This Lily and Schammy Ministry article explains the Ten Commandments from Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. It is Bible-based, Christ-centered, and written for seekers, families, teens, young adults, adults, and believers who want to understand God's law without fear or confusion.
The first line matters: God says, 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.' Before God gives commands, He tells a rescue story. Grace comes first. God does not say, Obey Me so I might love you. He says, I rescued you; now learn how free people live.
Seventh-day Adventists understand the Ten Commandments as a transcript of God's character of love. The law does not save us. Jesus saves us by grace. But when the Holy Spirit writes God's love into the heart, obedience becomes the fruit of trust, not the price of salvation.
Jesus summarized the law with two loves: love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself. That means the first four commandments teach love toward God, and the last six teach love toward people. The Ten Commandments are not cold rules; they are love with clear boundaries.
Ellen G. White's writings repeatedly point readers back to Scripture, Jesus, and heart religion. In that spirit, Lily and Schammy Ministry presents the commandments as promises God grows inside surrendered people. We do not use the law to shame people. We use it as a mirror that sends us back to Jesus, the Savior who forgives and transforms.
This content is educational and devotional. It is not legal, medical, mental-health, financial, or professional advice. For personal crises, abuse, safety concerns, health issues, legal questions, or mental-health emergencies, seek qualified professional help and pastoral support.
Watch the full Ten Commandments playlist
The Ten Commandments at a glance
No other gods
God asks for first place because only He can carry the full weight of our worship, identity, and trust.
Exodus 20:3; Matthew 22:37No idols
God is too living, holy, and loving to be reduced to an object, image, brand, habit, or screen.
Exodus 20:4-6; John 4:24Honor God's name
God's name should be spoken and represented with reverence, truth, and love.
Exodus 20:7; Colossians 3:17Remember the Sabbath
The seventh-day Sabbath invites us to worship, rest, remember creation, receive redemption, and serve with joy.
Exodus 20:8-11; Mark 2:27-28Honor father and mother
God calls families and communities to respect, care, gratitude, and responsible love.
Exodus 20:12; Ephesians 6:1-4Do not murder
Human life is sacred because every person carries God's image.
Exodus 20:13; Matthew 5:21-22Do not commit adultery
God protects covenant love, faithfulness, purity, and the dignity of the body.
Exodus 20:14; Matthew 5:27-28Do not steal
Love respects people, property, time, trust, work, and the needs of the vulnerable.
Exodus 20:15; Ephesians 4:28Do not bear false witness
Truth matters because lies damage names, homes, churches, communities, and souls.
Exodus 20:16; Ephesians 4:25Do not covet
God heals the hidden hunger that says, I cannot be happy unless I have what belongs to someone else.
Exodus 20:17; Philippians 4:11-13Article: the Ten Commandments as a rescue story
Imagine a child running toward a busy street. A loving parent does not whisper, Do whatever feels right. Love speaks. Love warns. Love protects. The child may hear the word no, but behind that no is a deeper yes: yes to life, yes to safety, yes to a future.
That is a simple window into the Ten Commandments. Many people hear them as a list of no's. But in Exodus 20, before any command appears, God introduces Himself as the One who brought His people out of slavery. The law begins with rescue. God is saying, I have freed you; now I will teach you how not to become slaves again.
The first commandment says, You shall have no other gods before Me. This is not because God is insecure. It is because false gods break human hearts. Money can help, but it cannot save. Approval can feel sweet, but it cannot forgive sin. Pleasure can shout loudly, but it cannot give eternal life. God alone is strong enough to be God.
The second commandment tells us not to make idols. An idol is not only a statue. It can be anything we shrink God into, anything we use to control Him, anything we trust more than His living Word. The Holy Spirit invites us into worship that is real, not fake; living, not empty.
The third commandment protects God's name. To take God's name in vain is not only careless speech. It can also mean carrying His name while acting against His character. If we say we belong to Jesus, our words, posts, business, family life, and private habits should not make His name look small.
The fourth commandment begins with the word remember. The Sabbath is not an accident in the middle of the law. It points back to creation and forward to redemption. God made us. God saves us. God gives us rest. Jesus called Himself Lord of the Sabbath, and He showed that Sabbath is for worship, mercy, healing, and joy.
Then the commandments turn toward our neighbors. Honor father and mother calls us to respect and care. Do not murder protects life. Jesus takes it deeper by warning against hatred and contempt. Do not commit adultery protects covenant love and purity. Jesus takes it deeper by calling the heart to faithfulness.
Do not steal protects trust. Do not bear false witness protects truth. Do not covet reaches into the private room of desire, where no one else can see. God loves us enough to heal not only our actions but our wants. He can teach a restless heart to say, Jesus, You are enough.
Here is the life-changing truth: the law shows God's character, but it cannot be our Savior. A mirror can show dirt on a face, but it cannot wash the face. God's law shows sin. Jesus washes sin away. Then the Holy Spirit begins writing God's law in our hearts so love becomes real in daily life.
So do not run from the Ten Commandments. Read them beside the cross. The same Jesus who forgives the lawbreaker also restores the broken heart. The law points to love. The cross proves love. The Spirit produces love.
Your next step is simple: read Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Pick one commandment. Ask, What kind of love is God protecting here? Then ask Jesus to make that love real in one decision today.
If you want to know more about Jesus, study the Bible, or learn more about the Ten Commandments, contact Lily and Schammy Ministry at jali201225@gmail.com, leave a comment, or send a direct message. Subscribe, follow, like, comment, share, and press the notification bell so you do not miss the next study in the series. The next topic will show why the Sabbath commandment is not only about a day, but about creation, freedom, healing, and the Lordship of Jesus.
