The most important commandment of Christ. Two "new" commandments of Jesus Christ
This is the Law of God, which was revealed and transmitted to people through Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Messiah.
The Last Law of God.
Why do they say so?
Because the Lord will not give another Testament until the end of the world.
The Internal Law, the law of conscience, because it is based on the internal motives of our external activity.
Then what is the whole Law of Christ?
This is the new, last, internal law of God, the most perfect and only law of salvation.
What is the difference between the external law given through Moses and the internal law given through Jesus Christ?
The Law of Moses was given as a preparatory Law for one small flock of people, and the Law of Jesus Christ was given to all the peoples of the earth, which are linked together into a single spiritual family of God by the priceless Blood of Christ Himself.
5.1. The Two Greatest Commandments of the New Testament
What are the two greatest commandments of Christ in the New Testament?
The first commandment of the New Testament:
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength" ()
And the second commandment, similar to the first:
"Love your neighbor as yourself" ().
Moreover, He said: "He who hates me hates my Father"(). asks each of us: “Do you love Me?”, as He asked the Apostle Peter: "Simon Ionin! Do you love me"(). And the apostle Paul says: "Whoever does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, be damned" ().
What then can be said about our love for other people?
Just as we love God through Jesus Christ, so we love people through Jesus Christ.
Is our love for Jesus Christ the foundation of our love for God and people?
Of course, so, for if we love Christ, who embodied love in Himself, then we love all whom He loves and for whom He died. Thus, both commandments of the New Testament oblige us to love Jesus Christ, the beloved Mediator between God and people. Without love for Him, our love for God and for people will not be complete and true.
What else does the New Testament say about love?
Indeed, a lot. For example, our knowledge of God depends on our love for God, for "He who does not love does not know God, because there is love"(). Or more: "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear"(), and where there is no fear, peace reigns there.
What is the visible expression of our love for God?
Prayer and doing the will of God.
What is the practical expression of our love for our neighbor?
In charity, that is, deeds of mercy, deeds and thoughts, words and prayers for our neighbors in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and for His sake.
5.2. About prayer
What is Christian prayer?
It is a way of our contact with God, through which we express our faith, hope and love.
What are prayers?
Inner Prayer
outdoor prayer
Personal prayer
Cathedral prayer
How can you pray continuously?
You can pray uninterruptedly with mental prayer, that is, with inner prayer. You can silently send up your inaudible prayers to God even on the road or during work, thanking Him, praising Him or calling for His help.
Why don't we say "My Father"?
Is there any other reason why we can call God our Father?
In this conversion lies the great meaning of brotherly love. Christ wants us to love one another as brothers. In addition, only those who recognize the same father can be considered brothers.
Why don't we call God "Our Creator"?
Why do we say: as in heaven?
Because in heaven the Angels and Saints, with all their hearts full of joy, submit to the will of God. God's will is their will, and that makes them happy. That is why we pray for this for us on earth as well.
Fourth Prayer Request
What is the fourth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
Give us our daily bread for this day.
Firstly, by this petition we express our confidence that without God's omnipotence and mercy we will not be able to live even a day. Secondly, realizing that we can die any day, we ask you to save us from crazy desires to accumulate wealth for life in the boundless future, while our neighbors can die of hunger without even having bread to exist. In other words, we ask the Lord to give us exactly what we need, no more and no less.
What kind of bread are we talking about here?
This refers to both material and spiritual food, which we cannot receive without God's grace and mercy. Material bread grows on earth, but spiritual bread comes from heaven. The first is for the body, and the second is for the soul. About material bread He said that (), and about spiritual bread He said: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; Whoever eats this bread will live forever"(). So, the bread we need for existence is Christ himself, and the other bread is only an addition to that bread.
Fifth prayer request
What is the fifth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We ask God to help us to restrain ourselves and forgive our neighbors their sins against us, just as He could forgive us our sins. It was said by His mouth: “If you forgive people their trespasses, then your Heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive people their trespasses, then your Father will not forgive you your trespasses” ().
Sixth Prayer Request
What is the sixth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
And lead us not into temptation.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We pray to God to remember our human weaknesses and not send grave troubles on us for the sake of our confirmation in the faith and not allow the devil to tempt us in misfortunes.
What is the difference between God's testing and the devil's temptation?
The difference is truly enormous. When the Lord allows us various sufferings, He does so with the intention of strengthening our virtues, just as steel is tempered in fire. The devil, on the contrary, tempts us with some kind of sin or disgrace with the intention of making us even worse, weaker, more evil, in order, in the end, to completely lead us away from God and completely destroy us.
Seventh Prayer Request
What is the seventh petition in the Lord's Prayer?
But deliver us from the evil one.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We pray to God to free us from bad deeds and bad people. We seem to be praying: "Save us from bad deeds and protect us from the most dangerous enemy."
Who is the most dangerous enemy?
Satan. All sinful thoughts and evil deeds that come from them come from Satan. That is why with this petition we pray to the Lord, Who is light and love, to deliver us from the enemy, which in itself is darkness and hatred.
doxology
Blessed are you when they reproach you and persecute you and speak unrighteously in every way for me. .
FAST. Keep fasting before God, not before people. “Appear to those who are fasting, not before men, but before your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you openly.” ().
TAKE CARE OF YOUR SOUL. It is necessary to take care of both the body and the soul, and in different ways. The soul is different from the body, and it needs different food, different clothes, and different light, for, as Jesus said: "Man shall not live by bread alone" ().
PROTECT THE INTEGRITY OF THE SOUL. The integrity of the soul determines the strength and peace of the soul, and the divided soul means weakness and death, for everyone "A house divided ... against itself cannot stand"(). The Lord also says: "no one can serve two masters... you cannot serve God and mammon" ().
