The Commandment’s Teachable Moments
A month or so ago there was a blurb in the statewide newspaper about a mother who joined a lawsuit to stop Texas from posting the Ten Commandments in public schools.
Her children were 5 and 6, so presumably about to enter kindergarten and first grade, and she said she never planned to talk to them “this young about the Ten Commandments.” Then she added that, “It’s not the set of moral absolutes that our family is run on.”
Set aside your personal thoughts on displaying the Ten Commandments in public schools, and instead think about that news item as a teachable moment on… teachable moments.
The easy observation is that the mother was oblivious to a teachable moment with her children. Even more so, it would appear she also missed a learning opportunity for herself, because the story begs two questions she’d do well to consider:
What are her family’s moral absolutes? And when should she start teaching them to her children?
Since the Ten Commandments are not the moral absolutes that her family is run on, does that mean she’s okay with coveting her neighbor’s possessions, stealing, lying, adultery, dishonoring parents, and murder? And at what age will she start teaching her children these things?
In fairness to the mother, more than likely it’s the first four commandments to which she objects – the ones about God and the sabbath. So, let’s flip the questions to a personal level, because here’s the deal: The woman in that story probably isn’t Jewish or a follower of Jesus and she might not even believe in God. We can’t reasonably expect her to see the Ten Commandments, even the six I mentioned, as her moral absolutes. Besides, her views on morality, which we can’t presume to really know based on a one-paragraph news item, are far less important than our own.
But if we consider ourselves men after God’s own heart and followers of Jesus, then those commandments aren’t mere suggestions. And we are not only called to keep them, but to teach them to our families. Moses made this point to the Israelites as they prepared to cross into the Promise Land without him.
In Deuteronomy 6, he reminds them there is only one God and they are to love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and strength. Then he not only tells them to keep God’s commandments on their hearts, but …
“Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:7-9, NIV)
Jesus, who fulfilled the law but didn’t abolish it, said whoever “does” and “teaches” the commandments, “will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (see Matthew 5:17-20) Obeying and teaching God’s commandments isn’t a condition of salvation; it’s a response to salvation. If we’ve been saved by the grace of an all-loving God who died for our sins, then His moral absolutes should mean something to us. In gratitude, and because we know His way is what’s best for us, we should desperately and passionately want to do all we can to live by those absolutes and teach them to others.
So, no matter what happens in the public schools of Texas, our desire should be the same as that of the psalmist’s:
“For You are great, and You do wondrous deeds;
“You alone are God.
“Teach me Your way, Lord;
“I will walk in Your truth;
“Unite my heart to fear Your name.
“I will give thanks to You, Lord my God, with all my heart,
“And I will glorify Your name forever.” (Psalm 86:10-12, NASB)