Specifically where in the NT does it say that the Ten Commandments MUST be followed?

Question

I need the Book, the Chapter, and the Verse to settle an argument.

Some of my Christian friends claim that the Ten Commandments are a MUST. Others claim that they are optional. Which is it and why?


BTW to get it straight; Please state the exact translation of the Commandment concerning the taking of life.

How may a Christian justify to ignore the Commandments of not eating Shrimp or Pork?

Again, chapter and verse.

If you choose to ignore one of God's Commandments, may you also ignore the others?

Answer 1

The better question would be where in the NT does it say that the Ten Ten Commandments (and the other stuff) MIGHT NOT be followed? There is a statement by Jesus himself that they must be followed and yet Christians claim that this is not the case (because Jesus died ... blah-blah-blah... perfect sacrifice... blah-blah... [insert some made up crap here] ..)

Answer 2

Let's try to solve this question in reverse, by finding the answers to the question: "Which commandment(s) are optional and can be eliminated?"

1. Certainly not the first, for this would give sanction to polytheism. Jesus never taught that we could have other gods.
2. This is also true of the second commandment. Bowing down to images means having other gods.
3. Jesus spoke about keeping the third commandment: read Matthew 5:34 and James 5:12.
4. Jesus kept the fourth commandment (Sabbath). Read Luke 4:16, Mark 2:27 and compare it with Isaiah 66:22-23.
5. The fifth commandment is the basis for family relationships. Read Ephesians 6:1-2.
6. Jesus talked about keeping the sixth commandment. Read Matthew 5:21-22, and compare with 1 John 3:15.
7. The last four are all essential as well.

Jesus said in Mark 10:19, "Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother."

The fact is, the commandments are not optional, though each person has a God-given freedom of choice. In other words, you have the right to be wrong! But bad choices make for bad consequences, and while you may choose your action, the result may not be up to you. Keeping the commandments, all 10 of them, is the surest way to happiness and blessing. Why then are people so eager to throw them out?

The Ten Commandments are God's Law (not Moses' Law) and are so important that God wrote them with His own finger into stone--TWICE! Moses did not write the 10 Commandments, God wrote these Himself, and they are designed to be permanent and unchanging.

Answer 3

Well I don't think the New Testament specifically says just the Ten Commandments still apply, but Romans 3:31 reads, "Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law." However just before this Paul writes "For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law" (verse 28). In Galatians 3:21 he says, "For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law." and in verse 25 he says, "Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law"

Now how do we reconcile all these things? To the point - following the Old Testament will NOT bring you salvation, however the Old Testament laws are not, in their essence, evil. They provide some moral structures but for the most part they appear frequently in the New Testament as commandments. Consistently in the New Testament you read about how to avoid sexual immorality and such. However some commandments were added to reflect the morality of the time - since drunkeness was abundant there are more scriptures in the New Testament condemning drunkeness, and less on worship of idols since it was not a prolific sin at that time.

So far I've only learned Greek and not Hebrew, but I believe the Hebrew word used in the Ten Commandments (in English letters) was "rashach" which meant "murder" not "kill". The difference - murder would be going over to your neighbor's house and slaughtering them in the night. Killing might include self-defense or perhaps the death penalty although there is no such penalty advocated in the New Testament. Benjamin Franklin wrote an essay on how self-defense was a justified act under Christianity, he used the scripture from Jesus saying, "Go out and buy a sword, and if you cannot afford it then sell your tunic" or whatever, and Franklin noted how Christ taught that having a weapon was more important than clothing.

But it seems strange if one to say the Ten Commandments are "optional". They are all quite to the point and VERY basic. Do not steal. Do not worship idols. Do not profane the name of God. The only one that most Christians neglect is the Sabbath laws, and they do so in error.

"There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience." Hebrews 4:9-11

The Ten Commandments seem to be solid in granite, but even if you were technically able to keep all of them, you still need Christ. Actually, to think of it, the Sermon on the Mount proves this. Two of the commandments which most people think they've never broken are "thou shall not murder" and "thou shall not commit adultery" but in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus says, "If you've hated your brother, you've committed murder in the eyes of God" and "if you've looked at a woman lustfully, you've committed adultery with her in the eyes of God" so even if you could follow the Ten Commandments, from God's point of view the Ten Commandments are not even close to his true moral standards. They are the most basic of the basic, the shortest list imaginable. So how can someone rightfully say, "oh you don't need to follow ALL those commandments, just follow two or three and you'll be fine"

"Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:19 on the Sermon on the Mount.

Answer 4

Matthew 5:17-20 (New International Version)

17"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Luke 10:24-28 (New International Version)

25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"

27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'[a]; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[b]"

28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."

The whole of "the Law" is contained within these two.

If you love God, and you love your neighbor, you will find that every one of the Ten Commandments will require adherance. Even the Sabbath.

Answer 5

For Christians, Jesus fulfilled the regulation of Moses. Christians are actually not held to the ceremonial factors of the Mosaic regulation regarding of nutritional purity and temple worship. Christians are held to the moral regulation of God, a number of it is expressed interior the ten Commandments. in spite of the undeniable fact that Jesus took the ten Commandments to the subsequent step summarizing them into the two large Commandments: + You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your ideas, and with all your potential. + You shall love your neighbor as your self. And coaching issues like + all and sundry who looks at a woman with lust has already dedicated adultery along with her in his heart. + all and sundry is our neighbor which comprise our enemies. consequently we would desire to continually bypass plenty farther than the unique recipients of the ten Commandments ever dreamed. With love in Christ.

Answer 6

The NT makes it clear that Man is a sinful being that needs Christ. Jesus made it very clear when He commanded us to be perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect.... Jim

Answer 7

It is not mentioned in the NT. The Decalog -- not commandments -- is not for non-Jews. Rather the Noahide laws pertain to all peoples. They are:

Prohibition of idolatry

Prohibition of blasphemy

Prohibition of murder

Prohibition of theft

Prohibition of illicit relations

Prohibition of eating live meat

Prohibition of failing to establish courts of justice

Answer 8

When they don't bother going to church on Saturday they say it is because sky daddy Jr fulfilled the law. Which ones can you disregard now? It is up to you to pick and choose I suppose.

Answer 9

Matthew 22:37
Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

When you do this, it is implicit that the laws of God would have to be kept.

Thou shall not kill - more correctly translated as Thou shall not murder.

Answer 10

I think it's implied in the word 'commandment'.