“You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.“
Exodus 20:3-4 ESV
Do we have any other gods before Him? The automatic answer is no, of course not. I’m a Christian, not a Hindu, Muslim or any other religion, so I couldn’t possibly serving any other gods. Or so it seems.
Gods don’t just look like idols or temples, they look like anything in which we put our trust and dependence. How often do we place our surety and dependence on our job, money, looks, popularity or possessions? How often we think if only I have…. I will be happy, safe, content.
The problem with this sort of thinking is that it takes God down from the place of completely sovereignty that only He can fill and try to replace Him with things like money, stuff and feelings. Instead of chasing after God, the only one who satisfies, we chase after things which can never satisfy and will ultimately be lost in death.
How careful we must be particularly in our consumer culture which values things over people and feelings over truth. Later in this passage God lays out the consequences for both responses; enduring punishment for those who disobey and steadfast love to anyone who loves God and keeps His commandments.
God is jealous for us. He desires to call us His children and that we would call Him, Dad. When you put it in this light, it’s quite surreal that the Almighty wants for us to love Him and to be our Father not our judge. This is a concept which I’m struggling to grasp and truely fathom the depth of this love and relationship Christ wants from us.
It truely is a beautiful thing to be instructed by God, because those He instructs and disciplines, He loves. Let’s follow His commandments and take part in His steadfast love.
♡
Musings by Tee 