The Ten Commandments and Todays Business World

The Ten Commandments and Todays Business World

Michelle Bennett

Ohio Christian University

December 12, 2017

The Ten Commandments and Todays Business World

        Christians see the Ten Commandments as the Laws of God given directly to man and intended to be laws and a guideline to living a Christian life. Most Christians regard the Ten Commandments as the basic moral code of all mankind. Each of the Commandments should be viewed as a demand from God. God is telling us how to live our life as well as what we need to do to obtain a closer relationship with Him. In complying with the Commandments, we are attempting to be more like God.  Many Christians believe that God requires us to keep each one of the Ten Commandments as promises, to show our faith and love for Him.

        Applying the Commandments to ethical behavior within the business environment can be an interesting exercise. For the purposes of this assignment, I will be exploring the idea. Beginning with the Commandment number one which is, “You will have no other God’s before me”. When I read this commandment, it leads me to think about how important our loyalty is to God. He wants to ensure that we understand that he is to be the head of our lives and that we should not consider any other person or deity to be more important than he is. In the business world it is loyalty does not always have a place. However, if you keep God first and live out the Christian principles, you should be able to do well and excel.

        The second Commandment is, “You shall not make idols.” God loves us so much that He is jealous of our love and does not want to share our love by us bestowing our love and adoration to meaningless idols. This Commandment is all about the deepness of our relationship with our Creator. It leads us to question what is the proper way to worship God? The Second Commandment is a continuous reminder that we, of all created things, are made in the image of God. This Commandment guards our distinct relationship with our Creator, who made us in His image. In today’s world of fast-paced business it is easy to begin to worship money, things and even the approval of those that you work with. It is imperative that while seeking fulfillment within your chosen career that you do not loose focus of your Christian values and remaining a faithful servant of God rather than a slave to your professional goals.

        “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain” is the third Commandment and in stating this to us, his children, God is instructing us to respect His Holy name by not using it in vain. This Commandment focuses on showing respect to Him as our spiritual father but also to those around us. This commandment is about how we communicate our feelings about God to Him and to others. Respect is the cornerstone on which good relationships and effective communication are founded. One of the resources used for this assignment reads in part, “The quality of our association with God is dependent upon the love and regard we have for Him and how that love and respect is expressed to others.” (Chittister, 2006) It is His expectation that we honor Him and what he represents. In showing him the respect and honor that he deserves we should not utter his name any way that could be deemed as disrespectful. As a Christian in the workplace it is sometimes difficult to refrain from showing frustration by uttering curse words or other flippant language. In doing so we are showing our disrespect to our father and therefore disrespecting ourselves. It is much better to pray for strength during those challenging times rather than disappointing God by being disrespectful of his Holy name.

        The fourth Commandment is relatively easy to follow, it tells us to “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.’ God initiates the fourth Commandment by commanding us to “Remember”. Ultimately, he understood that we would forget were he not to instruct us to hold this day in high regard. God asks that we keep it set apart for Holy activities, so we can be nearer to Him. As stated in a journal article used for this assignment, “The Sabbath, the seventh day of the week was established by God as a time of rest and spiritual rejuvenation.”  (Hallpike, 2016) In todays world, as the demands of business grows it becomes increasingly difficult to have this day of rest. More and more businesses are demanding that employees work longer hours that often include weekends. As Christians, like everyone else need to work and need to make money to support their families they must make the difficult choice to work on what is a Holy day. Churches are aware of the difficulty that their congregations are facing and have made strides to combat this issue. There are far more churches that have early services as well as services that are broadcast on television and internet streams. This willingness to assist their congregation in worshiping in the 20th century by utilizing the technology available, is bringing new members to their churches and ensuing that their congregations continue to be spiritually fed despite the demands placed on them by employers.

        “Honor your father and your mother” God commands, so that your days will be longer. The Fifth Commandment acquaints Christians with God’s desire to help us define how to interact in relationships with others. According to a source used for this assignment, “This Commandment is all about understanding parental, and overall authority. In God’s eyes families are the foundation of successful societies and allow strong nation building.” (Ali, Camp, & Gibbs, 2000) Flawed and fractured families are the sad results of individuals failing to adhere to parental discipline and thus failing to follow the rules of the society in which they live. Furthermore, the fifth commandment guides us to understand how to yield to others as well as how to properly submit to His authority and that of the laws of the land in which you live.