CONTROL YOUR THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS. Good thoughts are the seed for good deeds. The Lord All-Seeing knows all our thoughts and warns that evil thoughts defile a person, "for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, thefts, false witness"(). Therefore, it is necessary to constantly monitor your thoughts and improve your soul.
DON'T LEAVE THE LANGUAGE. remember, that "For every idle word that people speak, they will give an answer in the day of judgment" ().
AVOID HYPOMERISM AND SHAME. Remember the words of Jesus to the disciples, and therefore to us: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing hidden that would not be revealed, and secret that would not be known. ().
BELIEVE LIKE CHILDREN. Become sincere, trusting and modest, like children, for, "Unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven" ().
BE PATIENT AND STRONG. Having endured all the hardships in fulfilling the commandments of God, you will surely save your soul, for "he who endures to the end shall be saved" ().
RESCUE EXCESS in food, drink, and other necessities. “Take care of yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with overeating and drunkenness and the cares of this world.” ().
BELIEVE UNCONDITIONALLY in the omnipotence and mercy of Jesus Christ. Don't be afraid, but believe. Remember that hope and love without firm faith is like a house without a foundation.
THANK GOD for everything. Even if the Lord gave you a small portion, but you are grateful for this, He will multiply His gifts, as He multiplied five loaves.
PRAISE THE LORD. Do not seek glory from men, but glorify God. The more you give, the more you will receive. Speak after Holy Mother of God: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” ().
5.5.2. Improving relationships with people
DO ALGORY SECRETLY. “When you do alms, do not blow your trumpet, as the hypocrites do ... so that people glorify them, ... let left hand yours does not know what the right one is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you openly.” ().
SUPPLY WITHOUT DELAY. “Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you”(). Serve everything in the name of Christ and for the sake of brotherhood.
LOVE ENEMIES. "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you"(). There is no other way to unite with Christ and establish peace and brotherhood.
DO GOOD TO PEOPLE. How? Just as you would like people to do to you, for this is the law and the prophets (). This commandment comes after the two great commandments of Christ.
FORGIVE YOUR BROTHER IN CHRIST. “If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him; and if he sins against you seven times a day, and turns back seven times a day, and says: I repent, forgive him.” ().
BE Humble. Christ was born in a stable. Why, then, are we fighting for the highest honors and first places? "Get on last place... for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted" ().
sympathize with the sinner. It's a way to help them get better. Ridicule and condemnation will not do him any good. Christ considered such people sick. He visited them (as, for example, Zacchaeus), ate with them, and spoke cordially with them. Therefore, He was able to restore their spiritual health and human dignity.
MAKE ACCEPTANCE WITH THE ENEMY. Before going to church or court, a Christian should try to reconcile with his enemy.
BOLDLY CONFESS CHRIST BEFORE PEOPLE. "Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory" ().
BEWARE OF THE FALSE CHRIST. In the end times, the godless and the enemies of Christ will proclaim themselves or another dangerous liar "the Christ." Foreseeing this, the Lord reminded: "Beware lest you be deceived, for many will come under my name, saying that it is I... do not follow them" ().
GIVE YOUR OWN MERIT. "Give what is Caesar's to Caesar, and what is God's"(). This means: give to the worldly authorities what belongs to the world, and to God - spiritual gifts. Just as the profile of Caesar is engraved on coins, so the face of God is on the human soul.
BE REASONABLE. “From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required”() either in health, or in wealth, or in knowledge, or in honors. If little is given to you, little will be required of you. God's truth is definite and perfect. It is not smart to rebel against such laws.
BE READY TO SERVE. Serving is ennobled from and through Christ, so volunteer servants in the name of God are the new elite. “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many”(). "If I am your “The Lord and Teacher, washed your feet, then you must wash each other's feet. For I have given you an example" ().
BE READY TO SACRIFICE, not only material things, but also your life for the sake of Christ, Who sacrificed Himself for our eternal salvation. “There is no greater love than if someone lays down his life for his friends”(). You can have many friends, but the closest friend should be only.
HOPE, do not lose Christian optimism in life's trials. In all troubles, misfortunes, sufferings, even in torment or on the verge of death, a Christian is full of hope, for he remembers the words of Christ:
"Great is your reward in heaven" ();
"Don't be afraid of those who kill the body for the soul they can't kill" ();
"I conquered the world" ();
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" ().
People who are far from the Church, who have no experience of spiritual life, often see only prohibitions and restrictions in Christianity. This is a very primitive view.
In Orthodoxy, everything is harmonious and natural. In the spiritual world, as well as in the physical world, there are laws that, like the laws of nature, cannot be violated, this will lead to great damage and even catastrophe. Both physical and spiritual laws are given by God Himself. We constantly collide in our Everyday life with warnings, restrictions and prohibitions, and none normal person will not say that all these prescriptions are superfluous and unreasonable. The laws of physics contain many dire warnings, as do the laws of chemistry. There is a well-known school saying: “First water, then acid, otherwise big trouble will happen!” We go to work - there are their own safety rules, they must be known and observed. We go out into the street, get behind the wheel - we must follow the rules traffic in which there are a lot of prohibitions. And so everywhere, in any area of life.
Freedom is not permissiveness, but the right to choose: a person can make the wrong choice and suffer very much. The Lord gives us great freedom, but at the same time warns of dangers on the path of life. As the apostle Paul says: Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is useful(1 Cor 10:23). If a person ignores spiritual laws, lives as he wants, disregarding either moral standards or the people around him, he loses his freedom, damages his soul and causes great harm to himself and others. Sin is a violation of very subtle and strict laws of spiritual nature; it harms first of all the sinner himself.
