One True God

Scripture: “Be careful to do everything I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips.  Exodus 23:13 NIV (Merriam-Webster dictionary states that invoke means to, petition for help or support, or to appeal to or cite as authority.)

Scripture: Do not let them live in your land, or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.”. Exodus 23:33 NIV

Scripture: The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” Psalm 14:1 NIV

Scripture: The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.  Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.  Acts 5:41,42 NIV

Observation: There is a theme to today’s reading: “There is a God and man will forsake him if he is left to his own devices.”

Application: In Exodus God warns repeatedly about the dangers of the gods of the people the Israelites were displacing eventually causing them to stray. By the time David wrote Psalm 14, some had not only sought other gods but they had come to claim there wasn’t a God. These were the same people who were miraculously brought out of Egypt a few generations earlier.  In Acts, the Apostles were flogged for doing God’s work in the name of Jesus by the very priests and leaders descended from Aaron.  From the Old Testament reading through the New Testament reading today there is a steady eroding away of support for and belief in God. God knew that we would seek others if we got antsy or if he wasn’t “filling the bill” quick enough to suit us. That’s why the bible is full of these admonitions and warnings. All we have to do to see  proof of this is to look at our society. We are either claiming there is “no God” and demanding that those that claim that there is one end claiming it, or we are calling on other names, (insert any number of Hollywood “gods” here).  Not to mention those of us that worship cars, money, houses, sex, our looks, our jobs, etc. God knew we would corrupt his plan–and we have!  Our job now is to acknowledge that our society is corrupt and going down the wrong path, seeking any and all forms of gods except for the one true God.  We must speak the truth about him to those in our sphere of influence.

Prayer: God, forgive us for seeking other gods.  Help us to guide the misguided in finding you. Amen

Doug