THE IDEALS OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS EXISTED BEFORE OFFICIALLY GIVEN.

THE IDEALS OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS EXISTED BEFORE OFFICIALLY GIVEN; 

 The Bible contains several passages showing that the moral principles later expressed in the Ten Commandments were already recognized, practised or understood before God gave the commandments to Moses at Mount Sinai

 (Exodus 20:1–17).

 Some passages explicitly mention particular commandments, 

while others demonstrate that people were already held accountable for conduct that the commandments would later prohibit.

 It is important to distinguish between the existence of these moral principles before Moses and the formal giving of the Ten Commandments to Israel. 

 1. Biblical evidence before Moses 

 1. The prohibition against murder Genesis 4:8–11 — Cain murdered his brother Abel. God confronted Cain and held him accountable for shedding innocent blood, long before the Ten Commandments were given. Genesis 9:5–6 — God declared that whoever sheds human blood would be held accountable because human beings were made in His image. This was after the flood but centuries before Moses. 

 2. The prohibition against adultery Genesis 20:3–9 — When Abimelech took Sarah, God warned him in a dream that he was as good as dead because she was another man's wife. Abimelech also acknowledged that God would not allow him to commit a great sin. Genesis 39:7–9 — Joseph refused his master's wife's advances, asking, "How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" This demonstrates that adultery was already understood as sinful before Sinai. 

 3. The recognition of the Sabbath Genesis 2:2–3 — God blessed and sanctified the seventh day after completing creation. Exodus 16:22–30 — Before the Ten Commandments were formally given at Sinai, God instructed the Israelites to observe the Sabbath. He rebuked those who went out to gather manna on the seventh day. These passages establish that the seventh day was already set apart before the formal giving of the commandments.

 4. The prohibition against stealing Genesis 31:19, 30–32 — Laban accused Jacob's household of stealing his household gods. Although the passage concerns an accusation rather than a direct divine command, it demonstrates that theft was already recognized as wrongful conduct. Genesis 44:8–9 — Joseph's brothers acknowledged the seriousness of stealing when they defended themselves against the accusation of taking Joseph's silver cup. 

 5. The prohibition against idolatry Genesis 35:2–4 — Jacob instructed his household to put away their foreign gods before going to Bethel. They surrendered their idols, which Jacob buried. This demonstrates that the worship of other gods was already an issue addressed within the family of Jacob before the commandments were given at Sinai. 

 6. The recognition of God's commandments and laws before Moses Genesis 26:4–5 — God spoke of Abraham's obedience, saying: "Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." Particularly significant This is one of the clearest passages supporting the idea that God's commandments, statutes and laws existed in some form before Moses. However, it does not specify that Abraham possessed the exact Ten Commandments as later written on the stone tablets.

 7. Sin and moral accountability before the law of Moses Genesis 4:7 — God warned Cain that sin was crouching at his door and that he needed to master it. Romans 5:13–14 — Paul explains that sin was in the world before the law, and that death reigned from Adam to Moses. Romans 2:14–15 — Paul explains that Gentiles who do not have the written law can nevertheless do things required by the law, with their consciences bearing witness. These passages support the broader biblical principle that moral accountability did not begin with the giving of the Ten Commandments. 

 THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT EXISTED IN OLD TESTAMENT:

 Deuteronomy 6:4-5 [4]Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. [5]Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Leviticus 19:18 [18]“ ‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

 NEARLY ALL ELEMENTS OF THE LORD'S PRAYER WERE KNOWN IN ISRAEL LONG BEFORE JESUS: 

 1 Chronicles 29:10-13 

[10]David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, Lord,     the God of our father Israel,     from everlasting to everlasting. [11]Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power     and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,     for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom;     you are exalted as head over all. [12]Wealth and honor come from you;     you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power     to exalt and give strength to all. [13]Now, our God, we give you thanks,     and praise your glorious name. 

Psalm 51:1 [1]Have mercy on me, O God,     according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion     blot out my transgressions. 

 GOD IS THE BUILDER OF EVERYTHING:

 Hebrews 3:1-6 [1]Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. [2]He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. [3]Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. [4]For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. [5]“Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. [6]But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory. 

 SINCE LONGTIME, GOD DESIRES THAT WE DIFFERENTIATE HIS WILL FROM TRADITIONS OF MEN.

 Isaiah 29:13 [13]The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth     and honor me with their lips,     but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me     is based on merely human rules they have been taught. Mark 7:8-9 [8]You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.” [9]And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! 

 ELIJAH MUTUA KIRIMA 

 PASTOR 

 THE WORD OF GOD IS THE WILL OF GOD.

