Are the Ten Commandments still binding on Christians today?

The Ten Commandments must not be ripped from the covenant in which they were given. Rather than asking, "Are the Ten Commandments still binding upon Christian today?" we should ask, "Are Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 still binding upon Christians today?" That question sends us back to the context, which is the giving of the covenant, with all its stipulations, to the people of Israel.


Certainly, embedded within that covenant, there were laws that are universally applicable, back then and still today, things such as do not murder, etc. Such moral laws are found in the Sinai covenant, and, of course, are still applicable to us today. But there are other parts of that covenant, as well as parts of Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 that are *not* binding on us today, such as observing a Saturday Sabbath, with all that entailed under the old covenant.


So rather than saying, "Yes, the Ten Commandments are still binding on us today," we must make careful distinctions between universal moral laws embedded within the Sinai covenant and particular laws given only to Israel within that covenant.

Written by Chad Bird