“You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour. You shall not covet your neighbour’s house, wife…manservant…maidservant…ox…ass, nor anything that is your neighbour’s.” Exodus 20:13-17.
These verses expressed God’s expectations in the relationships that should exist between men. The relationship must be based on love, with God in view “for God is love”(1 John 4:8) Jesus elaborated on these verses saying, “And the second is like it;” You shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40).
The basic and ultimate expectation of God for Israel is the expression of love for God and for fellow men. Murder, adultery, stealing, false witness and covetousness are done out of hatred or wickedness. When you love a man, you cannot do any of these acts mentioned above against him. When the love for God from within renews your mind, wickedness will be away from your thought. “Now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love”(1 Corinthians 13:13).
God first shows us how to love by sending his Son to die for us. “But God demonstrate his own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”. (Romans 5:8). When a child of God is endowed with love from God for his fellow man, what will come out of him is not wickedness but love streaming out from within toward him. Your own interests should not dominate your heart, but the interest of others ahead of you also. (Philippians 2:1-4)
Jesus Christ demonstrated this love practically to the woman caught in the very act of adultery. Instead of killing her, he gave her life. Even the would be executors were guilty of breaking the commandment (John 8:1-11).
The New Testament calls those things the works of the flesh but he who walk in the Spirit walks in love (Galatians 5: 19-25). When you walk in love, you fulfil the mind or expectations of God in his Commandments.
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