ALWAYS TRY NOT TO HURT A PERSON'S CONFIDENCE.

ALWAYS TRY NOT TO HURT A PERSON'S CONFIDENCE 

 Our words have an effect on the people we speak to.

 Whether they are our family members, friends, classmates, church members, neighbours, colleagues, or others, 

our words can either give people the confidence to try again, do better, and keep growing—or make them afraid to try at all. 

 Let us therefore always try not to hurt a person's confidence.

 When someone makes a mistake, we should be careful about how we respond.

 Instead of saying, 

"You never understand anything," or "You never do anything right,"

 we can say, "Let us look at this again. Where do you think things went wrong?" 

 The goal should be to correct the behaviour, decision, or action—not to condemn the person. 

 CORRECT WITHOUT HUMILIATING.

  Our general attitude and purpose should never be to shame or humiliate other people. That is neither constructive nor loving. 

Our aim should be to help the other person become better and learn how to do things the right way. 

 Where possible, correct a person privately rather than embarrassing them in front of others. 

Listen attentively. 

Do not shout. 

Give the person an opportunity to explain what happened. 

 Instead of saying: 

 "You are always careless." 

 Say:

 "I know you can do better. Let us see what went wrong." 

 Instead of:

 "You are weak in this area." 

 Say: 

 "This is an area where you can improve."

 Instead of: 

"You are careless." 

 Say: "Try taking more care next time." 

 These may seem like small differences in words, but words can leave a lasting impression on a person's mind and heart.

 CORRECTION IS NOT CONDEMNATION.

  There is an important difference between correcting someone and condemning them. 

 Correction says:

 "What you did was not right. Let us identify what went wrong and find a better way to do it." 

 Condemnation says: 

 "There is something wrong with you. You are hopeless, careless, useless, or incapable." 

 Correction focuses on behaviour, decisions, and actions. 

Condemnation turns a person's mistake into a judgment about their identity and worth. 

 For example: 

 Wrong : "You never get anything right."

 Right : "This part needs to be corrected. I believe you can improve it." 

 Wrong : 

"What is wrong with you?" 

Right: 

"What happened here? Help me understand, and let us work out how to do it better."

 Wrong : 

"You are incapable." 

Right : 

"This may be difficult for you at the moment, but with practice you can improve." 

 A person may have made a mistake without being a mistake. 

 A person may have failed without being a failure.

 A person may have done something wrong without being worthless. 

 OUR WORDS CAN BECOME AN INNER VOICE.

  We should remember that the words we repeatedly speak to people can become part of the way they see themselves.

 A child who is constantly told, "You are useless," may eventually begin to believe it.

 A worker who is continually told, "You can never do anything right,"

 may eventually lose the courage to try. 

A student who is repeatedly reminded of their weaknesses may become afraid of making another attempt.

 But encouragement can have the opposite effect.

 "Try again." 

 "I know you can improve." 

 "Let us work on this together."

 "You made a mistake, but you can learn from it." 

 "I believe you can do better."

 Such words can help build confidence, courage, resilience, and a willingness to keep learning.

 This does not mean that we should ignore wrongdoing or avoid difficult conversations. 

People need correction, accountability, and sometimes firm boundaries. 

• But firmness does not require humiliation, 

• And accountability does not require destroying a person's dignity.

 BIBLICAL CORRECTION SHOULD RESTORE AND BUILD.

The Bible gives us a beautiful principle for correcting others: 

 "Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently." — Galatians 6:1 

 Notice the word "restore." The purpose is not to crush the person but to help them return to the right path. 

 Paul also says:

 "Speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ." — Ephesians 4:15

 Truth is necessary, but it should be spoken in love.

 Love should not prevent us from telling the truth, 

and truth should not become an excuse for cruelty. 

 Jesus similarly taught that when a serious matter must be addressed between believers, the first step should be private:

 "If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you." — Matthew 18:15 

 This gives us an important principle: correction should seek improvement, while condemnation seeks to pronounce judgment on the person. 

 LET US HELP PEOPLE BELIEVE THEY CAN GROW.

  In our families, churches, schools, workplaces, communities, and friendships, let us become people who help others develop confidence, courage, responsibility, and the attitude that they can learn, improve, and make progress in life. 

 Let our words communicate: 

 "What happened needs to change—but you are still valuable." 

 "You made a mistake—but you can learn from it." 

 "You did not do this well—but you can improve." 

 "Let us identify what went wrong and find a better way." 

 We should correct mistakes without destroying confidence. 

