Bible Study 3: What Does God Want From Me? The Most Important Law--God's Law, His Standard for You

Bible Study #3, "What Does God Want From Me?" explains the most important law--God's Law, His holy standard revealed infallibly in the Bible.

You were created to please God (Revelation 4:11), and after death, you will face Him in judgment (Hebrews 9:27), leading either to everlasting life or punishment (Matthew 25:46). The standard of judgment is God's holy Law (John 12:48; Matthew 4:4). It reflects His character--you must be holy because He is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16). Sin is falling short of God's standard by doing what He says not to do, not doing what He says to do, or not being what He says to be (1 John 3:4).

The Bible contains 31,101 verses and 791,328 words, and you must live by every one of them. The Ten Commandments are crucial laws by which God will judge you.

The First Commandment, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:1-3), forbids idolatry and all false worship. You must put God first in your life all the time and in everything.

The Second Commandment, "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image" (Exodus 20:4-6), forbids all worship with images and all false worship, You must offer God exclusive devotion and true worship that befits His nature as Spirit.

The Third Commandment, "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain" (Exodus 20:7), forbids cursing and all irreverent speech about God. You must love and reverence His holy name.

The Fourth Commandment, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8-11), teaches the New Testament principle of faithful church attendance (Hebrews 10:25) on the Lord's Day (Acts 20:7), joyful love of God's house (Psalm 122:1; 84:2), and a holy life the rest of the week (Isaiah 1:13-15).

The Fifth Commandment, "Honour thy father and thy mother" (Exodus 20:12), forbids disobedience and despising of parents. You must greatly respect their wishes and honor the elderly in general (Leviticus 19:32).

The Sixth Commandment, "Thou shalt not kill" (Exodus 20:13), forbids taking innocent life, including abortion (Exodus 21:22-25), unjust anger, and hatred (Matthew 5:21-22). You must highly value human life.

The Seventh Commandment, "Thou shalt not commit adultery" (Exodus 20:14), forbids all sexual relationships outside of marriage, as well as divorce (Mark 10:11-12), lustful thoughts (Matthew 5:27-28), unclean speech (Ephesians 5:3-7), and immodesty (Zephaniah 1:8). You must be pure in heart and life.

The Eighth Commandment, "Thou shalt not steal" (Exodus 20:15), forbids taking anything that is not yours. You must work honestly and give generously.

The Ninth Commandment, "Thou shalt not bear false witness" (Exodus 20:16), forbids lying, slander, and gossip. You must speak only truth.

The Tenth Commandment, "Thou shalt not covet" (Exodus 20:17), forbids dissatisfaction with what God has provided, envy, and complaining. You must be thankful and content.

You must obey the Ten Commandments perfectly and every other command in the Bible. The greatest command of all is: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind" (Matthew 22:37). The second greatest is: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Matthew 22:39). You must "be ... perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).

If you are spotlessly pure and entirely free from sin in your nature, thoughts, and acts, as perfect as God Himself, you can merit eternal life (Leviticus 18:5) and heaven, the "new Jerusalem" (Revelation 21-22). However, if God sees any sin in you at all, you are under His curse (Galatians 3:10). You earn spiritual death and the second death, the fires of hell, for even one sin: "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). You are born spiritually dead, separated from God (Ephesians 2:1-3) because of your sin nature and sin in Adam (Romans 5:12-19). Physical death is coming (Genesis 3:19), followed by the "second death ... the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone" (Revelation 21:8).

You fail to meet God's standard because "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). From conception (Psalm 51:5) you have a heart that is "deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked" (Jeremiah 17:9). Unless delivered from your sin, you are a child of the devil (John 8:44), unrighteous (Romans 3:10), and unable to seek for God (Romans 3:11). Your sinful nature corrupts all your thoughts and actions so nothing you have ever done pleases God (Romans 8:7-8)--your "damnation is just" (Romans 3:8) and you are already condemned (John 3:18). The wrath of God abides on you (John 3:36)!

Reject your pride and admit you deserve hell (Luke 5:31-32). Reject any trust in good works or reformation of life (Matthew 5:20). God’s Law demands your eternal condemnation, and unless all your sins are taken care of and God sees you as righteous as He is, you must eternally perish. Find out how God can deliver you from your sin in Bible study #4: "How Can God Save Sinners?"