God wants people to be happy, love Him, love each other and not harm themselves and others, therefore He gave us commandments. They express spiritual laws, they teach how to live and build relationships with God and people. Just as parents warn their children about danger and teach them about life, so our Heavenly Father gives us the necessary instructions. The commandments were given to people in the Old Testament, we talked about this in the section on the Old Testament biblical history. New Testament people, Christians, are required to keep the ten commandments. Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill(Matthew 5:17), says the Lord Jesus Christ.
The main law of the spiritual world is the law of love for God and people.
All ten commandments speak of this. They were given to Moses in the form of two stone slabs - tablets, on one of which the first four commandments were written, speaking of love for the Lord, and on the second - the remaining six. They talk about respect for others. When our Lord Jesus Christ was asked: What is the greatest commandment in the law?- He replied: Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind: this is the first and greatest commandment; the second is like it: love thy neighbor as thyself; on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets(Mt 22:36-40).
What does it mean? That if a person has really achieved true love for God and neighbor, he cannot break any of the ten commandments, because they all talk about love for God and people. And to this perfect love we must strive.
Consider ten commandments of the law of God:
- I am the Lord your God; Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
- You shall not make for yourself an idol or any image of what is in heaven above, and what is on the earth below, and what is in the water below the earth; do not worship them and do not serve them.
- Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
- Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; Six days you work and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.
- Honor your father and your mother, that your days on earth may be long.
- Dont kill.
- Don't commit adultery.
- Don't steal.
- Do not bear false witness against your neighbor.
- Do not covet your neighbor's house; Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is thy neighbor's.
First Commandment
I am the Lord your God; Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
The Lord is the Creator of the universe and the spiritual world. He is the Origin of all that exists. All our beautiful, harmonious and very complex organized world could never have arisen on its own. Behind all this beauty and harmony is the Creative Mind. To believe that everything that exists came into being on its own, without God, is nothing but madness. The fool said in his heart: "There is no God"(Ps 13:1), says the prophet David. God is not only the Creator, but also our Father. He cares, provides for people and everything He created, without His care the world could not exist.
God is the Source of all blessings, and a person should strive for Him, for only in God does he receive life. We need to conform all our actions and actions to the will of God: whether they are pleasing to God or not. So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). The main means of communion with God are prayer and the Holy Mysteries, in which we receive the grace of God, Divine energy.
Let us repeat: God wants people to glorify Him correctly, that is, Orthodoxy.
For us, there can be only one God, glorified in the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and we, Orthodox Christians, cannot have other gods.
The sins against the first commandment are:
- atheism (negation of God);
- lack of faith, doubt, superstition, when people confuse faith with unbelief or all sorts of signs and other remnants of paganism; those who say: “I have God in my soul” also sin against the first commandment, but at the same time they do not go to church and do not approach the Sacraments or rarely approach;
- paganism (polytheism), belief in false gods, satanism, occultism and esotericism; this includes magic, witchcraft, healing, extrasensory perception, astrology, divination and turning to people involved in all this for help;
- false opinions that contradict the Orthodox faith, and falling away from the Church into schism, false teachings and sects;
- renunciation of faith, hope in one's own strength and in people more than in God; this sin is also associated with lack of faith.
Second Commandment
You shall not make for yourself an idol or any image of what is in heaven above, and what is on the earth below, and what is in the water below the earth; do not worship them and do not serve them.
The second commandment forbids worshiping the creature instead of the Creator. We know what paganism and idolatry are. Here is what the apostle Paul writes about the Gentiles: calling themselves wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image like corruptible man, and birds, and quadrupeds, and reptiles ... They replaced the truth of God with a lie ... and served the creature instead of the Creator(Rom 1:22-23, 25). The Old Testament people of Israel, to whom these commandments were originally given, were the guardians of faith in the True God. He was surrounded on all sides by pagan peoples and tribes, and in order to warn the Jews not to adopt pagan customs and beliefs in any case, the Lord establishes this commandment. Now there are few pagans, idolaters among us, although there is polytheism, worship of idols and idols, for example, in India, Africa, South America, some other countries. Even here, in Russia, where Christianity has been around for over a thousand years, some people are trying to revive paganism.
Sometimes one can hear an accusation against the Orthodox: they say that icon veneration is idolatry. The veneration of holy icons cannot in any way be called idolatry. Firstly, we offer prayers of worship not to the icon itself, but to the Person Who is depicted on the icon, to God. Looking at the image, we ascend with the mind to the Prototype. Also, through the icon, we ascend in mind and heart to the Mother of God and the saints.
Sacred images were made in the Old Testament at the command of God Himself. The Lord commanded Moses to place in the first movable Old Testament temple (tabernacle) the golden images of the Cherubim. Already in the first centuries of Christianity in the Roman catacombs (gathering places of the first Christians) there were wall images of Christ in the form of the good Shepherd, the Mother of God with raised hands and other sacred images. All these frescoes were found during excavations.
Although in modern world there are few direct idolaters left, many people create idols for themselves, worship them and make sacrifices. For many, their passions and vices have become such idols, requiring constant sacrifices. Some people fell into their captivity and can no longer do without them, they serve them as their masters, for: who is defeated by whom, that is the slave(2 Peter 2:19). Let us recall these idols of passion: gluttony, fornication, love of money, anger, sadness, despondency, vanity, pride. The Apostle Paul compares serving the passions with idolatry: covetousness...is idolatry(Col 3:5). Indulging in passion, a person stops thinking about God and serving Him. He forgets about the love of neighbors.