 We should tell the truth without humiliating people. 

 We should hold people accountable without treating them as worthless. 

 And whenever possible, let our correction leave the person thinking: 

 "I need to do better—and I believe I can." 

 That is the kind of correction that can produce accountability without humiliation, truth without cruelty, and growth without destroying confidence. 

 Our words can become the inner voice that shatters a person—or the voice that encourages them to:

rise,

 try again, 

believe in themselves, 

and become better. 

Let us choose our words carefully. 

 Elijah Mutua Kirima.

 Pastor and Social Worker 

THE WORD OF GOD IS THE WILL OF GOD.

HEALING FROM THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY AND PRACTICAL STEPS OUT OF IT.

 

HEALING FROM THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY AND PRACTICAL STEPS OUT OF POVERTY

Childhood poverty can leave effects that continue into adulthood. Persistent economic hardship may affect education, health, psychological well-being, confidence, decision-making, relationships and access to opportunities. Financial scarcity and chronic stress can consume mental and emotional resources, making it more difficult to plan, solve problems and make sound decisions.

Poverty can also become intergenerational. Children growing up in disadvantaged circumstances may inherit not poverty itself, but circumstances that make poverty more likely: limited education, weak social networks, poor health, restricted opportunities, harmful experiences and patterns of thinking or behaviour developed in difficult environments.

HEALING FROM THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY

Healing therefore has to go deeper than putting food on the table. People need their dignity, hope, confidence and capacity to make decisions restored.

The Bible teaches that God is concerned with the whole person. Jesus came to proclaim good news to the poor and freedom to those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18). Scripture also calls believers to renew their minds rather than remain prisoners of old patterns (Romans 12:2).

A person who has grown up hearing, “You can never amount to anything,” may need more than financial assistance. They may need encouragement, education, counselling, mentoring, healthy relationships and opportunities to discover that their circumstances do not have to determine their future.

This does not mean blaming people for poverty. Neither does it mean pretending that poverty is simply a matter of attitude. Poverty can be produced and reinforced by circumstances beyond an individual's control. But human beings can learn, change and grow. Proverbs 4:23 reminds us to guard the heart, while Proverbs 24:3–4 connects a flourishing household with wisdom, knowledge and understanding.

Healing may therefore involve breaking harmful beliefs, developing healthy habits, dealing with trauma and chronic stress, rebuilding relationships, learning to make decisions, and recovering hope. The goal is not merely to survive poverty but to become capable of building a different future.

PRACTICAL STEPS OUT OF POVERTY

Healing should be accompanied by practical action. Faith does not call us merely to pray for change while refusing to take responsible steps. James 2:15–17 reminds us that genuine faith responds to practical human needs.

Education and useful skills are important because they can increase access to employment and income-generating opportunities. Financial literacy can help people learn budgeting, saving, responsible borrowing, managing risk and making informed financial decisions. Proverbs 21:5 teaches the value of diligent planning.

People also need opportunities, not merely advice. Skills training should be connected to actual markets, employment, entrepreneurship and productive work. Where possible, people should be connected to employers, customers, mentors, professional networks and institutions that can open doors.

Social connections matter. A person may have ability but lack information, recommendation, mentorship or access to opportunity. Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 reminds us of the strength that comes when people work together.

Families and communities can therefore become bridges to opportunity. Churches and community organizations can provide mentorship, counselling, skills development, networking, small livelihood initiatives and referrals to employment and markets.

FROM RELIEF TO RESTORATION

There is a place for emergency assistance—food, shelter, healthcare and other immediate needs. But compassionate service should, wherever possible, move from relief to recovery, from recovery to empowerment, and from empowerment to sustainable independence.

The biblical picture is not of people remaining permanently dependent upon others. It is of people being restored to dignity, responsibility, productive work and the ability to contribute to the well-being of others (Ephesians 4:28; 2 Thessalonians 3:10–12).

Breaking the effects of poverty therefore requires both healing and opportunity: healing the wounds that poverty may have produced and creating practical pathways through which people can learn, work, earn, save, build, participate and eventually help others.

One person's restoration can become another person's opportunity. The person who was once helped may eventually become the person who helps another.

Poverty may influence a person's beginning, but it does not have to determine the whole story. With God's grace, wise choices, supportive relationships, knowledge, skills and genuine opportunities, individuals, families and communities can move from survival toward dignity, stability and productive participation in society.

ELIJAH MUTUA KIRIMA
Pastor and Social Worker
THE WORD OF GOD IS THE WILL OF GOD.