The Next Commandment, Part One
Psalm 5:9, NLT, “My enemies cannot speak a truthful word. Their deepest desire is to destroy others. Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with flattery.”
Exodus 20:16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
It was essential that the Hebrew people were truth bearers to each other and to their neighbors. In other words they needed to be truthful to their actual next door neighbors who were mostly Hebrew (remember not all of those who left Egypt with them were Hebrew) in order to establish a strong trusting community. In order for them to be able to love one another they needed to be honest with their feelings. That meant that they needed to give an honest account of their dealings with their neighbors. God’s desire for them was to stand by each other and offer their neighbors support. God wanted them to love each other, offer encouragement, and give an accurate accounting of their dealings with their neighbors.
That meant that if a neighbor’s goat made a mess in their yard one time, they weren’t supposed to say the goat was always making messes! No embellishing!
God’s intent in the covenant with this commandment was to help His children build trust with each other. God knew that the culture they came from and the situation they were in as slaves had forced them to a life of fear for their survival. After living in that culture for several centuries a new culture needed to be established for them. God was trying to get them to a place where they could change the way they thought about living. In other words, God needed to get them out of survival mode and into living mode. Part of that life included being trustworthy with their neighbors. God knew that trust is earned and in order for the Hebrew people to build trust it would start with speaking truth to and about each other.
The Hebrew children also needed to be a people of integrity. That means they needed to be the same on the outside as they were in the inside; they needed to be men and women of good character who were honest. Being a people of integrity meant as a whole they were a nation known for their honest dealings with their neighbors.
Remember that God’s chosen people were called to tell God’s good news to the nations. Therefore, unless they established a good name among the nations, their message would be mute.
There were also times when they also needed to be warriors. In Joshua 1:9, NLT they were told, “This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” The Hebrew people needed to tell truth, be strong and courageous, and listen carefully for God’s command. In Joshua 1:11, NLT, God told the Hebrew leadership, “Go through the camp and tell the people to get their provisions ready. In three days you will cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you.” The commandment to be truth bearers was also important for warriors. Trustworthy warriors are men of integrity who are men of their word. God did not intend for the Hebrew warriors to be like their pagan neighbors who had little value for honesty and life. They were his chosen people, holy and set apart to accomplish his purpose.
A word needs to be interjected here regarding spiritual truth and God’s intent for a deeper understanding for the Hebrew people. The covenant and command was meant to be taken to their hearts from the very heart of God. God did not throw out the command and walk away from them expecting them to do it all on their own. God’s spirit was present in the tent, with their leaders, and in the Ark of the Covenant. God was clearly involved in their spiritual journey.
The law was also intended to be applied as a faithful way to live.
Part of the process of their growth included a call to a life of honesty and integrity. Through oral tradition, the Hebrew people would have been told they were created in God’s image. Every command would have been intended to live and act in the likeness and character of God. Though they were living in a fallen world, they were called to be holy under God.
Truth displays the character and nature of God.
God’s promises to his children were known to be honorable and true. God promised Abraham he would make him a great nation and he was given an heir. To his son Isaac, God promised the inheritance. When God told Abraham to take Isaac to the mountain to make a sacrifice, Abraham knew God would provide the sacrificial lamb. Genesis 22:8 (NLT) says, “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.”
Abraham and Isaac continued on so they would obey God’s command. In Genesis 22:9-13 (NLT) we learn, “When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice. At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham! Yes”, Abraham replied. “Here I am!” “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.” Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means “the Lord will provide”). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” Then the angel of the Lord called again to Abraham from heaven. “This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.”
The Hebrew people knew God spoke truth and kept His word.
God was telling his “blessed” children to be truth bearers to their neighbors. They were called to share the true character of God…to tell the stories of God’s faithfulness and to live his truth out in their everyday lives.
The Hebrew people would need to be known as TRUTH bearers in order for their reputation as a community to spread. Clearly the Hebrew people were faced with many challenges in establishing an honorable reputation among the nations. Because they were called by God to carry His message of love to the nations, they were essentially God’s ambassadors to the nations.
Tomorrow we will pick up with part two of being truth bearers to our neighbors and we’ll look at what Jesus said about our neighbors.
Today’s Spiritual Practice is: BE thankful for truth bearers
Spend time listening to God about what it means to be a truth bearer.
In God, Deb
Deborah Ireland Douglas Jones
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