The sins against the second commandment also include a passionate attachment to some business, when this hobby becomes a passion. Idolatry is also the worship of a person. Many people in modern society popular artists, singers, athletes are treated as idols, idols.
Third Commandment
Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
To pronounce the name of God in vain means - in vain, that is, not in prayer, not in spiritual conversations, but during idle conversations or out of habit. An even greater sin is to pronounce the name of God in jest. And it is an absolutely grave sin to pronounce the name of God with the desire to blaspheme God. Also a sin against the third commandment is blasphemy, when holy objects become the subject of ridicule and reproach. Failure to fulfill the vows made to God, and frivolous oaths with the invocation of the name of God are also a violation of this commandment.
The name of God is sacred. He must be treated with reverence.
Saint Nicholas of Serbia. Parable
One goldsmith was sitting in his shop at a workbench and, while working, constantly remembered the name of God in vain: either as an oath, or as a favorite word. A certain pilgrim returning from holy places, passing by a shop, heard this, and his soul was indignant. Then he called out to the jeweler to come out into the street. And when the master left, the pilgrim hid. The jeweler, seeing no one, returned to the shop and continued to work. The pilgrim called out to him again, and when the jeweler left, he pretended not to know anything. The master, angry, returned to his room and began to work again. The pilgrim called out to him for the third time, and when the master came out again, he again stood in silence, pretending that he had nothing to do with it. The jeweler in a rage attacked the pilgrim:
“Why are you calling me in vain? What a joke! I have work up to my throat!
The pilgrim replied peacefully:
- Truly, the Lord God has even more work to do, but you call on Him much more often than I do you. Who has the right to be more angry: you or the Lord God?
The jeweler, ashamed, returned to the workshop and has kept his mouth shut ever since.
Fourth Commandment
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy; Six days you work and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God.
The Lord created this world in six days and, having finished creation, blessed the seventh day as a day of rest: sanctified it; for in him he rested from all his works, which God created and created(Gen 2, 3).
In the Old Testament, Sabbath was the day of rest. In New Testament times, Sunday became a holy day of rest, when the resurrection from the dead of our Lord Jesus Christ is remembered. It is this day that is the seventh and most important for Christians. Sunday is also called Little Easter. The custom of honoring Sunday comes from the time of the holy apostles. On Sunday, Christians must attend the Divine Liturgy. On this day it is very good to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. Sunday we dedicate to prayer, spiritual reading, pious activities. On Sunday, as a day free from ordinary work, you can help your neighbors or visit the sick, help the weak, the elderly. It is customary on this day to thank God for the past week and prayerfully ask for blessings on the work of the coming week.
You can often hear from people who are far from the Church or who have few churches that they do not have time for home prayer and church visits. Yes, modern man is sometimes very busy, but even busy people there is a lot of free time left to often and for a long time talk on the phone with friends and relatives, read newspapers, sit for hours at the TV and computer. Spending evenings like this, they do not want to devote even a very small time to the evening prayer rule and to read the Gospel.
People who honor Sundays and church holidays pray in the temple, regularly read morning and evening prayers, as a rule, manage to do much more than those who spend this time in idleness. The Lord blesses their labors, multiplies their strength and gives them His help.
Fifth Commandment
Honor your father and your mother, that your days on earth may be long.
Those who love and honor their parents are promised not only a reward in the Kingdom of Heaven, but even blessing, prosperity and long life in earthly life. Honoring parents means respecting them, showing obedience to them, helping them, taking care of them in old age, praying for their health and salvation, and after their death, for the repose of their souls.
People often ask: how can you love and honor parents who do not take care of their children, neglect their duties, or fall into serious sins? We do not choose our parents, the fact that we have them like this, and not some others, is the will of God. Why did God give us such parents? In order for us to show the best Christian qualities: patience, love, humility, the ability to forgive.
Through our parents, God gave us life. Thus, no care for parents can compare with what we received from them. Here is what St. John Chrysostom writes about this: “As they gave birth to you, you cannot give birth to them. Therefore, if in this we are inferior to them, then we will surpass them in another respect through respect for them, not only according to the law of nature, but also primarily before nature, according to the feeling of the fear of God. The will of God resolutely requires that parents be honored by their children, and rewards those who do this with great blessings and gifts, and punishes those who violate this law with great and grave misfortunes. By honoring our father and mother, we learn to honor God Himself, our Heavenly Father. Parents can be called co-workers with the Lord. They gave us a body, and God gave us an immortal soul.
If a person does not honor his parents, he can very easily come to disrespect and deny God. At first he does not respect his parents, then he ceases to love the Motherland, then he denies the Mother Church and gradually comes to the denial of God. All this is interconnected. It is not for nothing that when they want to shake the state, destroy its foundations from within, they first of all take up arms against the Church—faith in God—and the family. Family, respect for elders, customs and traditions (translated from Latin - broadcast) hold society together, make the people strong.
sixth commandment
Dont kill.
Murder, taking another person's life, and suicide are among the gravest sins.
Suicide is a terrible spiritual crime. This is rebellion against God, who has given us the precious gift of life. Committing suicide, a person passes away in a terrible stupefaction of the spirit, mind, in a state of despair and despondency. He can no longer repent of this sin; there is no repentance beyond the grave.
A person who negligently takes the life of another is also guilty of murder, but his guilt is less than that of the one who consciously encroaches on the life of another. Also guilty of the murder is the one who contributed to this: for example, the husband who did not dissuade his wife from having an abortion, or even himself contributed to this.
People, bad habits who by vices and sins shorten their lives and harm their health, also sin against the sixth commandment.
