Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1904-03-26
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.
Not SuMcient Moral Guide Until
CArist's Gospel Has Been
Read Into Them.

A certain rich young man who had
observed all the commandments from
his youth evidently thought that his
chances for inheriting eternal life were
very good. What lack | yet?" he
asked OF Jesus. putting the question as
though 1t were scarcely possible that
he lacked anything. The Saviour
showed to him, says Wellspring that
instead of having an indisputable title
to enternal life he had none at ALL
There is vast number who, like
that wealthy young ruler, over-exalt
the ten commandments If one will
carefully so through and weigh them,
he will see that they do not present a
high moral standard. The Hebrew
race. and much less the world, was not
ready at the time or their promulga-
ton for the revelation of high ideals.
To the little child we have to say do
not and wait with what patience we
may for the time when we can say
DO. The human race then was in
the do not" stage of development
All the commandments are shall nots''
save two.
Take the two tables ard see how lit
tie they require. The first table does
not say that there is only one God. and
that we should love Him with all our
heart and so.il and mind and strength
All that it demands is that we shall
have no other gods before Him. shall
make no images for worship. shall not
take His name in vain. and shall re-
fraln from all work upon the Sabbath
thus keeping 1t holy. Many man does
this without any thought of being par
dcularly religious; he's just being de-
Gently civilized
So it is also with the second table
Who would set up a claim for special
respect because he has always honored
his parents. never murdered or been
unchaste, or stolen. or borne false wit
ness, or coveted his neighbours posses
sions as Ahab coveted Naboth's vine
yard? There are men who truthfully
can say that they have regarded all
these commandments, and yet their
neiShbors would characterize them as
"meaner than dirt" In order to be a
good man, one must do something. not
merely refrain from doing something
hurtful. One can keep all the man.
dates of the second table. and vet be
stngy. cruel, oppressive and hateful.
Taken all together. they do not sum ND
to the golden rule. which tells us TO do
unto others as We would have them do
to us Thou shalt not" keeps the
hands TO the side; Thou shalt" ex-
tends them in loving service.
How is it that people have such an
exalted conception of the ten command
ments? II is because we have been
reading the gospel into them-as we
should do. Ever since Jesus gave His
answer to the lawyer who asked him.
which is the greatest commandment
III the law" Christian people have
been interpreting the first table of the
law as meaning, Thou shalt love the
Lord thy God with all thy heart and
with all thy soul. and with all thy
mind. and the second table as mean
ing. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
myself"
And that is what they should mean
TO us. But, don't you see. that one
must have a higher moral standard
than the ten commandments. lust as
they read, in order to be respectably
good? Not that we should throw them
aside. any more than we should throw
aside the alphabet because we are read
ing fine literature, or the rules for ad-
ditton. subtraction. multiplication and
division because we are doing sums in
algebra. But no one should feel like
congratulating himself il he still were
painfully putting the letters together
TO spell Cat or baker. or scratching
his head over the question. Seven
times two are how ,many?" Where
fore. says the writer to the Hebrews.
leaving the doctrine of the first prin-
ciples OF Christ. let us press on unto
perfection" Don't stay back near the
starting point with the ten command
ments