Series
Rev. Jerry Hamstra
The Book of Esther
The Book of Esther
Sermons
Rev. Jerry Hamstra
Introduction to Acts
Introduction to Acts

Ten Commandments

The Tenth Commandment (2) Contentment

Read: Philippians 4:10-20
Text: Verses 10-13

“Knowing Jesus and living to please him is so wonderful – so satisfying – so delightful – that it is possible to be content in every circumstance. That is something to think about! That is something to aspire to. Life can be good and for most of us it is good. But it can be so much better. We can know deeper joys and more profound delights and greater satisfactions by doing whatever it takes to grow in our love for Christ. One thing that this requires is time. Much of this happens inside our head – in our minds – in our thoughts. That involves the Word, but it also involves thinking. It requires thoughts of Christ and his glory – who he is, what he has done, what he is doing, what he will do. It requires thoughts of Christ to be welcome in our minds.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Tenth Commandment (1) You Shall Not Covet

“This is an important part of the biblical teaching concerning desires. We are to desire some things more than other things. Some desirable things are more important than other desirable things. We are to desire some things with all our hearts, and we are to desire other things with less than all our hearts and there are yet other things that we are not to desire at all. How we order our desires is a moral question. The kinds of things that we prioritize in our lives is a reflection of the kind of people we are, and God is concerned with what kind of people we are.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Ninth Commandment (3) Loving with Our Words

Read: Exodus 20:16
Ephesians 4:17-32
Text: verse 29

“God’s desire is for people to live together in harmony and love and a big part of that picture is people using their words to bless and serve one another rather than to hate and to harm one another. And this is something that he is working towards by means of his great plan of salvation. The words of our text are an exhortation that is addressed to followers of Jesus – to those who have been and are being saved from their sins.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Ninth Commandment (2) Speak the Truth

“This is one of the things that it means to be a Christian. As the outworking of the new life in Christ, Christians are to put off their old self and put on the new self and the new self is like God. One of the things that the new life in Christ enables us to do is to begin to reflect the character of God in our lives. One of the great goals of our salvation is that we will reflect the character of God in the way that we live our lives. This is perfected only when we are glorified, but it begins in the here and now, and it involves the power of the Holy Spirit working in us and our own efforts by means of that power.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Ninth Commandment (1) “Do not bear false witness”

“This is at the heart of what Jesus did to bring about the prophecies of a world of justice and wellbeing for all. To bring about that vision for the future of the world, Jesus began with the heart of the matter – he dealt with the root problem of all the selfishness and cruelty and injustice in the world. He dealt with sin. He broke the power of sin. And he called men and women and children to believe on him, repent of their sins and live out of the renewing power of the gospel.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Eighth Commandment (3) Money and the Christian Life

“How much should we give? Enough so that it can be described as being rich in good works, as being generous and as being ready to share. Enough so that it can be described as fleeing the love of money, and pursuing righteous, godliness, faith and love. Enough so that it consistent with godliness with contentment. Enough so that it can qualify as “storing up treasure … as a good foundation for the future, so that [we] may take hold of that which is truly life.””
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Eighth Commandment (2) Property and Wealth

“What that means in practice is that our use and enjoyment of our possessions will nurture our relationship with God rather than diminish our relationship with God. If we receive God’s gifts with thanksgiving it will increase our love for God and our respect for God. If we receive God’s gifts without thanksgiving it will be a barrier in our relationship with God. So there is a way that our enjoyment of our possession contributes to having God as our only God. And that is a beautiful thing. It contributes immensely to our enjoyment of our possession if that enjoyment treasures the love and generosity of God.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Eighth Commandment (1) “You shall not Steal”

“Now in connection with the Eighth Commandment we see that we the sin behind the sin of stealing is greed, an excessive desire for money and things – a desire that is stronger than our desire for the worship and pleasure of God. And here we come to the place where we are all guilty of breaking the Eighth Commandment. The word greed may not resonate with our experience, but excessive desire for money and things describes all of our experience to some extent.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Seventh Commandment (6) Flee Sexual Immorality

“Again it is important to remember that self-control does not come easily. It is not that the gift of self-control makes it possible for us to exercise self-control with ease. It can be a long battle. For some people it is harder than others. People struggle for self-control in different areas. And yet here again, there is hope for progress because of the good news that Jesus died and rose again so that we might be enabled to live self-controlled lives.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Seventh Commandment (5) Homosexuality

“We are not defined by our desires. We are made by God and for God. The way to life and blessedness is the way of salvation in Jesus Christ, and the way of being, renewed in the image of Christ. That involves dying to self. It involves that for all of us, no matter what our particular struggles and inclinations are. Just giving into our desires is the way of death. One of the great themes of the New Testament is that in Christ it is possible to live a life that is pleasing to God – not perfectly in this life, but nevertheless really. The Bible does not hide the fact that this is sometimes very hard. But it insists that the Christian life is the life of blessedness and true well-being. There is no better way to live than the life that is the result of salvation in Christ – the life of submission to God – the life of love and service – the life of putting God’s will before our own.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra