“You shall not bow down to worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do [anything] in accordance with their practices. You shall completely overthrow them and break down their [sacred] pillars and images [of pagan worship]. You shall serve [only] the Lord your God, and He shall bless your bread and water. I will also remove sickness from among you….You shall not make a covenant with them or with their gods. They shall not live in your land, because they will make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it is certain to be a trap for you [resulting in judgment].””
Exodus 23:24-25, 32-33 AMP
G-d – the One True, Self Existent G-d – is the only One worthy of worship.
During the great Exodus, G-d set Himself apart by defeating all of the gods the Egyptians worshipped. G-d made His preeminence above all and over all gods known to both the Egyptians and the Israelites. In addition, the Israelites SAW Him in the pillars of cloud and fire – and when they HEARD His voice, they begged Him to speak only to Moses. He showed them that He was alive and active.
The first three commandments addressed how the Israelites were to relate to G-d: Him alone, no graven images of other gods, and revere His name (Exodus 20:1-7).
G-d doesn’t play. He won’t compete for our affections. He won’t compete for our worship or devotion. He is looking for hearts that are fully devoted to Him alone. Those are the ones He will use to accomplish His purposes. Those are the ones He will guide with His voice. Those are the ones He will Shepherd.
We may not have “graven images” like they had in Egypt, but I heard a pastor once say that anything that consumes our affections and attention is a god to us. What is consuming my thoughts? What is consuming my attention? Is there anything holding my devotion other than Him? If I’m thinking more about those things than about Him, they might be gods to me.
G-d made it clear that He is a jealous G-d and there should be no other gods in our hearts. Each person must seek G-d on their own and make the choice to serve Him or serve another. Everything we do either exalts Him or exalts another. The world competes for my attention. He asks me to choose. How will I respond?
For me personally, there are many things I close the door to. When my close friends were into Oprah’s guru Eckart Tolle, I practically ran the other way. I ditched Oprah years earlier when she said there was more than one way to salivation. I decided to homeschool when I was single because a teacher in Arlington ISD across the hall from my classroom was modeling transcendental meditation with her students and they were participating. Sadly the parents had no clue what door was opened in their children’s lives. It’s the primary reason I left education. I have nothing to do with yoga because some of the postures depict and give worship to deities in Yogic and Hindu culture (https://www.ekhartyoga.com/articles/practice/6-sacred-yoga-poses).
As followers and believers of G-d, we should intentionally ask Him to reveal anything in our lives that is competing for our affections so that we may live a life fully devoted to Him. May I choose Him daily above all others. May He alone hold my deepest affection, attention, and devotion.
Father – forgive me where I’ve given my affections to the world – for the times I’ve chosen the things of this world over You. Capture my heart again today. You are gracious and good. Your leadership in my life is perfect and You can be trusted. Amen.
Daily reading: Exodus 22-24
“Then God spoke all these words: “I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before Me. “You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship]. You shall not worship them nor serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous (impassioned) God [demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine], visiting (avenging) the iniquity (sin, guilt) of the fathers on the children [that is, calling the children to account for the sins of their fathers], to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing graciousness and steadfast lovingkindness to thousands [of generations] of those who love Me and keep My commandments. “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].”
Exodus 20:1-7 AMP