Any harm done to a neighbor is also a violation of this commandment. Hatred, malice, beatings, bullying, insults, curses, anger, malevolence, rancor, malevolence, unforgiveness of insults - all these are sins against the commandment "Thou shalt not kill", because everyone who hates his brother is a murderer(1 Jn 3:15), says the word of God.
In addition to bodily murder, there is no less terrible murder - spiritual, when someone seduces, seduces a neighbor into unbelief or pushes him to commit a sin and thereby destroys his soul.
St. Philaret of Moscow writes that “not every taking of life is a lawful murder. It is not unlawful to kill when a life is taken away by office, such as: when a criminal is punished by death by justice; when they kill the enemy in the war for the Fatherland.
seventh commandment
Don't commit adultery.
This commandment forbids sins against the family, adultery, all carnal relations between a man and a woman outside of legal marriage, carnal perversions, as well as impure desires and thoughts.
The Lord established the marriage union and blessed the carnal fellowship in it, which serves procreation. Husband and wife are no longer two, but one flesh(Gen 2:24). The presence of marriage is another (albeit not the most important) difference between us and animals. Animals don't get married. People have marriage, mutual responsibility, obligations to each other and to children.
What is blessed in marriage is a sin outside of marriage, a violation of the commandment. The marriage union unites a man and a woman in one flesh for mutual love, the birth and upbringing of children. Any attempt to steal the joys of marriage without the mutual trust and responsibility that marriage implies is a grave sin, which, according to Holy Scripture, deprives a person of the Kingdom of God (see: 1 Cor 6, 9).
A sin even more serious is the violation of marital fidelity or the destruction of another's marriage. Cheating destroys not only marriage, but also defiles the soul of the one who cheats. You can't build happiness on someone else's grief. There is a law of spiritual balance: having sowed evil, sin, we will reap evil, our sin will return to us. Shameless talk and not keeping one's feelings are also a violation of the seventh commandment.
eighth commandment
Don't steal.
It is a violation of this commandment to appropriate someone else's property, both public and private. The types of theft can be varied: robbery, theft, fraud in commercial matters, bribery, bribery, tax evasion, parasitism, sacrilege (that is, the appropriation of church property), all kinds of scams, machinations and fraud. In addition, any dishonesty can be attributed to sins against the eighth commandment: lies, deceit, hypocrisy, flattery, sycophancy, human pleasing, since by this people try to gain something (for example, the favor of their neighbor) dishonestly.
“You can’t build a house with stolen goods,” says a Russian proverb. And again: "No matter how the rope winds, there will be an end." Cashing in on the appropriation of someone else's property, a person will sooner or later pay for it. A sin committed, no matter how insignificant it may seem, is sure to return. A man familiar to the authors of this book in the yard accidentally hit and scratched the fender of a neighbor's car. But he didn't say anything to him and didn't make amends. Some time later, in a completely different place, far from his home, his own car was also scratched and fled the scene. The blow was inflicted on the same wing, which he spoiled to a neighbor.
The love of money leads to the violation of the commandment “Thou shalt not steal”. It was she who led Judas to betrayal. Evangelist John directly calls him a thief (see John 12:6).
The passion of covetousness is overcome by cultivating non-acquisitiveness in oneself, mercy to the poor, diligence, honesty and growth in spiritual life, for attachment to money and others material values always comes from lack of spirituality.
ninth commandment
Do not bear false witness against your neighbor.
With this commandment, the Lord forbids not only direct perjury against one's neighbor, for example, in court, but also any lie spoken against other people, such as: slander, false denunciations. The sin of idle talk, so common and everyday for modern man, is also very often associated with sins against the ninth commandment. In idle talk, gossip, gossip, and sometimes slander and slander are constantly born. During an idle conversation, it is very easy to say too much, to divulge other people's secrets and secrets entrusted to you, to put your neighbor in a difficult position. “My tongue is my enemy,” people say, and indeed our language can be of great benefit to us and our neighbors, or it can do much harm. The apostle James says that with our tongue we sometimes we bless God and the Father, and with it we curse men who are made in the likeness of God(James 3:9). We sin against the ninth commandment not only when we slander our neighbor, but also when we agree with what others have said, thereby participating in the sin of condemnation.
Judge not lest ye be judged(Mt 7:1), the Savior warns. To condemn means to judge, to boldly admire the right that belongs only to God. Only the Lord, who knows the past, present and future of man, can judge His creation.
The story of the Monk John of Savva
Once a monk from a neighboring monastery came to me, and I asked him how the fathers live. He answered: "All right, according to your prayers." Then I asked about a monk who did not enjoy a good reputation, and the guest said to me: “He has not changed at all, Father!” Hearing this, I exclaimed: "Bad!" And as soon as I said this, I immediately felt as if in ecstasy and saw Jesus Christ crucified between two thieves. I was rushing to worship the Savior, when suddenly He turned to the upcoming Angels and said to them: “Put him out, this is the Antichrist, for he condemned his brother before My Judgment.” And when, according to the word of the Lord, I was cast out, my mantle was left in the door, and then I woke up. “Woe is me,” I then said to the brother who had come, “this day is angry with me!” "Why is that?" he asked. Then I told him about the vision and noticed that the mantle I left behind meant that I was deprived of the protection and help of God. And from that time I spent seven years wandering in the wilderness, neither eating bread, nor going under shelter, nor conversing with people, until I saw my Lord, who returned the mantle to me.
That's how scary it is to pass judgment on a person.
tenth commandment
Do not covet your neighbor's house; Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is thy neighbor's.
This commandment forbids envy and grumbling. It is impossible not only to do evil to people, but even to have sinful, envious thoughts against them. Any sin begins with a thought, with a thought about something. A person begins to envy the property and money of his neighbors, then a thought arises in his heart to steal this good from his brother, and soon he embodies sinful dreams into action.
