Do you NEED to keep the 10 Commandments in order to please God? By Ron Knight

[Christine]

Do we NEED to keep the 10 commandments in order to please God?


There are those who believe that a person MUST keep the 10 commandments in order to please God. Most of these people are very sincere in their desire to please God, because if they were not, they would not even TRY to keep them. So when I deal with someone who believes that we MUST keep the 10 commandments in order to please God, the first question that I ask them is to "Name them". Quite honestly, most people can't even name all 10 commandments found in Exodus chapter 20 right off the top of their heads. After giving them 2 or 3 of them myself, I ask them how COULD they keep them if they don't even KNOW what they are? How can you be SURE that you are pleasing God by keeping them if you don't even know them by heart? That usually does the trick and then I go on to show them what the Word of God says about the 10 commandments (we will talk about it later).

But what about those who DO know them all, and CAN name them all by heart? Could they be pleasing to God? Well, when they think that they are, I ask them, "Then what about the OTHER 600 plus commandments that God gave to Moses,....are you keeping them too?". As you can imagine, they are usually shocked by that question and want me to show them in the bible. To which I take them them thru the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Then I tell them that whether it was all 600 plus commandments that God gave Moses, or just the 10, they could not POSSIBLY please God thru trying to keep them! Why? Because they have to keep them ALL PERFECTLY, FOR THEIR ENTIRE LIFE!!!

Let's look at the scriptures, and let God Himself teach us. In James 2:10, God says, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend (or sin by breaking) in ONE point, he is GUILTY of ALL". So according to just that one verse, if a person makes just ONE "tiny" mistake and sin against God by breaking just ONE commandment, that person is GUILTY before a perfect, holy, righteous God!! Let me give you an example using the 10 commandments. Have you EVER stole ANYTHING anytime during your lifetime? Maybe something "small and insignificant", but it was not yours? You are GUILTY of the WHOLE law!! Commandment # 8 says, "Thou shalt not steal." Have you ever lusted after ANYTHING, whether after a thing, or a person in your heart, or ever had a sexual relationship with someone other than your spouse, whether in deed or even THOUGHT?

Well you are GUILTY!!! Commandment # 7 says, "Thou shalt not commit adultery". And the Lord Jesus Christ says in Matthew 5:28, that even by THINKING lustful thoughts, you committ adultery in the eyes of God "in your heart". Ok, last one,...we'll just use 3 of the 10 ok?  Have you EVER told a lie sometime during your lifetime? Just one? A "little white lie"? Well, commandment #9 says, "Thou shalt not bear false witness...".  So if you EVER told a lie, just once, you are GUILTY of the WHOLE law!!! So how are you doing so far? Oh, almost forgot, God says in Revelation 21:8, that, ".....all LIARS, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death". So God makes it clear that those who break His law are guilty, and will spend eternity, not in Heaven with Him, but their souls will go into the lake of fire and be tormented forever and ever!

Now do you still want to trust yourself? Still want to trust your own self-righteousness? Are you keeping God's perfect law PERFECTLY? Well, if you just said yes, you just lied again! Remember what James 2:10 says, remember where Revelation 21:8 says you are going. Why don't you stop trying to please God in your own strength and just believe His Word. God's spokesman for us today, the Apostle Paul says in Romans 3:10-12, 23....that "there is NONE righteous, no, not one.....there is NONE that doeth good, no, not one,......for ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God. You see my friend, you CAN'T please God by your own works because you are not perfect.

You are a sinner. And because God KNOWS that you can't keep His law perfectly, He gave you someone who COULD! God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, came to earth, lived a PERFECT life under God's law, and then DIED to pay for YOUR sins (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Galatians 4:4-5). He died to pay YOUR sin debt to God (Romans 3:24-26). God loves you SOOOOOO much that He sent His own Son to the cross to shed His blood for YOU (Romans 5:8). You see my friend, God does not require you to keep his law because He knows that you can't keep it perfectly, so in His grace and love towards you, He sent His Son to die in your place.

The Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled God's righteous standard of perfection on your behalf and now offers HIS righteousness to you FREELY in exchange for your faith (2 Corinthians 5:21)! In Ephesians 2:8-9, God thru our Apostle Paul says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith, that NOT of yourselves, it is the GIFT of God, NOT OF WORKS, lest any man should boast". In Titus 3:5, He says, "....NOT by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us". In Romans 4:5,  He says, "But to him that worketh NOT, but believeth on (Christ), his FAITH is counted for righteousness".

