David,

I've already provided you with the exegetical support.  The first two
commandments are exegetically conjoined.  We are not to worship another
other God, but the God who brought Israel out of Egypt.  In the worship of
that true God, we are not to fashion images for that worship of the true God
(or a false God if we are already breaking the first commandment).

Graven image, in the text, always refers to an image that was made to be
worshipped.  Pesel is not interpreted as any old image, but idol (The
septuagint always translated "Pesel" as "idol") that had been carved by
hand.  Therefore, the prohibition isn't against making images, the
prohibition is against making images in order to worship them.  We are not
to make images in order to bow down to them.

God himself exegetes his own commandments in the same way.  He made an image
of Christ (Numbers 21:8,9/John 3:14) and then smashed it when the Israelites
began worshipping the image (2 Kings 18:4).  The Old Testament is full of
pictures of Christ.  Does this mean God is breaking his own commandment?
No.  It means the commandment isn't about pictures, it's about worshipping
the pictures.  And the same is true in the New Testament.  Christ gave us an
image of himself in the Table (Luke 22:19,2), but woe to those who abuse the
image (1 Corinthians 11:29,30).  We are being conformed to Christ's image
(Colossians 3:10), but we are not to worship the image itself (Romans 1:23).
In fact, the Incarnation itself is an image... Christ, the image of God (2
Cor. 4:4), forever representing the second person of the God as mediator
between God and man.

And what is true about the image is true about the entire issue of idolatry.
1 Corinthians 8-9 is our paradigm and Paul brings the first commandment to
bear in the Corinthian context.  The idol has no real existence (8:4).  It's
the purposes of those who are worshipping the idol that are the problem.
There's no sin in eating meat offered to idols.  The sin is in offering the
meat to the idols. (The same is true of any other activity that in and of
itself is not sin, but can become sin... drinking alcohol is not
prohibited....Getting drunk is).

The reading and preaching of the Word through sermon and Table are the
primary means of communion in Christ and His proclamation.  But it does not
theologically or logically follow that images of Christ are forbidden.  It
is not either/or (only), but both/and (primary).

Chad Bresson
Xenia, OH


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Dea5315@...>
To: <soundofgrace@...>
Sent: Friday, February 27, 2004 10:54 AM
Subject: [soundofgrace] Commandments


> Chad, others..
>
> I think a good way to look at the first and second commandment is thus:
>
> Commandment 1 Thou shalt not worship a false God.
>
> Commandment 2 Thou shalt not worship the true God falsely.
>
> Oh wait, we can worship the true God however our little idol factory (J.
Calvin) hearts feel like worshipping him.  Because God lovs our imagination.
Our inventions.  Our strange fire.
> Couple of more questions for you Chad.
> What did Nadab and Abihu do that deserved death? What did Cain do that was
so bad?  (Before he killed Abel)?  I mean, Cain clearly made an offering TO
THE LORD, not a false God.  Not even the wicked Cain knew full well that he
was to worship the true God.
> And it doesn't matter how sincere you think these men were, whether you
are sincere or not, you are breaking a commandment, you're still breaking a
commandment.  Sincerity isn't the measure of truth.
> What did Jereboam do that was so bad?
>
> Basically Chad, you're telling me you'd help the people, (or even do it
yourself) make the images, as long as you don't bow down to them yourself.
Is that about right?  Then Aaron didn't really do anything wrong by making
the golden calf, because that's what the people wanted, he wasn't bowing
down to it, the people were.
>
> I'd like a positive biblical command to justify you making images.
>
> And I'll keep asking until you can provide one.
>
> David
>
> --
> Read the Sound of Grace pages at
> http://www.soundofgrace.com
>
> To unsubscribe, send ANY message to:
soundofgrace-unsubscribe@...
>
> To view our online archive go to our web page at
> http://www.associate.com/groups/soundofgrace
>
>