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EDUCATION BRIEF: Mohler
examines the Ten Commandments

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)–“This is not a God who is seen, but a God who is heard,” R. Albert Mohler Jr. writes in the introduction to his latest book, “Words from the Fire: Hearing the Voice of God in the 10 Commandments” (Moody).

Mohler examines each of the Ten Commandments in separate chapters, using both relevant examples and personal stories, beginning with the first commandment’s prohibition against having “any other gods before Him,” demonstrating God’s exclusivity and, like the remainder of God’s law, pointing to a sinner’s need for Christ and His Gospel as well as a pathway to avoid cultural decay, Mohler writes.

Some Christians have argued that Jesus abolished the law, but He did not, Mohler writes; Jesus came to fulfill the Law as He asserts in the New Testament. The Law is also crucial as a teacher of the holiness of God, Mohler writes, describing it as a guide to sanctification for Christians.

Mohler also notes of the first commandment: “The contrast with idols is very clear — the idols are seen, but they don’t speak. The one true and living God is not seen, but He is heard.” The contrast is “intentional, graphic, and clear — we speak because we have heard. And the voice of God is not something Israel deserved, nor do we. It is sheer mercy,” Mohler writes.

“God mercifully lets His people hear. Thus, intellectual pride is the enemy of any true knowledge of God, any real theological education. There is nothing we can figure out or discover. Here is no ‘Aha!’ moment where, in some theological laboratory, a new element of divine truth gets discovered.”

In a Moody news release, Mohler states, “Modern society resists the very notion of a binding authority, and in our day the Ten Commandments seem to serve something of a symbolic role. We know how many there are, we’re just not sure what they are. But it’s important to remember that the Ten Commandments are God’s direct words to us and clear proof that obedience leads to blessing.”
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Reported by Jeff Robinson of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

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