You see my friend, God loves you. And He PROVED it and demonstrated it clearly by sending Christ to die for your sins on the cross! If you trust that, and that ALONE, God will save you from the lake of fire right NOW! Do you believe that you are a sinner, and that you can NOT keep God's WHOLE law PERFECTLY? Well, you are just the person God desires to save. Paul says in 1 Timothy 1:15 that, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save SINNERS....". In Galatians 2:21, Paul says, "...if righteousness come by the LAW, then Christ is dead in vain".

My friend if you COULD please God by keeping His law, then the Lord Jesus would not have even had to come to die for you! Why don't you believe God's Word and receive His gift of eternal life by faith. If you trust Christ, God will NEVER charge another sin to your account (Colossians 2:13). Isn't that wonderful?  Do you want to pay for yours OWN sins in the lake of fire for all eternity? Or do you want to accept the one who ALREADY paid it for you? Simply believe that The Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose again the third day. It's that simple....and thank the Lord for that:-)!

[Gary_NY]

Simply believe that The Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose again the third day. It's that simple....and thank the Lord for that:-)!

Is it really that simple   What does the word "believe" mean? 

Believe -- Means to trust in, rely on, or adhere to.  It means to follow Christ in obedience, not just a mental assent or agreement of what He did.

 

The devil and his demons know that Jesus died, was buried, and rose again the third day, so in that sense, they believe, but they are not saved.  We must deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Christ.

Luke 14:27  Whosoever doth not bear his own cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

So.... what is our cross?  Our cross is the gospel.  We are to preach the gospel to every creature and bear fruit.  Our seed is the Word of God... our fruit is Jesus Christ.  Some of us plant seeds and others water & cultivate, but God always provides the increase... the fruit... which is the character & nature of Christ in us.

The gospel is the death, burial & resurrection of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.  Repent and believe the gospel, for therein the righteousness of God is revealed.

Salvation -- Means much more than going to heaven.  It means to have every need met, to be made whole, spirit, soul & body... to be made complete now.

Repentance -- Means to turn away from sin, to change direction, amend/correct your actions, change your mind... so it's more complicated than just saying you're sorry.

We must trust in the power of God to to change our hearts, to break the power of sin over us.  Many churches today teach the "come as you are... stay as you are"... "no strings attached" gospel.  That you don't have to do anything... Jesus loves you and accepts you for who you are.  This is a false gospel... truth mixed with lies!  Christ loves us enough not to leave us in the sorry condition in which He found us.  Christ died for us... not so He can accept us the way we are, but to change us into His disciples.  His death, burial & resurrection provided the power by which we can be changed form death to life in His image, to become acceptable to God.  To think we can bear Christ's righteousness and continue living in sin is absolute false thinking.  We trample on Christ's sacrifice if we do that.  Paul said he who is righteous, does righteousness.  God doesn't have some kind of magic glasses that allows Him to overlook the sin in our lives.  God has given us the power through Christ to overcome sin.  The blood of Jesus takes away sin under the new covenant, where the blood of bulls & goats only covered sin.  This "sinners prayer" business we've all heard cannot be found anywhere in scripture and it will NOT save you.  Only through repentance and belief in the true gospel can we be saved.  The bible does not say to ask Jesus into your heart, and I doubt He would want to reside in anyone's wicked heart.  Jesus wants to change your wicked stony heart with a heart of flesh.

Jesus said: except you become as a little child, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God.  This means, just as a baby must trust its parents for everything, so must we trust God for everything. 

Matthew 6:31-33 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?  For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Blessings to all.

[Christine]

Scripture says: Simply believe that The Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose again the third day. It's that simple....and thank the Lord for that:-)!

You said:

Is it really that simple   What does the word "believe" mean? 

Scripture says:

I would venture to guess that it means just what it says. We ARE saved if we believe in the death, burial and resurrection as ALL we need. To be saved , sealed and sanctified,  believing is the ONLY criteria for a member of the body of Christ, because God says it in the gospel of OUR salvation found in 1 Cor. 15:1-4

YOU Said:

Believe -- Means to trust in, rely on, or adhere to.  It means to follow Christ in obedience, not just a mental assent or agreement of what He did.

