The following blog post is a verbatim transcription of a conversation between two people, whom we will call Jack and Joe in order to protect their identity, even though they and this conversation are completely fictional:
Hey Jack, have you ever broken the Ten Commandments?
Absolutely! I’ve stolen, lied, disobeyed mom and dad, lusted, and even murdered in the heart.
Have you ever broken Singaporean law?
Um… no?
Have you ever chewed gum?
Yes.
Chewing gum is illegal in Singapore. When you chewed gum, did you break Singaporean law?
Uh… I guess so.
Wrong! You’ve never even been to Singapore. How can you break their laws if you’ve never even been under their jurisdiction?
I guess I haven’t, then…
Right! You have chewed gum, but you haven’t broken Singaporean law, because you aren’t under Singaporean law. Make sense?
Yea, that makes perfect sense!
Are you under the Mosaic Law?
Of course not, I’ve read Galatians, you know.
Have you ever broken the 10 Commandments?
Yes!
….yes?
Um…. yes?
No!
No?
Yes!
Wait, yes I have broken or yes, no I haven’t?
No, you haven’t broken the 10 Commandments. Neither have I. None of us have. Now, we may have committed the acts that are forbidden in the 10 Commandments, but since we are not under the law, we are not in violation of it. Make sense?
That does make sense. So, what, am I allowed to steal now?
No. Stealing is a sin. But if you steal, you’ll be in violation of Eph 4:28, not Ex 20:15.
Oh, ok. Well that makes sense. It sure is relieving to know that we aren’t under the Law, not even the 10 Commandments.
Yea, it’s one less thing.