6. Ten Commandments — What is Sin?

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Romans 3:23 NKJV

If all have sinned including us, then what is sin? That’s a good question. When the Bible speaks of all, it means all. It doesn’t matter what language it is in—all means ALL.

As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”

Romans 3:10-12 NKJV

None does good. None are good. None of us are righteous and in good standing with God on our own. How did we get this sin in the first place? Well, when we talked about the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, they disobeyed God. That is how sin came to be in the world. Everything was perfect, and God created everything good, but because of Adam’s disobedience, it caused a ripple effect of death and chaos through the ages even until now.

Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned–

Romans 5:12 NKJV

So, how do we know we have sin?

The Ten Commandments (also known as the Decalogue) are ten laws in the Bible that God gave to the nation of Israel shortly after the exodus from Egypt. The Ten Commandments are essentially a summary of the 613 commandments contained in the Old Testament Law. The first four commandments deal with our relationship with God. The last six commandments deal with our relationships with one another. The Ten Commandments are recorded in the Bible in Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21 and are paraphrased as follows:

You shall have no other god’s before Me. Is God first in your life? Do you love God above all else? Imagine you purchased a TV for your children, but the next evening you arrived home from work and found that they didn’t even bother to greet you. They were too busy watching television. By ignoring you because they preferred to watch TV, they were setting their love on the gift rather than the giver, a wrong order of affections. In the same way, if we love anything – our spouse, our children, or even our own lives-more than we love God, we are setting our affection on the gift rather than the Giver, which is a transgression of the First Commandment. In fact, the Bible says that we should love God so much that our love for our family should seem like hatred compared to the love we have for the God who gave those loved ones to us. Have you loved God with all your heart? If not, you have committed the oldest sin in the Book. You be the judge. On Judgment Day, will you be innocent or guilty of breaking that Commandment? I’m not judging you – I’m asking you to judge yourself before the Day of Judgment.
You shall not make an idol for yourself. This means that we shouldn’t make a god to suit ourselves, either with our hands or with our mind. Have you made a god in your mind that you’re comfortable with-where you say, “My god is a loving god who would never send anyone to Hell”? Perhaps your god doesn’t mind a “white” lie or fib here and there – in fact, he doesn’t have any moral dictates. In reality, that god doesn’t exist; he’s a figment of your imagination. If your god is not the One revealed in Holy Scripture, then you have made an image of God to suit yourself, something the Bible calls idolatry. Scripture warns that no idolater will enter the kingdom of Heaven (1 Cor. 6:9).
You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God. Have you ever taken God’s name in vain-using it flippantly, like “OMG,” or in place of a four-letter word to express disgust? Even Hitler’s name wasn’t despised enough to use as a curse word. If you have taken the holy name of the God who gave you life and used it in that manner, that’s called blasphemy, and the Bible says, “The LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Ex. 20:7).
Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” This is a command to set aside the Sabbath (Saturday, the last day of the week) as a day of rest dedicated to the Lord. But, there is not one command in the New Testament for Christians to keep the Sabbath (Saturday) holy. We are even not to let other judge us regarding Sabbath (Colossians 2:16-17). The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27). Our salvation is not dependent on days, but in faith on the sacrifice of Christ. But even though this commandment is fulfilled in the rest Christ gives through His blood sacrifice on the cross (Hebrews 4) we should use this as an opportunity to do good and be a blessing to others and God.
Honor your father and mother. Have you always honored your parents implicitly, treating them in a way that’s pleasing to God? This doesn’t mean you honor them only if you think they are good parents. We are to respect and obey them just because they are our parents. Ask God to remind you of the sins of your youth. You may have forgotten them, but God hasn’t. Every time we sin, we violate this law because sin also dishonors the parents who raised us.
You shall not murder. The Bible warns that if we are angry at someone without cause we are in danger of judgment, and that “whoever hates his brother is a murderer” (1 John 3:15). We can violate God’s Law by our attitude and intent. Have you broken this Commandment by harboring anger or hatred toward someone? If so, God sees you as guilty of murder, and “no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”
You shall not commit adultery. Who of us can say that we are pure of heart? Jesus warned, “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 5:28). Lust is sexual desire. This includes viewing pornography. God has seen every thought you have had and every sin you have ever committed. The day will come when you will have to face His Law, and we are told that the impure, fornicators (those who have sex before marriage), and adulterers will not enter the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 6:9,10).
You shall not steal. Have you taken anything without permission that doesn’t belong to you, regardless of its value? People despise liars and thieves. God sees it also as not trusting in His goodness that was given to you. That people want more and feel obligated to take it from someone else. That is sin. When we lie or steal, we want something someone has, whether its prestige, honor, stuff, or grace.
You shall not bear false witness (lie). Lying and falsely accusing someone is a grave sin. All lies are in the sight of God. The dictionary defines a lie as a false statement deliberately presented as being true with the intent to deceive or give wrong impression. The Bible makes it clear, “All liars will have their part in the lake of fire [on judgment day].” (Revelation 21:8). Have you ever told a lie? Then that would make you a liar. You may not think deceitfulness is a serious sin, but God does. “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord” (Prov. 12:22), because He is a God of truth and holiness. The Bible warns that all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire (Rev. 21:8).
You shall not covet. Have you ever coveted (jealously desired) anything that belongs to another person? Before a man sins, he covets. Before he steals, he covets. Before he lies, he covets. Coveting is the spark that lights the fuse of sin. That’s a violation of the Tenth Commandment, and the covetous will not inherit the kingdom of God (Eph. 5:5).

The Ten Commandments are not only rules to follow, but God’s standard of goodness. It is a mirror to show us what sin is, and that we need to clean ourselves up. The mirror didn’t make us sin, it just exposed it. It’s like if you go to prom and wake up that morning, you look in the mirror and it shows you what you need to do (comb your hair, take a shower, shave, get dressed, etc).

But the Ten Commandments can only expose our sin, not take it away. Even if we have broken only one commandment one time, it is as if we broken all of them (James 2:10). The Ten Commandments can only take us to the cross and no further. It is by the blood of Christ that cleanses us from sin (1 John 1:5-10).

Therefore, in the next sections, we will discuss what our punnishment is that we deserve by breaking God’s Law, and then, what God did so that we may be set free from it.