Scripture tells us:

Where did you find this definition of believe? We are to "follow Paul as he followed Christ." We cannot follow Christ in obedience as He obeyed thru going to the Cross. We are to trust that what HE did was sufficient to cleanse us from ALL sin and to "make us the righteousness of God IN HIM"...totally apart from any performance on our part at all!

You said:

The devil and his demons know that Jesus died, was buried, and rose again the third day, so in that sense, they believe, but they are not saved.  We must deny ourselves, take up our cross daily and follow Christ.

Scripture says:

No...this is incorrect. The devil and his demons know that Jesus was God but they aren't trusting in His death, burial and resurrection to be saved. Devils and demons can't be saved. Redemption is for humankind alone and not for the devil and his fallen angels.

You are taking your instructions from the wrong gospel...taking up ones Cross daily and following the earthly Christ is NOT what we are to be doing. That was clearly the instruction for the Nation Israel, but NOT for we who are the Body of Christ. Christs words and directions while He was on the earth were specifically TO and ABOUT THE Nation Israel , as we , the Body of Christ were yet a MYSTERY, Hid in God.

You said:

Luke 14:27  Whosoever doth not bear his own cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

Again, you are taking your cues from the wrong gospel. OUR instructions are found NOT in Mt, Mk Lk and Jn, but in Romans thru Philemon. We aren't His disciples, but His BODY

You said:

So.... what is our cross?  Our cross is the gospel.  We are to preach the gospel to every creature and bear fruit.  Our seed is the Word of God... our fruit is Jesus Christ.  Some of us plant seeds and others water & cultivate, but God always provides the increase... the fruit... which is the character & nature of Christ in us.

The gospel is the death, burial & resurrection of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.  Repent and believe the gospel, for therein the righteousness of God is revealed.

We don't have a Cross....we have a message. While I agree with your assessment of the death , burial and resurrection of Christ being the power of God unto salvation to all who BELIEVE...I dont see any mention of following in obedience or repenting...there is a mixture of gospels here.

You said:

Salvation -- Means much more than going to heaven.  It means to have every need met, to be made whole, spirit, soul & body... to be made complete now.

Agreed. Salvation is redemption and it includes all that Christ accomplished on the Cross, including a brand NEW identity.

You said:

Repentance -- Means to turn away from sin, to change direction, amend/correct your actions, change your mind... so it's more complicated than just saying you're sorry.

Biblical repentance is NOT a turning away from sin. If that is its meaning then why does the bible say that "God repented" ?? What sin did He have to turn away from?  It means to change ones MIND about how God makes a man righteous, and its NOT THRU A MAN STOPPING SINNING, BUT THRU TRUSTING CHRISTS WORK ON THE CROSS.
You said:

We must trust in the power of God to to change our hearts, to break the power of sin over us.  Many churches today teach the "come as you are... stay as you are"... "no strings attached" gospel.  That you don't have to do anything... Jesus loves you and accepts you for who you are.  This is a false gospel... truth mixed with lies!  Christ loves us enough not to leave us in the sorry condition in which He found us.

God has already broken the power of sin as well as taking away the penalty. However, no man is sinless due to the fact that God has left us in this sinful "flesh"...thats why God recognizes NO man in the flesh, but only in the Spirit. Churches may tell you to come as you are and stay as you are, but the truth is, we come as we are and God doesn't change our old man, but places us in the NEW man who is none other than Christ Himself!  It is a no strings attached gospel...otherwise it wouildn't be called good news...we aren't on probation...we are DELIVERED from the power and penalty of sin. Christ places us into a NEW CREATION which is the Body of Christ. Thru study, we grow in GRACE and in the knowledge of the truth of God in this age of GRACE.

You said:

 Christ died for us... not so He can accept us the way we are, but to change us into His disciples.  His death, burial & resurrection provided the power by which we can be changed form death to life in His image, to become acceptable to God.  To think we can bear Christ's righteousness and continue living in sin is absolute false thinking.  We trample on Christ's sacrifice if we do that.  Paul said he who is righteous, does righteousness.  God doesn't have some kind of magic glasses that allows Him to overlook the sin in our lives.

