How the Ten Commandments Teach Us How to Love

In this post, let us discover how the Ten Commandments define God’s love to us. Let us also learn how the Ten Commandments teach us how to love God and one another.


Send me a message to Joshuainfantado@gmail.com to request your free copy of “The Shocking Biblical Truth About the New Covenant.”

A lot of Christians today dismiss the Ten Commandments and say they are part of the Old Covenant. They argue that for Christians under the New Covenant, all we need is love.

But the crucial question that we all need to ask is, “How do you love God and others?”

Are we supposed to simply follow our feelings and the dictates of our hearts? If we are going to love according to our own standards and definitions, then we end up loving in different ways.

We need a standard on which we can base our definition of love.

Why?

Because if we are going to trust our own feelings and heart, we all end up being deceived. 

Jeremiah 17:19 tells us:

9 “The heart is deceitful above all things,
And desperately wicked;
Who can know it?”

You see, following our heart, which is deceitful and wicked, can be dangerous.

So, which one should we follow? This is where the Ten Commandments come in.

The Ten Commandments reflect God’s love

We read in the Bible that God is love. However, instead of just a fuzzy and mysterious feeling, God defined very well His love toward us. He defined His love through the Ten Commandments.

When Yahshua (Jesus Christ) was asked what is the greatest commandment, He responded in Matthew 22:37-40:

“‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Yahshua wasn’t introducing new teaching here. In fact, He was quoting the Old Testament when He gave an answer (Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18).

If you look closely, Christ was simply summarizing the Ten Commandments. The first four commandments show us how to love God, while the remaining six commandments show us how to love one another.

How the Ten Commandments Teach Us How to Love
How the Ten Commandments Teach Us How to Love

How the Ten Commandments teach us about love

Now, let’s take a look at how the Ten Commandments help us learn how to love God and other people.

First Commandment

“You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3).

This verse shows us how we must not have other gods aside from our Heavenly Father. It teaches us to be loyal to God and avoid idolatry that could easily lead us astray.

Second Commandment

4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments” (Exodus 20:4-6).

The second commandment teaches us how we should respect God and not give His honor to carved images. It reminds us to worship the Creator and not the creatures. Limiting God in a manmade image distorts our perception of God and it damages our relationship with Him.

Third Commandment

7 “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Exodus 20:7).

The Third Commandment reminds us to revere God’s name and His authority. It teaches us that loving God includes respecting Him and taking seriously His commandments and laws.

Fourth Commandment

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:8-11).

The Fourth Commandment commands us to set aside a particular day in which we remember our Father as our Creator and God. It reminds us that life is not all about our physical desires and ambitions, but we must not forget our Father. Keeping the Sabbath every week allows us to spend more time with God, with our spiritual and physical family, and with His word.

If you want to learn more about the Fourth Commandment, please read “Top 5 Awesome Benefits of Keeping the Sabbath Day.”

Send me a message to Joshuainfantado@gmail.com to request your free copy of “The Shocking Biblical Truth About the New Covenant.”

Fifth Commandment

12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12).

The first commandment that teaches us love toward others is the Fifth Commandment. It teaches us to honor our parents. By learning how to honor our parents at home, we are also learning how to honor, respect, and get along with other people outside of our home.

Sixth Commandment

13 “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13).

The Sixth Commandment teaches us about how precious life is. Life is to be respected and valued. We are not to take the life of another person. Not “murdering” does not simply mean literally killing a person, but rather it also includes hateful hostility, bitter animosity, and wrongful hatred to others.

Seventh Commandment

14 “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14).

The Seventh Commandment is designed to protect the marriage covenant, which is an important institution that has a huge effect on society. God knows that families are really important and by committing adultery, a lot of people can get hurt and misguided. 

Needless to say, broken family relationships have led to a lot of problems not just on a personal, but also on a global level. So avoiding adultery is a powerful way to show your love to other people. 

If you wish to learn more, please read “The 3 Most Important Reasons Why God Forbids Adultery.”

Eighth Commandment 

15 “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15).

The Eighth Commandment helps us to know how to respect other people’s properties and their rights. You might already know how it feels to have something stolen from you. It can be hurtful, frustrating, and even maddening. So, if you really love one another, you should avoid stealing other people’s resources.

To learn more about this topic, please read “10 Little-Known Ways You are Breaking the Eighth Commandment.”

Send me a message to Joshuainfantado@gmail.com to request your free copy of “The Shocking Biblical Truth About the New Covenant.”

Ninth Commandment

16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16).

The Ninth Commandment teaches us about honesty. Remember that God is truth and Satan is the father of lies. When we practice truthfulness and honesty, we are exhibiting the very character of God. When we become liars, we are not just hurting ourselves, but we also hurt other people by bearing false information, knowledge, and news.

Tenth Commandment

17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s” (Exodus 20:17).

The Tenth Commandment addresses the heart and mind of every person. You see, covetousness starts in the heart. It is something you haven’t done literally yet. You haven’t acted upon it. By instructing us to not covet, God is helping us to prevent a lot of sins even before they materialize.

Now, the Tenth Commandment specifically tells us to not covet other people’s properties and spousal relationships. When we covet, it doesn’t just destroy our minds, but it prevents us from truly loving others.

The Ten Commandments defining God’s love

As you can see, the Ten Commandments help us learn how to love God and love others. To make things even more powerful, the Ten Commandments reveal the very character of God. It shows us how God shows us who He is and how He expects anyone who follows Him to behave. 

The Bible clearly tells us that “by this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments” (1 John 5:2).

Now, if you still believe that the New Covenant abolished God’s law, then my friend, I’m sorry, but you are also believing the lies Satan has always been telling us.

The Ten Commandments define God’s love for us. Now, why would God get rid of His Commandments if it helps us learn how to love?

That’s a question I want to leave you with.


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