, London and every overnight trip we have taken anywhere. Piggy once got left behind in my sister’s home, which at that time we did not know. I tried to convince her that there were many more soft red bulls out there, all we had to do was buy a new one. That made her even more distraught, saying the other red bulls were really not Piggy at all. We did find Piggy after a few days. What I had missed was that Piggy was a special gift from her sister, brought for her from the place where she could not go. Piggy was so much more than just another soft toy. Piggy is the symbol of a special bond. God’s commandments to us are not just rules. They are Gods’ gift for us to remind us of His nature of love and justice, and the special covenant He has made with us. In the Gospel of John, we read about Jesus’ anger at the moneychangers in the temple portico. So, we might ask, what is the connection between God giving the commandments to the Israelites and Jesus’ anger toward the temple merchants and authorities? Over the years, the physical structure of the temple and the observance of the Law had become more important to the Jews than loving and worshipping God. The temple merchants were there under the patronage and permission of the temple authorities and all those who were deemed worthy of worshipping and offering sacrifices in the temple. They had received the Law but they had forgotten how to embrace and live out God’s commands. The temple instead of being a place of true worship and witness of Gods’ love and justice had become more like a club, accessible only to those who fell within certain criterion. The place of worship had become more about some people’s power, money and influence. The poorest and the weakest in society were completely cut off from participating in the worship life of the community. For the most part God’s commandments had become just another set of rules that highlighted punishment rather than God’s love and justice. Jesus’ embrace of God’s commands and his practice of justice, healing and restoration are what let him to chase out the moneychangers. That same passion for God’s justice and love, which led Jesus to embrace the most hated and marginalized in the society led him to the cross and finally to his death. Jesus’ summary of the commandments, to love the Lord, our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves requires for us to open our lives for God to come into our lives and become the very purpose of our being. And God’s purpose for His people is to be holy and become the living witnesses of God’s love. To express God’s love, we must do what Jesus did, embrace the sick, the lonely, the outcast, the alien, and sinners, healing, forgiving and restoring them to right relationship with God and to others. Let us not be just receivers of God’s covenant of love, but also be those who embrace and practice our covenant with God. Amen.