Your theory is mixing gospels. God accepts us as we are, "While we were yet sinners , Christ died for us."  We are acceptable to God ONLY thru being IN the accepted ONE. Thru a change of IDENTITY, WE ARE NO LONGER SEEN AS SINNERS BUT AS SAINTS, WHETHER WE "ACT LIKE IT" OR NOT! THATS GRACE! That only happens thru BELIEVING that Christ did all that was necessary for our salvation totally APART from any works on our part.

You said:

 God has given us the power through Christ to overcome sin.
  Amen to that!

 The blood of Jesus takes away sin under the new covenant, where the blood of bulls & goats only covered sin.

We aren't under the New Covenant today. We are under the Grace of God and the New Covenant won't go into effect until God is again resuming His plan with the Nation Israel in the future (after we have been raptured.) Look at Jer 31;31 and tell me where the Body of Christ is mentioned? The OLD and NEW Covenant was made with the Nation Israel...and has nothing to do with the Body of Christ today. Do you know the difference between these two programs?

You said:

 This "sinners prayer" business we've all heard cannot be found anywhere in scripture and it will NOT save you.  Only through repentance and belief in the true gospel can we be saved.  The bible does not say to ask Jesus into your heart, and I doubt He would want to reside in anyone's wicked heart.  Jesus wants to change your wicked stony heart with a heart of flesh.

Thats correct! God actually wants to make us into a NEW CREATION....which is to place us into the living entity called the Body of Christ. The changing of the heart is again a reference to Israel. We need to realize that God hasn't changed anything about us, but has pronounce the death sentence on our flesh and who we were in ADAM. We are still as stinky and sinful as the day we got saved. It is Christ who lives His life in and thru us today. See Galatians 2:20

You said:

Jesus said: except you become as a little child, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God.  This means, just as a baby must trust its parents for everything, so must we trust God for everything. 

Again, this is written TO and ABOUT the Nation Israel and not us. We are not called to an earthly Kingdom but to a BODY and a message that Peter and the boys, and even Christ on earth did NOT preach. It was yet a mystery.

You said:

Matthew 6:31-33 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?  For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

These are NOT THE INSTRUCTIONS TO THE CHURCH, THE BODY OF CHRIST! We have no KINGDOM gospel...we have the gospel of the GRACE of God and the two are NOT the same! [/size]

Would you like a book that explains the differences to you...FREE? Would be happy to send it to you, or avail yourself of the wonderful comparison charts posted here in this forum to help you in your understanding of the differences between the KINGDOM gospel and the gospel of the Grace of God.

[Gary_NY]

Ok... now I see where you're coming from.  Well... there is only one gospel, regardless of how you twist the scriptures.  I do not believe in dispensationalism or separate gospels for Jews and Gentiles.  There is only one way to the Father and that is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  It makes no difference what your ethnicity is. 

The definition I have given is correct for the Greek word pisteuo, which is translated "believe".  You can apply any definition you like, but it won't change the truth.  Just as, you can believe a watered down, false gospel if you prefer, but it won't save you in the end.  This idea you propose that the Pauline Epistles are the only scriptures that apply to the body of Christ is utter nonsense and fyi, the body of Christ is made up of His disciples, which are followers of Christ.

My goal is not to argue with you, so I won't make any further attempts to do so here.  I've heard all your arguments before and my view is the only way to arrive at your conclusions is to take scripture out of context and ignore the truth.  I'm glad I found this out before I got too involved in this ministry.  I wish y'all the best and may God bless you and open your eyes!           

[Christine]

Ok... now I see where you're coming from.  Well... there is only one gospel, regardless of how you twist the scriptures.  I do not believe in dispensationalism or separate gospels for Jews and Gentiles.  There is only one way to the Father and that is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.  It makes no difference what your ethnicity is. 

Oh I agree, there is but ONE gospel that saves today, and its found in Paul's epistles. No need to twist anything, but we simply read the scriptures as God intended in 2 Tim 2:15 and rightly divide the Word of Truth. I'm sorry that you don't believe in dispensationalism because it IS a biblical term and God IS dispensational. There is the gospel of the Circumcision, which you find in times PAST as well as in Ages to COME (Eph 2:11 and 7) and which applied to the Jew ONLY.... and there is the gospel of the UNcircumcision which you find in the BUT NOW  (Eph 2:13) dispensation of the Grace of God (which is what it is called IN SCRIPTURE) which we are currently in TODAY!

