Moses was in exile. He had been adopted by the daughter of the Pharaoh of Egypt when he was just a baby, and he was raised as a prince of Egypt and possible heir to the throne.
His people Israel had come to Egypt when there was a great famine in the land, and they had settled in Goshen. As the years passed they multiplied greatly, but the Pharaoh made them a nation of slaves.
One day Moses saw an Egyptian smiting one of his people, and in his anger he killed him and buried him in the sand. Wanted for his life, he had to flee into the wilderness to another country, Midian, where he was a shepherd for several years.
While tending sheep, Moses learned patience and meekness and the depth of God's love, and God chose Moses to lead his people out of the land of Egypt.
God demonstrated His great love for the people of Israel by delivering them from the plagues that fell on the Egyptians. He demonstrated His protection through the blood of a slain lamb on the doorposts. He taught them that in order to gain freedom, they must obey His instructions.
As Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt, God gave them many examples of His love and providence:
* the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night;
* parting the waters of the Red Sea, so they could pass over on dry land;
* protection from the army of the Egyptians, who were drowned in the sea;
* water out of a rock, enough for the multitude and their animals;
* manna falling from heaven to feed them.
One day God called Moses to go up on Mount Sinai and gave him ten precepts written with His own finger on tables of stone. When Moses came down from the mountain, the people were worshipping a golden calf. In spite of all the love that God had revealed to them, they were already breaking the first precept God had written on the tables of stone.
God told Moses to build a Sanctuary so He would have a place to dwell among them, and the Sanctuary services were provided to teach the people about the substitution of a lamb to die in their place for their sins, which represented the coming Messiah.
Yet in spite of all the miracles and the lessons from the Sanctuary, the people complained and sinned throughout their forty years in the wilderness. Even after they became established as an independent nation in their own land, they rebelled against God so many times that He allowed them to be taken into captivity by the Empire of Babylon.
When in later years they returned to try to restore their former homeland as a nation again, they wanted to restore again the laws of the covenant with God.
By the time of the Roman Empire in the days when Jesus was born, the Scribes and Pharisees had added so many man-made traditions and rules to the commandments of God that it was impossible to recognize the love of God within them.
-Then came Jesus, stripping away the man-made traditions and rules created by men trying to work their way to perfection.
-Then came Jesus, expanding on the precepts of God by letting love shine through in the Sermon on the Mount.
-Then came Jesus, freeing us from the slavery of sin and giving us liberty through Him.
-Then came Jesus, showing us, by word and example, how to share His love.
-Then came Jesus, beaming the spotlight on the greatest commandment, the Law of Love, which encompasses the whole of the law and the prophets.
Paul, the most enthusiastic preacher of abounding love since Christ, describes genuine love:
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." 1 Corinthians 13:1-8, NIV.
Jesus said, "A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34, 35, NIV.
Love God supremely.
Love others as ourselves.
Love as Christ loves us.
When love becomes a part of God's law in our hearts, we will understand the perfection of the Decalogue as it was spoken by God.
When love is the ruling force in our lives, we are true citizens in God's everlasting kingdom.
". . . you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone." Ephesians 2:19, 20, NIV.
