PART TWO
7. 'You shall not commit adultery.'
Who of us can say that we are pure of heart? Jesus warned, 'You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery." But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery already with her in his heart." Remember that God has seen every thought you have had and every sin you have ever committed. The day will come when you have to face His Law, and we are lold that the impure, fomicators (those who have sex before marriage) and adulterers will not enter the Kingdom of God. Punishment tor transgression of this Commandment is the death penalty.
8. 'You shall not steal.'
Have you ever taken something that belonged to someone else (Irrespective of its value)? Then you are a thief-you cannot enter God's Kingdom.
9. 'You shall not bear false witness.'
Have you ever told a lie? Then you are a liar. How many lies do you have to tell to be a liar? Just one. The Bible warns that all liars will have their part in the Lake ot Fire. You may not think deceitfulness is a serious sin. God does!
10.'You shall not covet.'
That means we shouldn't desire anything that belongs to another person. The covetous will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Who of us can say we are not guilty of breaking these Commandments? All of us have sinned, and just as with civil law, you don't have to break ten laws to be a lawbreaker, so the Bible warns, 'For whoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.'
A little girl was once watching a sheep eat grass and thought how white it looked against the, green background. But when it began to snow she thought, 'That sheep now looks dirty against the white snow!' It was the same sheep, but with a different background. When we compare ourselves to the background of man's standard we look pretty clean, but when we compare ourselves to the pure snow-white righteousness of God's standard-His Law, we can see ourselves in truth, that we are unclean in His sight. That Law is the holy standard by which humanity will be judged on Judgment Day.
This may sound strange, but the worst thing you could do at this point of time is to try and clean up your lifestyle-you realize that you have sinned, so from now on you will keep the Ten Commandments, do good deeds, say the right things and think only pure thoughts. But should a judge let a murderer go because he says he will now live a good life? No, he's in debt to justice and therefore must be punished.
The Law of God is merely like a mirror-all a mirror does is show you the truth. If you see egg on your face, you don't try and wash yourself with the mirror, its purpose should be to send you to water for cleansing. Neither should you try and wash yourself with the mirror of God's Law...that's not its purpose.
The sight in the mirror is not a pretty one, but if you don't face it and acknowledge that you are unclean, then all that 'dirt' will be presented on Judgment Day as evidence of your guilt, and then it will be too late to be cleansed.
Perhaps you think that God is good and will therefore overtook your sins. But if you were guilty of terrible crimes in a civil court and said to the judge, 'Judge, I am guilty but I believe that you are a good man and will therefore overtook my crimes,' the judge would probably respond by saying, 'You are right about one thing; I am a good man, and it's because of my goodness that I am going to see that justice is done, that you are punished for your crimes.' The very thing that many people are hoping will save them on Judgment Day, God's 'goodness,' will be the very thing that will condemn them. If God is good, He should punish murderers, liars, thieves, etc., and Hell will be their dreadful fate.
What a terrible place Hell must be. If you read in the newspaper that a man received a $5 fine for a crime, you could conclude that his crime was insignificant. But if a man received multiple life sentences, you could conclude that his crime was heinous. In the same way, we can catch a glimpse of how terrible sin must be in the sight of God by looking to the punishment given for it-etemal punishment. Ungrateful humanity never bothers to thank God for His wonderful blessings of color, light, food, joy, beauty, love and laughter, so He will take those blessings away from them. Instead of proving their gratitude by obedience to His will, they use His name to curse. Their punishment will be just but severe to the uttermost. Take the time to read what Jesus said Hell was like in Mark 9:43-48. I am afraid for you...please, look honestly into - continue to ...
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