The Small Catechism – part 21
Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
Scripture Text: Exodus 20:2
Series: Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
Click for a recording of today's lesson.
From the Confessions: The Small Catechism, The First Commandment
You shall have no other gods.
What does this mean?
Answer: We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.
Pulling It Together: You may initially counter that God did not bring you out of Egypt. It was the Hebrew people whom God led out of slavery to pharaohs. They were enslaved for over four centuries in Egypt, waiting for God to send Moses to lead them out. But God — your God — has led you out of slavery too. Since Adam’s and Eve’s disobedience in the garden (Genesis 3:1–6), the human race has been enslaved to sin. We are born in bondage to sin (Psalm 51:5), cannot escape on our own, and will die in sin without someone to lead us out (Romans 5:12–21).
Because of the sin of that one man, Adam, generations remained dead in sin, and in bondage to it. But thanks be to God! Through the one man, Christ Jesus, the free gift of God’s grace overflows in our justification to God. We were once enslaved to a worse taskmaster than any pharaoh. But Christ has led us out of bondage, setting us free from sin, death, and the devil. So, we must no longer fear death or the devil. Instead, we should fear, love, and trust God above all things.
Prayer: Thank you, Jesus, for setting me free from sin. Amen.
Click here for resources to learn the Ten Commandments.
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Rev. Dr. Mark E. Ryman has served as Pastor for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Salisbury, NC, since 2021. Previously, Pastor Ryman served congregations in North Carolina and Ohio, as well as a call to specialized ministry with Sola Publishing.
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