Envy of the wealth, talents, and health of our neighbors kills our love for them; envy, like acid, corrodes the soul. To an envious person difficult to communicate with others. He is pleased with the sorrow, the grief that befell those whom he envied. That is why the sin of envy is so dangerous: it is the seed of other sins. An envious person also sins against God, he does not want to be content with what the Lord sends him, he blames his neighbors and God for all his troubles. Such a person will never be happy and satisfied with life, because happiness does not depend on earthly goods, but on the state of the human soul. The kingdom of God is within you (Lk 17:21). It begins here, on earth, with the correct spiritual dispensation of man. The ability to see the gifts of God in every day of one's life, appreciate them and thank God for them is the key to human happiness.
The Ten Commandments of Jesus Christ are the law for Christians. These are the ten fundamental rules or commandments in the Christian religions and Judaism that God gave Moses. After a huge amount of time, the commandments are still relevant. Let's look at each commandment in more detail. The Bible tells how these laws originated and where they came from.
The ten commandments of God were publicly announced from heaven to all the people of Israel on the fiftieth day, gathered after the exile, near Mount Sinai. After a while, God himself wrote and proclaimed a set of these ten laws on ten stone tablets. Later, God gave all these ten tablets to Moses so that he would keep the original among the people and pass them on.
In the twentieth chapter of the book of Exodus, the story of how God gave his ten commandments to the people of Israel is recorded.
- Worship only your Creator
- Don't make any statues or pictures for worship
- Don't take the Lord's name in vain
- Do not spend the Sabbath in daily work, dedicate it to God
- Honor your parents
- Don't kill
- Do not participate in debauchery
- Do not lie
- Do not steal
- Do not envy
Christ himself assured his disciples that he was on earth not to break the Law, in order to fulfill it. It is not just that the Word of God has been preserved and is preserved for thousands of years, despite all attempts to destroy it. God's Law was written for the benefit of people, so the principles contained in the Ten Commandments directly apply to Christians even today. Even if you skim through the list of famous Commandments, any cultured person will notice their similarity with the fundamental laws of any civilized society.
The commandments of Jesus Christ are often compared to the laws of nature. This means that these laws are not only required to be followed and it is forbidden to violate them, in addition, they harmoniously complement each other. At the same time, the commandments allow people to gain a soul, give up various temptations or instincts that were previously characteristic of a wild person, fill people with virtues, and on the other hand, these laws help all people to gain a moral basis, to help loved ones not at all because of that it must be done for the sake of some wealth but based on your own will.
Of all the ten commandments of Jesus Christ, it is not possible to identify one main one, since all of them are equally important for a person. For example, if a person spends most of his time getting rid of a temptation, such as adultery, but is envious or does not respect relatives, friends and his parents, neighbors or friends, then this is tantamount to the fact that this person does not adheres to the laws of Christianity. The Ten Commandments of Jesus Christ, it should be noted, are written concisely and briefly. Despite the fact that they to some extent erect a framework for people, however, for the most part, this is to ensure complete freedom of the individual.
Ten Complete Commandments
Commandment one
“I am the Lord your God. And you will not have any other gods besides me before my face.
In the first commandment, the Lord speaks about Himself, that everyone is obliged to be guided by God's name and not deviate from His will. This rule is fundamental, fundamental, because the person who will follow the laws and orders of God in everything will not violate the other nine commandments. In an individual interpretation, God does not claim absolute primacy among other idols, just as he requires that He be given more attention than some other gods. He wants to be worshiped as the only one, due to the fact that, as religion says, there are no other gods in the world.
Commandment two
“Do not make for yourself an idol or an image of whatupin heaven, or whatever is on the earth below, or in the waters below the earth; do not serve them and do not bow down; for I am the Lord, a jealous God, punishing the children for the guilt of their fathers to the third and fourth generation, those who hated Me, and those who did mercy to a thousand generations to those who love Me and who keep My commandments.(Exodus 20:4-6).
In this text, the Lord reminds people that they should not create man-made images of idols and worship them. This is motivated by the fact that the eternal god should not be limited to an image made of stone or wood. Attempting to do this offends Him, perverts reality and truth.
Third of the Ten Commandments of the Bible
“Do not take the name of the Lord God in vain (just like that), for the Lord God will not leave anyone without punishment who calls His name in vain”. (Exodus 20:7).
This third of the ten commandments speaks of human negligence. Since a person often has a bad habit of saying anything and not watching the language, and in any case pronounces the word “God”. This is an absolute sin, considered something akin to blasphemy. This law prohibits not only false oaths and simple words, which people swear from time to time, in addition to this, it reminds of a frivolous and careless attitude to the holy meaning of this word. A person dishonors him, even inadvertently mentioning it in secular conversation or ordinary conversation.
Fourth Commandment
“Remember the Sabbath day in order to spend it correctly: Work for six whole days of the week and do all your work in their continuation, and on the seventh day - rest, dedicate it to the Lord your God. Do not do any of your deeds in the aforementioned, neither you, nor your daughter, nor your son ... For in six days your Lord created everything that is in the earth, sea and sky and themselves, and on the seventh day he rested. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and sanctified it.” (Exodus 20:8-11)
This commandment from the Bible calls on all people to do their work only six days a week, and on the seventh day, the Bible says, you must devote yourself and all your time on this day of the week to serving God and doing good deeds. The Sabbath in this law is presented as a day fixed at creation, and not as a new establishment. And people should remember about it, observe this day in memory of the deeds of the Lord.
