The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1907-02-08
Subject-The Ten Words.

uerson, pastor, took as his text Exc
dus 2O:1-17. He said:
Whatever may be our personal and
private convictions as to the manner
! OF God s revelation of Himself to
moses; however much we may differ
as 10 the exact form in which the
law-giver of Israel received the mes
sage of Divinity; however much we
may be at variance as to the exact
ness of the Bible story in it's por-
traiture OF the scene when Moses met
Jehovah on Sinai; no matter what
may be our belief concerning the
date and the authorship of the book
or the Exodus, the simple fact is
| that the ten commandments are the
expression Of fundamental truths
that God has revealed TO man. Be-
mind all human law and jurispru-
dence lies the code of Moses. These
ten stern, terse negative commands
! that Moses got from God are at the
basis Of all legal theory and practice.
| The decalog is the codifcation of
the divine will for the guidance and
control Of human action. The ten
words are the rules of the Almighty
! for the regulation of mans rela-
tions with humanity aud his Maker.
! Take them, merely, If you will, as
| legations toward God and society and
| still the commandments are of God.
| Whether we reach the conclusion by
the tiresome philosophy Of the Mid
| die Ages, or by the simple reason
ing Of the earliest minds of Israel,
or by the scientific discriminative
| processes of modern thought, the
! fact is that all truth is from God.
Thus saith the Lord" is the source
! OF life's verities. 1t is God who in
| spires us, God who gives US knowl-
| edge and understanding and wis
dom; God it is who sends us onward
and upward. He it was who put
| into the hearts of Moses and of Is
rael the love Of His laws and the
desire to do His will. And to-day
He strives with us as really as He
ever endeavored with the generations
| that are dead
The question is not whether or no
God gave Moses tablets of stone; the
issue is not whether or no Moses
wrote the story of the scene on the
mount, as it is preserved to us; the
point to be decided is whether or no
| Moses spoke God-given truth 1t all
hinges not on the manner of the
| delivery of the commandments but
upon the nature and divineness of
| the matter revealed. Do Moses
words bear the marks of a heaven
born gift, are they fraught with the
| power and the wisdom of Jehovah
| Himself? Are they stamped with
a celestial brand and do they ex-
| press everlasting yerities? Are
| they just to Eon and are they
worthy of the King? Do they meet
the needs of men? Are they in
| spirational? These are the tests of
| the usefulness and the worthiness of
| the commandments. These are the
| qualities that must inhere in them
ere they can command the respect
of humanity and evidence God S orig
| ination.
By these standards the ten COM
mandments are divinely inspired A
| glance at them discovers to us the
seal of the Eternal. Experience of
| their value in the midst of the ac-
| tivities of this worlds life proves
| their worth to mankind. Analysis
of their content and their aim leads
us to declare them worthy of Je-
hovah. With all that inquiry asks
and criticism demands the ten words
are at one.
Consider the commandments sepa-
rately and you will grant | speak the
truth. The call Of God for undivided
| loyalty TO Himself is but the voice
| Of reason. No man can serve two
| masters. And il is a certainty that
| least of all can he serve two masters
| whose interests are diametrically op-
| posed. We cannot serve righteous
| ness and sin at the same time. God
deserves the full devotion of every
human heart. To worship an idol
| is to lose the consciousness of the
| spirituality of Divinity; to mistake
| means for the end, material mani
| festations for the unseen dynast. To
| play fast and loose with Gods name
| is an insult to the Father. The self
respect of God requires human self
control. Profanity is indecent and
degrading to mind and soul The
| need and the preciousness of a Sab
baths rest is too apparent to war
rant comment. Common courtesy
accords respect to our earthly par
ents, especially when they are worthy
| OF respect. Strict obedience to the
command thou shalt not kill"
would spoil the business of the exc
cutioners; stop war at once
The fruits of adultery are all too
distressingly visible. The jails are
| full of thieves and would be over
crowded were the Mosaic code rigid
| ly applied and enforcedH Lying is
mean, unmanly, despicable. disre-
| putable. devilish. Satisfaction with
fair share OF this worlds goods
is better than covetousness.
The decalog meets humanity at
! vital points and helps mankind
ahead. Although included in the
! law of love laid down by Christ il
| is by no means abrogated. The ten
commandments bind us as we'll as
| Moses. The words of Christ empha-
/ size their demands. The laws OF
Moses are not defeasible or defunct.
! They will always be obligating No
/ statement OF our Lord and no bit
| of New Testament wisdom legislates
/ them out OF existence or counter
/ mands ~them. They still bind us
| The eleventh command merely sup
/ ports, supplements and reinforces
.,Fh