I am the LORD your God.

I am the LORD your God (Exodus 20:2).

Reformation writer Philip Melanchthon found a wonderful Gospel message in these words that introduce the Ten Commandments. "First," he says, "you must discover that our God is a personal being, not merely a force or an urge, not merely a helpless statue like some of the images that were constructed in days of old or in the devising of the human mind in our day. I am the LORD your God. The "I" reminds us that God is a personal being, intimately involved with His people.

"Second, this God is eternal: I am the God who was, who is, and who ever shall be. He is not the product of human wisdom, but people are the product of His wisdom.

"Third, He has the power to judge, for He says: I am the Lord. In the Old Testament this title always referred to the God who moved in and called His people to judgment. But at the same time, His judgment is always "judgment in love," for He adds: I am the Lord, your God. He relates Himself to His people. He shows Himself to be concerned about their welfare. He remembers them in their need and comes to their rescue. And finally, He has the power to say: I am the LORD your God."

So much in so few words! In the little phrase I am the LORD your God, Melanchthon finds that God is a living, thinking being; that He is personally interested in each of us; that He is eternal, and so is always ready to help us; that He has standards of conduct that He expects us to keep on pain of death; and that He judges with mercy, willing to forgive us our sins for the sake of His Son Jesus when we let go of our pride and throw ourselves at His feet for mercy! Please join me in praying:

Dear heavenly Father, we thank You for creating us. We thank You for revealing Yourself to us through Your Son Jesus Christ. We thank You for giving us work to do and standards of behavior to uphold. But we thank You most of all for sending Jesus to suffer and die in our place, so that we can be forgiven when we fail to live up to Your standards. In Your Son’s holy name we pray, amen.