Griz Bear Comments: : Accept truth or face consequences
Posted on Wednesday, October 1, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/gentry/Opinion/2913/
Posting of the Ten Commandments in public places has, for a number of years, been a controversial issue. Some, it seems, do not like to be reminded of this summation of God's law found in the Bible and so claim it violates their constitutional rights if the Commandments are posted in public places where they might see them and be reminded of these basic moral laws upon which almost all of our criminal codes are based. asdf
I'm all for posting them in schools, courtrooms and other public places as good reminders of what is right and what is wrong. But, even if they're not posted, they remain in effect and true.
It's kind of like some other laws built into creation. It doesn't matter if a printed warning is in place or a sign is posted, the law is true just the same.
Consider the law of gravity. I may not like it and I can request never to hear of it again, but if I step off a cliff or tumble from my roof top, there will be a gravity storm just the same.
In fact, though I took gravity with a little less gravity in my younger days, I believe in it now and have great respect for it. I try to avoid doing anything contrary to its basic principles because I know it hurts when I do. Even though there was a day when I'd hang over a cliff for a photo, I now am pretty careful to keep enough of me on solid ground to avoid the ill effects of transgressing gravity's law. I know and believe the truth of the words, "The old, fat man who steps out onto thin air wonít stay there long."
I've also learned a little about the angle of repose when hiking around in the mountains. It seems that when I try to walk on a grade that's too steep, I sometimes find myself sliding down to the bottom on my bottom because I paid no heed to that little principle related to gravity, cohesion and a few other things I don't fully understand.
Well, the Ten Commandments aren't all that different. God gave them on Mt. Sinai as a reminder of what was already written in our hearts from the beginning. It could be that He got tired of looking at our dumb mistakes and had to give us a sign - a warning label, so to speak, on tablets of stone - because we wouldn't listen to what our consciences were telling us and continued to try stupid things.
Thus, even though we already knew, deep down, that it was wrong to disobey our parents, murder, commit adultery, steal and destroy people with our words, God made His intent for us perfectly clear so that we would not go on in our foolish ways and claim we didn't know any better. In fact, God gave us His commandments for our good, to keep us from hurting ourselves and others. After all, how can we hurt God?
Like the first commandment which God gave in the Garden with the warning that "in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Genesis 2:17), so God warns us in regard to the Ten Commandments, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20).
The difference, I suppose, between the Ten Commandments and the law of gravity is the immediacy and obvious results of transgression. If I step off a ladder, I don't even have opportunity to think about my mistake before the results become quite obvious. When we disregard God's Ten Commandments, the result is also immediate, but we don't seem to notice it as quickly.
We suffer spiritual death in that our disobedience separates us from God, and like Adam and Eve after they ate of the fruit in the Garden, we would rather hide from God's presence than face Him - In fact, the biggest reason people don't want to have the Ten Commandments posted in public places is that they have broken them and don't want to be reminded of that truth or of Godís judgment.
And, of course, that spiritual death which is an immediate result eventually becomes permanent and eternal if we do not repent and turn to God for the mercy He extends to us in His Son, Jesus Christ.
I have to admit that I used to think I could "get away with" some disobedience to God's commandments and break a few little ones without consequence. I don't believe that anymore. I'm not claiming to keep all God's Commandments without fail - I fall far short - but I have come to know and believe that disobedience and disregard for the Ten Commandments brings sad consequences whether or not they're posted.
Unfortunately, I've had to learn some of this the hard way, kind of like I did with the law of gravity. It hurts.
I've learned that disobedience has consequences for me and for others around me. Disobedience hurts and destroys relationships with God and with other people, and it hurts and destroys those who don't heed the warnings which go with the Commandments. That, after all, is why God gave the Commandments in the first place. They are not to keep us from enjoying life; they are to keep us from destroying our own life and the lives of others!
God doesn't tell us to love and serve Him and have no other gods to keep us from finding out about other gods, He commands us to have no other gods because there are no other gods and to seek after or honor another will only bring about our ruin. He doesn't tell us not to adulterate His design for marriage between a man and a woman to keep us from enjoying life, He commands fidelity and honor in marriage to keep us from destroying ourselves and others.
People may scoff and think they can disregard God's law and warnings, but there are consequences - both immediate and eternal. Disregard for the Ten Commandments is no less foolish than disregard for the law of gravity. Sooner or later, the pain will come.
So, whether they're posted or not doesn't really change the truth. If I step off a cliff, I fall just as fast where there are no warning signs as I do where I am clearly warned of the imminent danger of trying to walk on thin air.
Yes, I realize that some folks object to the posting of Godís Commandments, and I know it's because their hearts - deep down - tell them that God is right and they are wrong. They would rather not be reminded of the truth. But truth it is, nevertheless!
Me, I'd rather be reminded of the truth than to be so foolish as to think I can transgress with no consequences.