Fifth Biblical Commandment
“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may be well and your days may be long, so that you may live well in the land that the Lord your God has given you”(Exodus 20:12)
The fifth law or fifth commandment requires respect, submission and obedience from children to parents. Here the Lord promises grateful children for the care, tenderness and preservation of parental reputation for a long and good life. This commandment requires children to be a comfort and help to their parents in their advanced years.
God's sixth commandment
One of the most understandable, not requiring a special interpretation of the commandments.
The translation sounds like this: "Thou shalt not kill" ( Exodus 20:13). Short, simple and understandable commandment. The Lord says that a person cannot arbitrarily deprive someone of life - God's creation. It is beyond human power. It must be added here that suicide is also a grave sin. Those who voluntarily took their own lives will never be able to find themselves in the Kingdom of Heaven, because they do not deserve it. This sin (murder) is preceded by such feelings as hatred, anger, anger. This list should not be allowed into the heart of a Christian.
It is believed that God is the source of life. He alone can give life, this is God's holy gift, which none of the people can take away, that is, to kill someone. According to the Bible, to take someone's life is to interfere with God's plan, i.e. take the life of yourself or another person - try to take the place of the Lord. This commandment implies a reasonable respect for the laws of life and human health.
seventh commandment
"Do not commit adultery." This law encourages spouses to be faithful to each other
(Exodus 20:14). The main institution of the Lord is the marriage union. Establishing such, He had a definite goal - the preservation of the purity and happiness of people, the elevation of their moral strength. The Bible says that happiness in relationships can only be achieved if a person is focused on the person to whom he gives himself entirely, his trust and devotion throughout his life. Protecting people from adultery, God wants people not to look for anything other than the fullness of love, which will be reliably protected by marriage.
eighth commandment
Another concise God's Law.
“Don't steal”.
God does not allow the appropriation of someone else's property. This sin also includes bribery and parasitism. This law includes both secret and open sins. Kidnapping, wars, slave trade are condemned. Theft and robbery are condemned. The eighth commandment requires sincerity even in insignificant matters.
ninth commandment
“Do not bear false witness against your neighbor”.
The Lord forbids lying in court, slandering anyone. Any hint or exaggeration with the expectation of an imaginary impression is a lie. This law prohibits any way to discredit a person, his status by slander or gossip.
tenth commandment
“Thou shalt not covet the house that thy neighbor possesses, nor his wifenor a slave, nor anything that belongs to him.”
In this commandment, God speaks of love. Love for your neighbor is a continuation of love for the Lord.
In striving with all his soul to keep these commandments, a person purifies his soul, gets the opportunity to be with the Lord.
All these laws were originally written in the literal sense, there was no need to rack their brains over the meaning, to complete the theory, so that their real meaning was clear. To date, only a few of all ten testaments do not have a double meaning and do not require additional interpretation, the search for a hidden meaning. The rest needs to be interpreted. Each of these testaments is equivalent to the classics. They have always been and will be.
Fortune telling today with the help of the Tarot "Card of the Day" layout!For correct divination: focus on the subconscious and do not think about anything for at least 1-2 minutes.
When you're ready, draw a card:
Many have heard about the commandments of Jesus Christ, the beatitudes. Many people know that there are only nine of them. But what are they? What are they teaching? How is the commandment of beatitude different from the one that was given? You can learn more about this from the article!
Commandments of Jesus Christ
Nine Beatitudes
Who said these nine commandments for blessedness?
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself is on the mountain with the twelve apostles and with a multitude of people (Matt. 5:3-12).
What is said in the beatitudes?
In the Beatitudes, the Lord teaches us what ways we can reach the Kingdom of Heaven. In each of these 9 sayings there is both a commandment and a promise of a reward for fulfilling it.
What is the first commandment of God for receiving blessedness?
Blessed- happy. poor in spirit- self-humiliating. Yaco- because.
It says that poor in spirit, i.e. people who love to do good without boasting about it, and who present themselves as great sinners before God, will receive the Kingdom of Heaven.
The second commandment of God for obtaining blessedness:
Tii- those.
This beatitude says that crying, i.e. people who repent of their sins and weep over them will receive Heavenly Kingdom comfort.
The third commandment of God:
Krottsyi- meek, humble.
This commandment is that meek people, who do not get angry themselves and do not anger others with anything, do not irritate, and who get along everywhere, receive both earthly blessings and the Kingdom of Heaven as possessions.
Fourth beatitude:
hungry- wanting to eat. thirsty- thirsty. Is it true- justification, good.
This commandment says that hungry and thirsty for the truth, i.e. people who, like one who is hungry and thirsty, desire justification (salvation) for the soul through faith in Jesus Christ, will receive satisfaction for themselves and thereby satisfy their soul.
The Fifth Beatitude:
It says that the merciful and good people those who do works of mercy will receive mercy from God, i.e. delivered from eternal damnation doomsday God's.
sixth commandmentbliss:
Will behold- they will see.
This commandment is that pure in heart, i.e. people who have their hearts pure from evil desires and thoughts and always keep the memory of God will see God Himself, which is the greatest degree of bliss.
Before starting discussions on the topic of Christ's commandments, we first determine that the law of God is like that guiding star that shows a person traveling his way, and a man of God - the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. The law of God has always meant the light that warms the heart, comforts the soul, and consecrates the mind. What are they - the 10 commandments of Christ - and what they teach, let's try to figure it out briefly.
Commandments of Jesus Christ
The commandments provide the main moral basis for the human soul. What are the commandments of Jesus Christ? It is noteworthy that a person always has the freedom to obey them or not - the great mercy of God. It gives a person the opportunity to spiritually grow and improve, but also imposes on him responsibility for his actions. Violation of even one commandment of Christ leads to suffering, slavery and degeneration, in general, to disaster.
