From the beginning of creation, the devil twisted the words and truth of God and commanded the exact opposite of what God commanded. Wathi uThixo, that man couldn’t eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, however, the devil said, that man could eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil and encouraged man to eat from the tree. And to whom did man listen? And which commandment did man obey? Man obeyed the commandment of the devil. Just like so many people today, who say they know God and believe in Jesus Christ, meanwhile, they listen to the voice of the devil and believe in his lies, and obey the commandments of the devil. And so by the walk of people, the sons of God, who keep the commandments of God, and the sons of the devil, who keep the commandments of the devil, are revealed. What are the commandments of God and the commandments of the devil?
The distinction between God’s people and the pagan nations
God made His will known by giving Moses the law and commandments in the Old Covenant. The law of Moses consisted of precepts, regulations, amasiko, sacrifices, and feasts, which God’s people had to keep and was meant for the carnal old man.
By keeping the law of Moses, God’s people distinguished themselves from the pagan nations, who went their own way and belonged to the devil and served him by doing the will of the devil and through idolatry and uncleanness.
The works of a person revealed, whether the person belonged to God, the Creator of the heaven and the earth and all there is within, and was circumcised or the person belonged to the devil, the ruler of the world (world system) and was uncircumcised.
KuMnqophiso Omtsha, this is still the case. Because although the law of Moses, which was meant for the old carnal man, who belonged to God through natural birth, no longer applies to the new man, who is born again in Christ, umntu omtsha, who is circumcised in Christ, lives after the law of the Spirit that represents the will of God.
For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace (AmaRoma 8:3-6)
The precepts and the moral commandments of God, which are the same commandments of Jesus Christ and Jesus even tightened the commandments, still apply in the New Covenant. Because just like Jesus came to fulfill the law, the new man shall also fulfill the law through obedience to the commandments of God and Jesus and by doing the will of the Father (Funda kwakhona: ‘Are the commandments of God still valid?' Kwaye'Is man able to fulfill the law?').
The sons of God walk in the commandments of God
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? Makube lee oko. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? Ngoko ke sangcwatywa naye ngokubhaptizelwa ekufeni: ukuze njengokuba uKristu wavuswayo kwabafileyo ngalo uzuko loYise, Ngokunjalo nathi sifanele sihambe sinobomi obutsha. Kuba ukuba similiselwe kuye ngemfano yokufa kwakhe, nathi siya kuba kwanjengemifuziselo yovuko lwakhe: Ukwazi oku, ukuba umntu wethu omdala wabethelelwa emnqamlezweni kunye naye, ukuze umzimba wesono uphuthiswe, ukuze singabi sasikhonza isono. kuba owafayo ugwetyelwe, wakhululwa kuso isono (AmaRoma 6:1-7)
Sizizigidimi ke ngoko ngenxa kaKristu, ngokungathi uThixo uniyala ngathi: sithandaza endaweni kaKristu, manixolelaniswe noThixo. kuba yena wamenza isono ngenxa yethu, ababengasazi isono; ukuze sibe senziwe ubulungisa bukaThixo kuye (2 KwabaseKorinte 5:20-21)
The new man is not a sinner anymore. Ithetha ukuba, that the new man is no longer a slave of sin and shall not obey sin and persevere in sin. But the new man is cleansed from all sins and iniquities by the blood of Jesus Christ and has been made holy and righteous and reconciled with God (Funda kwakhona: ‘Ngaba usengumoni?‘ kwaye ‘The peace, Jesus restored between fallen man and God‘).
The new man is born again in Christ. The flesh, in which the sinful nature dwells and sin and death reigns, has been crucified in Christ and the spirit, in which God’s nature dwells and righteousness and life reigns, has been raised from the dead.
The new man shall walk in the spiritual armor of God and shall resist the temptations of the devil and resist sin and shall reign over sin and death (Funda kwakhona: The spiritual armor of God')
The Holy Spirit dwells in the new man, whereby the law of God, or in other words, the will of God and His commandments are written upon the heart of the new man (Owu. UYeremiya 31:33-34, IsiHebhere 10:16-17 (Funda kwakhona: ‘Why did God write His commandments on tablets of stone?‘))
If the will of God and His commandments are written upon the heart of the new man and the new man possesses God’s nature, then the new man shall do the will of God and shall walk in His commandments, since the will of God has become the will of the new man.
The new man walks in love by keeping God’s commandments
Unyana wam, forget not My law; but let thine heart keep My commandments: For length of days, and long life, noxolo, shall they add to thee (IMizekeliso 3:1-2)
Kwaye wena unidlise ubomi, ababefile ziziphoso na zizono; enanifudula nihamba kuzo ngokweli hlabathi, ngokomthetheli wegunya lesibhakabhaka, moya lo usebenzayo ngoku kubo abangevayo: esasifudula sihamba phakathi kwethu sonke, sikhanuka iinkanuko zenyama yethu, ukufeza inkanuko yenyama neyengqondo; babe ke ngemvelo bengabantwana bengqumbo, even as others. But God, osisityebi ngenceba, ngenxa yothando lwakhe olukhulu awasithanda ngalo, Naxa sasifile ezonweni, usidlise ubomi ndawonye noKristu, (nisindiswe ngokubabalwa;) Wasivusa kunye naye, wasihlalisa naye kwezasemazulwini iindawo, sikuKristu Yesu: That in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus (Kwabase-Efese 2:1-7)
If ye love Me, keep My commandments (UYohane 14:15)
Njengoko uBawo wandithandayo nam, nam ndikuthandile: Hlalani eluthandweni lwam. Ukuba nithi niyigcine imithetho yam, hlalani eluthandweni lwam; njengokuba mna ndayigcinayo imithetho kaBawo, nihlale eluthandweni lwakhe (UYohane 15:9-10)
The new man shall no longer walk, as he or she walked before in the lusts of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the carnal mind, that thinks like the world and is controlled by the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience.
