Mandates

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." Exodus 20:8


I learned recently that there are two kinds of command, a mandate and a prohibition. Mandates are the "do's". Prohibitions are the "don'ts". The fourth commandment, the Sabbath one quoted, is a mandate. In fact, with the fifth commandment (honor your father and mother), there are only two mandates in all ten of the Commandments.


I was thinking about that idea, of mandates and such, and something occurred to me. Prohibitions are easy to follow.
Don't murder.
Don't give false testimony.
Don't rollerblade without pads and a helmet.
I tend to gravitate toward them because it is easier to gauge whether I have measured up to the task. If I'm really honest, I must admit it's also easier to judge whether other people have lived up to it, too. Maybe that's why the Pharisees liked the rules so much?


Mandates, however, are much harder to follow because I never know how much is enough. The person who gives the mandate could always require more of me, could always decide there are further expectations of the previously mentioned mandate.


Jesus says, "Love your neighbor as yourself."
I think, "But how much loving do they really need? Can I love them once and be finished? Maybe twice? Just in case the first time wasn't loving enough?"
The disciples asked the same thing. You probably do, too.


I realized something else, though, and herein lies the key to figuring out mandates. Maybe all ten of the commandments are mandates at their core. I mean, prohibitions really just keep us from doing things. They alter our external behavior. But mandates, those are the ones that really get at the heart of the issue - namely, our hearts. They alter our internal attitude. When viewed that way, it's easy to say don't commit murder. But Jesus was right, hating your brother is the same thing because the attitude is the same in both scenarios.


So often I tend toward the legalistic approach of doing, doing, doing. The problem is, these Ten Commandments are merely the minimum. They could all be rewritten in the form of a mandate, specifically a mandate that is of such a high standard that I could never do enough. I can never live up to the expectation that God has for holiness.


It's crucial then to remember two things - futility and grace. Futility looks at the commands of God and honestly says, "I have no chance." The mature Christian must realize the gripping reality of his hopelessness before God. But grace! Grace allows us the freedom to follow the mandates of God and offers us the forgiveness to fail. And fail we will.


That's why Jesus came. Because it was such a futile effort to live up to the standard which God has set for us. Jesus lived a holy life, according to all the "law" of God, not just because we couldn't but so that we didn't have to. Not only did He live the life we couldn't live but He died the death that we deserved. All so that we could be brought back to a right relationship with God.


This grace truly is amazing. This grace is so overwhelming, so lavish, so above and beyond anything we could have hoped or expected that the only response is worship.


How could it lead to anything else?