You are correct in saying that TODAY there are no separate gospels for Jew and Gentile. That is because God changed programs with  something He KEPT SECRET, AND HID IN HIMSELF UNTIL DUE TIME. But in the scriptures that YOU provided in Mt, Mk, Lk and Jn, there definiitely was a gospel of a different kind in play and it had nothing to do with we who are the church the body of Christ.

The definition I have given is correct for the Greek word pisteuo, which is translated "believe".  You can apply any definition you like, but it won't change the truth.  Just as, you can believe a watered down, false gospel if you prefer, but it won't save you in the end.  This idea you propose that the Pauline Epistles are the only scriptures that apply to the body of Christ is utter nonsense and fyi, the body of Christ is made up of His disciples, which are followers of Christ.

And I challenged you to tell me "IF" that definition is correct, then why does the scripture tell us that "God repented?" What sin did he have to turn from? You see, we get our definitions from SCRIPTURE , and not from a dictionary. The gospel preached here is NOT watered down, but straight from the Word of God and NO ONE is saved by the gospel that Peter preached, or the gospel that Jesus taught during His earthly ministry. He taught the law of Moses and lived the law of Moses.

While you may be saved if you have believed in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, you seem ignorant of the FACT that the gospel that saves today is found ONLY in Pauls epistles. Peter preached "repent and be water baptised" which was REQUIRED UNDER THE KINGDOM GOSPEL. That is not the gospel that saves today. The idea proposed that the Pauline epistles are the instructions given specificallly to we who are His body is biblical and sound. It is you, my friend, who have not taken the time to STUDY to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that doesnt need to be ashamed, RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH, and for this I am truly saddened.

My goal is not to argue with you, so I won't make any further attempts to do so here.  I've heard all your arguments before and my view is the only way to arrive at your conclusions is to take scripture out of context and ignore the truth.  I'm glad I found this out before I got too involved in this ministry.  I wish y'all the best and may God bless you and open your eyes!           

One cannot argue with the scriptures rightly divided...one needs to repent; which means to change ones mind to think as God thinks. I've seen you before in the GRACE rooms on Paltalk and didn't realize you weren't dispensational. Our eyes HAVE BEEN OPENED, AND we thank the Lord for His mercy and grace to allow us to be a part of HIS GOAL of "making ALL men SEE what IS the fellowship of the Mystery..." Eph. 3:9

Thanks for your post...This is the kind of thinking that we try to address with the hope of someone actually studying the scriptures to see that they are caught in the "traditions of men" and "churchianity". God wants all men to be saved AND to come to a full knowledge of the truth. The word in the greek is epignosis. Without understanding that Pauls ministry is unique, different, and given to him BY God Himself...and that his words to we who are the Body of Christ ARE words from Christ RISEN...NOT Christ while on the earth...then people will forever be confused and will fall into the category of one who WiLL be an ashamed workman for NOT rightly dividing the Word of truth.

Paul warns us of those who don't rightly divide... Romans 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned (learned from whom? From Paul alone. Peter and the boys didn't know the mystery, and Christ on earth didn't preach it!); and avoid them.
Romans 16:18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

Also here:

Philippians 3:17 Brethren, be followers together of me, (Paul speaking here as the Gods appointed spokesman to we the church, the Body of Christ!) and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.

Philippians 3:18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
Philippians 3:19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

These "enemies of the Cross of Christ" are BELIEVERS who do NOT understand how God has told them to study and understand their Bibles so as NOT to misrepresent Him and His present program of "the preaching of Jesus Christ ACCORDING TO THE REVELATION Of the MYSTERY.." Romans. 16:25

This doesn't mean that they are not saved, but that they are "making the Cross of NONE EFFECT" by mixing the gospels and not making divisions where God makes them. We are to keep the programs SEPARATE. Judaism is NOT Christianity and law is NOT GRACE.


It takes humility and a willingness to Study, along with a willing mind. Its hard to admit one has been "WRONG"...and its a step we all must take in order to SEE what God is really doing in this world today.

Grace and Peace.

[Christine]

This is an interesting exchange that shows how people have misunderstood Gods Word today.