The Ten Commandments are framed mainly in the negative: “Thou shalt not.” But each negative also implies a positive, and each prohibition of vice enjoins a pleasure in virtue. So, here’s my attempt to re-frame the 10 commandments as 10 pleasures to pursue.
1. Enjoy the pleasure of knowing, worshipping and serving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.
2. Enjoy the pleasure of worshipping God in ways that He approves, loves, rewards and responds to.
3. Enjoy the pleasure of speaking and singing about God’s beautiful persons, names, attributes and acts.
4. Enjoy the pleasure of six days working in God’s calling for you and then enjoy the freedom of one full day off work to worship God and rest.
5. Enjoy the pleasure of loving and following the leaders God has placed in your life for your temporal and eternal good.
6. Enjoy the pleasure of healthy attitudes and activities that will improve the quality and length of your life.
7. Enjoy every physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual pleasure with the wife/husband God has given you.
8. Enjoy the pleasure of growing wealth in order to provide for your family and to bless others with loving generosity.
9. Enjoy the pleasure of praising others and of promoting all that is true, beautiful and good.
10. Enjoy the pleasure of being thankful and content with all that God has given you.
When understood in this way, Psalm 1 and others like it begin to make huge sense.
“Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day” (Ps. 119:97).
