As a corporate trainer and my wife as a teacher, we understand the importance of having rules and setting expectations. People want order and structure to understand what they can and cannot do. Even those who do not follow the rules want them so that they understand what it is they are working toward, in their case, breaking those rules. In our roles as educators, we often have to revisit the rules and expectations to bring things back in line. We do not come back to the rules and expectations to rule over others, but to ensure that we are able to progress in an orderly, efficient, and effective manner.

God gave us rules and expectations in the form of the Ten Commandments. And if you remember, He gave them directly to the people and did not work through a proxy (Moses or Aaron) that was there as the leaders of the people at the time. God set forth what and how we were to act daily as people.

This morning, I am reading in Deuteronomy in chapter 5 which leads with the topic of the Ten Commandments. Here, Moses is revisiting and reminding the people of the rules and expectations that were given to them by God directly.

“¹And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, ‘Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the rules that I speak in your hearing today, and you shall learn them and be careful to do them…⁴The Lord spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire, ⁵while I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord. For you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up into the mountain. He said: ⁶”I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.”’” – Deuteronomy 5:1,&4-6 (ESV)

Often, we just keep moving forward and forget all that we have learned in the interest of learning more. Where that is not a bad approach to growth and improvement, it is also important to remember that which we have already learned. As a history teacher, my wife Lori makes it a point to remind that we learn from history so as not to repeat it, or to repeat those things that worked. The rules and expectations that are in place are there for the same purpose.

God’s rules and expectations, the Ten Commandments, were put in place to give us guidance into how to progress through this world in the interest of doing the Will of God. They are set up as the framework of a society that loves the LORD and will do all to advance Him throughout the rest of the world. It is important to revisit these rules and expectations, the Ten Commandments from time to time to ensure that we are indeed following the framework that was laid out for us from the very beginning.

What rules and expectations are you able to recall? Are you even aware that they are applicable even today? What if you revisited the rules and expectations, the Ten Commandments, set forth by God regularly to guide and direct you through this world?