Measuring Your Love For God

Measuring your Love for God

Exodus 20:1-11

During Temple period, these commands were recited before worship.

Called ten words, statements, covenant, agreement.

A businessman well known for his ruthlessness once announced to writer Mark Twain, “Before I die I mean to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I will climb Mount Sinai and read the 10 Commandments aloud at the top.”

“I have a better idea,” replied Twain. “You could stay in Boston and keep them.”

A Jewish man was confronting a Christian man: “You know, you people borrowed the 10 Commandments from us.”

“Well,” responded the Christian, “we may have borrowed them from you, but we didn’t keep them!”

Ten commandment controversy; Christians seem so passionate about displaying them in the courthouse but dispassionate about displaying them in everyday life.

Recently I was attempting to get out of a parking garage. My mind began to wander and I didn’t pay any attention to where I was headed. When I finally came out of the fog, I realized that I had driven around the garage without ever entering the middle lane that takes you to the exit. I was definitely moving but not in the right direction.

Everyone here probably wants to love God, but how do you know if you are? How do you know you aren’t producing a lot of movement but heading the wrong direction?

How do you measure your love for God?

I wanted to buy a dust mop head for our new church facility, but I didn’t have a measuring tool to figure out what size I needed. So, I used my shoes and hand to measure. The dust mop head was two of my shoes and four fingers. When I went to the world wide web to order, I couldn’t find a dust mop two shoes and four fingers long. Surprise surprise, no one uses that form of measurement.

How would you like to get to the end of your life, stand before God and realize that you used the wrong measuring tool to measure your love for Him?

If you want to measure your love, use the right measuring stick.

There are four questions based on the first four of the Ten Commandments that can help us measure our love for God.

DO YOU RECOGNIZE GOD FOR WHO HE IS?

(First in our minds)

Rescues us from bondage

This church is not about you or me. It is about God and His desire for us to recognize Him so that we can share Him with others. Rescue people; help them connect faith and reality.

Israel came from Egypt; place of many gods

God says we need to recognize Him as the only God

Jewish sages: “first commandment greatest”

Why? Because until we are ready to accept Adonai as our God, the rest of the commands are not likely to be obeyed.

God has revealed Himself to you; are you recognizing His work in your life?

He is our God; are we willing to obey?

Is He first in your mind?

Do YOU GIVE HIM THE AFFECTION HE DESERVES?

(First in our hearts)

Ralph Waldo Emerson hit the nail on the head when he said: “The gods we worship write their names on our faces, be sure of that. And a man will worship something —have no doubt about that, either. He may think that his tribute is paid in secret in the dark recesses of his heart—but it will out. That which dominates will determine his life and character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping we are becoming.”

No idols

Egypt: known for their images of animals as gods.

Today we serve other gods. Why does this hurt our relationship with God?

God is Jealous: watches over us lovingly and closely

He is entirely committed to us; are we to Him?

Or are we putting other desires, affections, interests ahead of God?

“An idol is anything you love more, fear more, value more or serve more than you do Almighty God. Fill in the blank.” Adrian Rogers

“Idolatry is worshiping anything that ought to be used, or using anything that ought to be worshiped.”- Augustine.

Are we using God?

Is he first in our hearts?

DO YOU TREAT HIS NAME WITH RESPECT?

(First on our lips)

Word “name” powerfully refers to the character or reputation of the one who bears it.

Using God’s name is an invocation of His presence

“In vain” probably comes from the word that pictures a rushing and destructive storm.

God is present whenever we call, so we better not take it lightly.

Is His name the first on our lips? Are we genuine when we use His name?

DO YOU OBSERVE TIMES OF REST?

Gordon MacDonald

“Somewhere along the line, most of us bought into productivity as a chief value in life. The lie that came along with this value was that the more we work, the greater would be the productivity. The end result: rest is dangerous to productivity. We can only rest after the work is done. This is stupid, frankly, but most of us live as if we really believe it.”