PUTTING GOD ABOVE ALL OTHER "GODS"

The First Commandment:  Exodus 20:3 (NKJV)  You shall have no other gods before Me.

People all the time say that they have no other gods before the God of Heaven.  Indeed, they really talk Him up.

But is this true?


Lest I get too far ahead in our consideration of how we show our gods, let's first recognize the gods we have.

What is "a god"?  The definition people have for "a god" is pretty varied.  Hopefully yours has at least the following three elements:

1. A "god" is a living being
2. A "god" does things
3. A "god" is served

If this is so, then this first commandment logically says that there should be no living being greater, more able, or worthy of service than the God of Moses.  It also means we serve no other "god" than the God of Moses.

Therefore, let's look at the things that we serve. 

Money
Power
Self

These things consume all too many people.  We find they all have the ability to do things.  However, the first two are not living beings.  Still, they capture our attention, devotion, and become the aim of our lives.  The second one, Self, is a living being and so completely qualifies as a "god." 

Now being selfish is really behind greed, which drives our efforts to gain money or power.  Money can sway many people to do very immoral things.  Power can do the same.  But the self is what is being preserved, protected, or promoted when money or power offer anything to them.  Rather than being a tool to do right, money and power are used to do whatever will preserve, protect, or promote the person wielding it.  For that reason, the first two are not "gods" as many have tried to say. 

The god of self, however, is the god that comes between us and the God of Moses.  It is a sinful god, indeed, for doing just that. 

So, Christian, when you find your "self" standing between you and Jesus Christ (who was and is one of the parts of the God of Moses), then you are not letting the God of Moses preserve you, protect you, or promote your well-being.  You are trusting your own ingenuity, wit, and wisdom to use whatever is at YOUR disposal to accomplish your own will.  You do not serve the will of God, but your own.  That is sinful, and it stands between you and an intimate relationship with Christ.

Learning to be totally dependent on Jesus is a lifetime process.  Fortunately, the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all unrighteousness.  However, our choice to love, serve, and obey the God of Moses and that to the rejection of service, love, and obedience of self is the highest form of honor we can give Christ.  It will bring us near to Him and Him to us.  His promises will be fulfilled before our eyes.  We will see Him as He is, and how much He can be trusted and relied upon.  We will learn to obey Him more and more implicitly, and as such, we will find our lives to be His tools to do His will on earth, as it is in Heaven!  We must put to death all other "gods" such as self, and have no other gods before Him! 

That is a commandment that is not changed by the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.  It is VERY applicable today!  Let's live by it.

And that's Just A Thought for Today!  May the Lord Bless you as you meditate and live by His Word.