But the new man, who is raised from the dead, shall walk by faith after the Spirit in the will of God in love, which means that the person shall keep the commandments of God and the commandments of Jesus.
The distinction between the sons of God and the sons of the devil
And just like in the Old Covenant God’s people distinguished themselves from the pagan nations, in the New Covenant the sons of God distinguish themselves from the sons of the devil by their works and lifestyle.
The sons of God walk after the Spirit in the commandments of God and do His will and the sons of the devil walk after the flesh in the commandments of the devil and do his will.
Let’s look at some of the commandments of God and the commandments of the devil, whereby we can conclude, to whom the church belongs and to whom the church bends her roots, ngamanye amazwi, to whom the members of the church, amakholwa, belong to and to whom they listen and obey and whose commandments they keep (Funda kwakhona: ‘To whom does the church bend her roots?')
Imithetho kaThixo kunye nemithetho kasathana
The commandments of God
- You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, ingqondo, umphefumlo, kunye namandla.
- You shall love Me by keeping My commandments
- Uya kuyenza love your neighbour as yourself
- You shall not love the world of which the devil is the ruler
- You shall have no other gods before Me and shall not make carved images, and shall not bow down to them nor serve them
- You shall not get involved with idolatry and pagan religions
- You shall not take the Name of the Lord your God in vain
- You shall remember the sabbath day
- You shall honor your father and mother
- You shall speak the truth and shall not lie
- You shall not kill (including abortion, euthanasia, and suicide)
- You shall give
- You shall not steal
- You shall not covet your neighbour’s possessions
- You shall not deceive your neighbour
- You shall not get involved in sexual uncleanness
- You shall not commit fornication
- You shall not live together unmarried
- You shall not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers
- You shall not have sexual intercourse outside of marriage (isini sangaphambi komtshato, extramarital sex, njl.)
- You shall not have sexual intercourse with someone of your own sex
- You shall not have sexual intercourse with children
- You shall not have sexual intercourse with yourself and yenza i-masturbate
- You shall not have sexual intercourse with animals
- You shall not commit adultery and deceive your spouse
- You shall be loyal and shall not divorce
- You shall not speak evil
- You shall be thankful and shall not murmur and complain
- You shall forgive
- You shall not print any marks upon you and therefore shall not get a tattoo
- You shall not inquire the dead and consult spirits
- You shall not engage in divination
- You shall walk after the Spirit
The commandments of the devil
- You shall hate God and everything that God has created and has instituted
- You are important and you shall love yourself with all your heart, umphefumlo, ingqondo, kunye namandla
- You shall love me by keeping my commandments
- You shall love the world of which I am the ruler and all the things of the world
- You shall have other gods and adopt pagan religions and make for yourself carved images, and shall bow down to them and serve them and commit idolatry
- You shall take the Name of the Lord your God in vain (use for unholy things, cursing, njl.)
- You shall consider the sabbat day as any other day
- You shall rebel against your father and mother
- Uya kuyenza lie
- You shall kill (including abortion, euthanasia, and suicide)
- You shall not give, you shall only give if it profits you
- You shall lie, including making (false) promises, and don’t keep them
- You shall be jealous and envious
- You shall covet your neighbour’s possessions
- You shall deceive your neighbour
- You shall walk in (ngokwesondo) uncleanness
- You shall commit fornication
- Uya kuyenza live together unmarried
- You shall have sexual intercourse outside of marriage
- You shall have sexual intercourse with someone of your own sex
- You shall have sexual intercourse with children
- You shall have sexual intercourse with yourself and yenza i-masturbate
- You shall have sexual intercourse with animals
- You shall commit adultery and deceive your spouse
- You shall divorce
- You shall speak evil
- You shall murmur and complain
- You shall not forgive
- You shall print marks upon you and get tattoos
- You shall inquire the dead and consult spirits and communicate with them
- You shall engage in divination
- You shall walk after the flesh
(Owu. iEksodus 20, Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; 19, Deuteronomy 5; 6; 18; 23:17, Malachi 2:16, UMateyu 5; 6; 19; 22:36-40, Phawula 10, ULuka 12:15, UYohane 14:15; AmaRoma 1:24-32, 1 KwabaseKorinte 6:9-11, kwabaseGalati 5:19-26)
The Father of truth and the father of lies
The devil is a liar and twists everything and causes the people to doubt the words of God and make them believe that the commandments of God are not beneficial but evil for mankind and outdated and no longer applicable and that the commandments of God keep the people in bondage, which are lies ofcourse.
Nangona kunjalo, the worst thing is, that many people, including people, who say they believe, have more faith in the words of the devil than the words of God and believe the lies of the devil, who is the father of lies, above the truth of God, Who is the Father of truth, and as a result obey the devil and keep his commandments and walk in his will instead of obeying God and keep His commandments and walk in His will.
‘Yibani yityuwa yehlabathi’