Presenter bullet sheet
- Open with the rescue frame: Exodus 20 begins with God delivering His people before commanding them.
- Keep the tone Christ-centered: grace saves; obedience is the fruit of love and trust.
- Explain the two-table pattern: commandments 1-4 love God, commandments 5-10 love people.
- Connect Jesus' summary in Matthew 22:37-40 and His deeper heart application in Matthew 5.
- Avoid shame-based teaching. Use the law as a mirror that points people to Jesus for forgiveness and transformation.
- Highlight Sabbath as worship, rest, creation, redemption, mercy, and joyful communion with God.
- Ask practical questions after each commandment: What love does this protect? What lie does this expose? What step can I take today?
- Include the professional disclaimer if discussing family conflict, abuse, mental health, legal problems, finances, or safety.
- End with invitation: Bible study, prayer, comments, direct message, church community, and the Lily & Schammy playlist.
- Tease the next study: the Sabbath as a sign of creation, redemption, identity, and hope in Jesus.
Myth vs. fact
Viewer handout
- Lily and Schammy Ministry invites you to read the Ten Commandments as God's rescue-shaped law of love.
- Read Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Notice that rescue comes before command.
- Ask after each commandment: What love does God protect here?
- Remember: Jesus saves by grace. The Holy Spirit changes the heart. Obedience is the fruit of trust.
- Watch the Lily & Schammy Ten Commandments playlist and write one question for Bible study.
- If you want to know more about Jesus, study the Bible, or learn more about this topic, contact jali201225@gmail.com, leave a comment, or send a direct message.
- Professional disclaimer: This is educational and devotional content, not legal, medical, mental-health, financial, safety, or professional advice.
- Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry handout is for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work.
Age-adapted handouts
Kids
- Lily and Schammy Ministry Kids Handout: The Ten Commandments are God's love rules that help us love Him and love people.
- Big idea: God rescued His people first, then taught them how free people live.
- Read with an adult: Exodus 20:1-17, Matthew 22:37-40, and Mark 10:14.
- Activity 1: Draw two hearts. In one write Love God. In the other write Love People.
- Activity 2: Pick one commandment and draw the kind of love it protects.
- Kindness mission: Tell the truth, honor a parent or trusted adult, and do one helpful thing without being asked.
- Memory verse: John 14:15.
- Prayer: Jesus, thank You for loving me. Help me love You and love people today.
- Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry handout is for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work.
Teens
- Lily and Schammy Ministry Teen Handout: The Ten Commandments help you test pressure, worship, identity, truth, relationships, rest, and hidden desire.
- Big idea: God's law is not a cage. It is a map for free people who belong to Jesus.
- Read: Exodus 20:1-17, Matthew 5:17-20, Matthew 22:37-40, and Ephesians 2:8-10.
- Pressure check: Which false god fights for first place in your life: approval, phone, image, money, pleasure, anger, or control?
- Truth filter: Before posting, dating, spending, reacting, or hiding something, ask: Does this match love for God and neighbor?
- Sabbath challenge: Take one protected block of time for worship, Scripture, rest, service, and no performance.
- Group prompt: Which commandment feels hardest for teens today, and what does Jesus offer for that struggle?
- Action step: Choose one commandment and make one private decision today that agrees with Jesus.
- Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry handout is for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work.
Young adults
- Lily and Schammy Ministry Young Adult Handout: The Ten Commandments connect faith to calling, relationships, money, body, digital life, rest, speech, and contentment.
- Big idea: Grace saves you, and God's law shows what love looks like when Jesus becomes Lord of real decisions.
- Read: Exodus 20:1-17, Deuteronomy 5:6-21, Romans 12:1-2, and John 15:4-5.
- Decision map: Choose one real decision. Ask how worship, Sabbath, truth, purity, property, family, and contentment should shape it.
- Habit audit: Name one habit that trains love for God and one habit that trains slavery.
- Relationship prompt: What would change if the commandments shaped how you date, forgive, spend, speak, work, rest, and use screens?
- Sabbath practice: Set aside one evening-to-evening rhythm or one preparatory step that points to delight in God, not legalism.
- Next step: Watch one playlist video and write one question for a Bible study conversation.
- Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry handout is for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work.
Adults
- Lily and Schammy Ministry Adult Handout: The Ten Commandments can become a practical home, small-group, or church study path for worship, family, truth, work, purity, rest, and mission.
- Big idea: A commandment is understood best when it leads to love, repentance, faith in Jesus, and Spirit-led action.
- Read: Exodus 20:1-17, Deuteronomy 5:6-21, Jeremiah 31:33, John 14:15, and Revelation 14:12.
- Family worship plan: Read one commandment, ask what love it protects, pray one sentence, and choose one family action.
- Home rhythm: Build a weekly rhythm around Scripture, Sabbath rest, reconciliation, honest speech, and service.
- Reflection: Which commandment does our home, small group, or ministry need to live more clearly this month?
- Invitation step: Invite one person to watch the playlist and study Exodus 20 with you.
- Community step: Use the Adventist church directory link in the sources to help someone find a Bible-based community near them.
- Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry handout is for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work.
Copyright disclaimer: This original Lily and Schammy Ministry article, presenter sheet, and handout package is provided for personal, family, church, and educational ministry use. Please do not sell, misrepresent, or publish it as someone else's work. Quote sources responsibly and link back to Lily and Schammy Ministry when sharing.
Sources
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