Remember when God created our earthly world, then a tragedy occurred in the angelic world. The proud angel Dennitsa rebelled against God and wanted to create his own kingdom, which is now called Hell.
The next tragedy happened when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and their lives experienced death, suffering, and poverty.
Another tragedy happened at the time of the Flood, when God punished people - Noah's contemporaries - for unbelief and violation of God's laws. This event is followed by the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, also for the sins of the inhabitants of these cities. Then comes the destruction of Israel, followed by the Kingdom of Judah. Then Byzantium and the Russian Empire will fall, and after them there will be other misfortunes and calamities that will fall upon God's wrath for sins. Moral laws are eternal and unchanging, and whoever does not keep the commandments of Christ will be destroyed.
Story
The most important event in the Old Testament is when people received the Ten Commandments from God. Moses brought them from Mount Sinai, where God taught him, and they were carved on two stone tablets, and not on perishable paper or other substance.
Until that moment, the Jewish people were disenfranchised slaves working for the Egyptian kingdom. After the emergence of the Sinai legislation, a people is created, which is called to serve God. Great holy people later came out of this people, and from them the Savior Jesus Christ himself was born.
Ten Commandments of Christ
Having become acquainted with the commandments, one can see a certain sequence in them. So, the commandments of Christ (the first four) speak of human duties towards God. The next five define human relationships. And the latter calls people to the purity of thoughts and desires.
The ten commandments of Christ are expressed very briefly and with minimum requirements. They define the boundaries that a person should not cross in public and private life.
First Commandment
The first sounds: "I am your Lord, may you have no other Gods but me." This means that God is the source of all blessings and the director of all human actions. And therefore, a person should direct his whole life to the knowledge of God and glorify his name with his pious deeds. This commandment states that God is one in the whole wide world and it is unacceptable to have other gods.
Second Commandment
The second commandment says: “Do not make an idol for yourself…” God forbids a person to create imaginary or material idols for himself and bow before them. Earthly happiness, wealth, physical pleasure and fanatical admiration for their leaders and leaders have become idols for modern man.
Third Commandment
The third says, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain." A person is forbidden to use the name of the Lord irreverently in worldly fuss, in jokes or empty talk. The sins are blasphemy, blasphemy, perjury, breaking vows given to the Lord, etc.
Fourth Commandment
The fourth tells us to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. You have to work for six days, and dedicate the seventh to your God. This means that a person works six days a week, and on the seventh day (Saturday), he must study the word of God, pray in the temple, and therefore devote the day to the Lord. These days you need to take care of the salvation of your soul, conduct pious conversations, enlighten the mind with religious knowledge, visit the sick and prisoners, help the poor, etc.
Fifth Commandment
The fifth one says: “Honor your father and mother…” God commands to always take care, respect and love your parents, not offend them in word or deed. The great sin is disrespect for father and mother. In the Old Testament, this sin was punished by death.
sixth commandment
The sixth reads: "Thou shalt not kill." This commandment forbids taking life from others and from oneself. Life is a great gift of God, and only it sets the limits of earthly life for a person. Therefore, suicide is the most serious sin. In suicide, in addition to the murder itself, there are also sins of lack of faith, despair, grumbling against the Lord and rebellion against his providence. Anyone who harbors a feeling of hatred for others, wishes the death of their neighbors, starts quarrels and fights, he sins against this commandment.
seventh commandment
In the seventh it is written: "Do not commit adultery." It states that a person needs to be chaste if he is not married, and if he is married, be faithful to his husband or wife. In order not to sin, you do not need to arrange shameless songs and dances, look at seductive photos and films, listen to spicy jokes, etc.
eighth commandment
The eighth says: "Do not steal." God forbids us to appropriate the property of another. It is forbidden to engage in theft, robbery, parasitism, bribery, covetousness, as well as to evade debts, outweigh the buyer, hide what is found, deceive, withhold the salary of an employee, etc.
ninth commandment
The ninth indicates: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." The Lord forbids a person to give false evidence against another in court, to make denunciations, to slander, to gossip and to slander. This is the work of the devil, because the word "devil" means "slanderer."
tenth commandment
In the tenth commandment, the Lord teaches: “Do not covet your neighbor’s wife and do not covet your neighbor’s house, neither his field, nor his servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox ...” Here people are pointed out that they must learn to refrain from envy and not have bad desires.
All the previous commandments of Christ taught mainly correct behavior, but the last one refers to what can happen inside a person, to his feelings, thoughts and desires. A person always needs to take care of the purity of spiritual thoughts, because any sin begins with an unkind thought, on which he can stop, and then a sinful desire will arise that will push to unfavorable actions. Therefore, you need to learn how to stop your bad thoughts so as not to sin.
New Testament. Commandments of Christ
Briefly, the essence of one of the commandments Jesus Christ stated as follows: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." The second, similar to it: "Love your neighbor as yourself." This is the most important commandment of Christ. It gives that deep awareness of all those ten, which clearly and clearly help to understand what is expressed human love to the Lord and what is contrary to this love.
In order for the new commandments of Jesus Christ to benefit a person, it is necessary to make sure that they guide our thoughts and actions. They must penetrate into our worldview and subconsciousness and always be on the tablets of our soul and heart.
The 10 commandments of Christ are the basic moral guidance needed for building up in life. Otherwise, everything will be doomed to destruction.
Righteous King David wrote that blessed is the person who fulfills the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. He will be like a tree planted in streams of water, which will bear its fruit in its own time and will not wither.
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