The Ten Commandments


Read the story in Exodus 20

What Does It Mean in My Life?

The commandments that the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai are commandments that each one of us can strive to live by today.

A person might think upon first glance that the Ten Commandments are extreme or outdated. On the contrary each commandment, in addition to being powerful in its literal meaning, contains deeper meanings that are applicable in our lives. For example, people might think that the commandment not to murder is not one that they are likely to be tempted to break in their lives. But if it is understood that as physical murder takes a physical life, if we murder someone's spirit we begin to take away their spiritual life. We can murder other people’s spirits with critical words or explosions of anger. There are many ways to murder a person's spirit.

The Lord gives us the Ten Commandments as clear instructions for living a spiritual life. Our job is to shun these evils in our lives and open up a space for the Lord to flow in with angelic qualities. As we stop lying to ourselves and others, the Lord flows in with honesty and integrity. As we stop thinking and acting in ways that place certain activities and objects above the Lord, respect and love for the Lord increases. This is the core of spiritual life.


Excerpted from Journey to Freedom spiritual growth program — Week 7, Day 5

Daily Inspiration

"The Lord does not differentiate religious movements by their doctrine, either, but by the way their members live what is taught."

Arcana Coelestia 1799.3