The mission of God as seen in the Ten Commandments: As God set Israel free from slavery, He wanted to frame their public and private lives by introducing how relationship with Him and with others was to look like – you will only have one God, you will not have idols, you will not take His name in vain…. You will not murder, steal, commit adultery, want what is someone elses…
And as Israel would obey these commands in their (to use the words of Newbigin) public and private lives, they would be a light for the nations.
And so the Ten Commandments reflect the missional heart of God in the OT – the mission of God.
Most will agree that the New Testament has a strong mission emphasis.
Most would be familiar with the classic mission passage delivered by Jesus Christ post His resurrection in: Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV) 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – the missional heart of God is evident in both Testaments.
Both the beginning and end of Scripture emphasize a concern for people of “every nation and tribe and tongue and people” (Rev 14:6) (with first 11 chapters of Genesis dealing with the nations of the earth – degeneration and the dispersion of the nations).
But to what degree does Israel and the Ten Commandments have the same strong mission emphasis?
To what degree do we witness in Israel the “missiological hermeneutic of the Old Testament”? (Christopher Wright)
“Christian mission to the nations is deeply rooted in the calling of this people in the way they saw themselves and their story.”
Psalm 96:2-3 (ESV) 2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!
Where God had called them from, revealing His mighty works, His grace and mercy and who He is; and where He was leading them to – the coming of the Messiah and Kingdom – all of which Israel was to be a witness to the nations.