Not so long ago, if you entered any Anglican church you could find the Ten Commandments prominently displayed on a wall of the church.

They stand as a revelation of the nature of God. A God who not only is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent, but also a God who is holy and good. They reveal to us a God who has a holy standard, which sets him apart from his creation. They reveal to us that God is good, for these commandments are not there as arbitrary rules, but as a set of rules by which we might be happy.

They stand as a reminder of how we should live. For we are made in the image of God, and to be truly happy we need to be holy. They give us a glimpse of what we should be, how God intended us to be.

They stand as a reason why we need a saviour. For we fail to keep them, for we are unable to keep them. We would have no hope if only the commandments were sent by God, but loves us and he sent his Son, who kept the commandments perfectly, that he might present himself as a sacrifice, to bear the wrath of God against sin, this his righteousness might become our righteousness. he died that we might be restored to what we were meant to be.

If we have put our faith in the Son for the forgiveness of sin, these commandments stand as our responsibilities, showing us how to live according to the restored nature within. We may not keep them
as we should, but our desire should be to keep them out of love for our Saviour.

If you stop to think about what it is to be a Christian, it is a truly amazing thing. For God has sought to adopt us as his children, even though we are not only so puny and small, but because we have dared to shake our fists at our creator. We have decided to go our own way, to appoint ourselves as God and to rebel against our Creator.

Yet, in his great grace, love and mercy, he not only allows us to exist, but he sent his Son to die in our place that we might be forgiven our sin. With the blood of his Son he purchased us to be his people, but not only that but that we might be adopted as his children. Through Jesus Christ, we inherit all that he paid for. Not only are we justified before God, but we will one day be glorified, restored to the holy beings we were meant to be.

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Rom 8:29

The Lord Jesus Christ, as the Son of God, is pleased to call us his brothers and sisters. What amazing grace and love!