Deut 5:6-11
6 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
7 "You shall have no other gods before me.
8 "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 10 but showing love to a thousand [ generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
11 "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
I’m doing the 90 Day Bible reading again. This week as I was reading through the books of Deuteronomy, Joshua and Judges it impressed me that the people of Israel always seemed to have a problem with idols. God told them in the Law over and over to keep away from other gods, to destroy them, to drive out the nations that worship them, and put to death anyone among them that follows after other gods. But they never seem to get the memo.
It’s not that Israel wanted to totally abandon worshipping the Lord, it was that the people ALSO wanted to cuddle up with other gods as well. Idolatry in Canaan was… well, the way to be cool and accepted. It was the way to make new friends and fit in with the culture. It was sort of like going to church on Sunday after partying or watching an immoral movie on Saturday night. Israel knew that the Lord was God, that the Lord was their creator and deliverer. They knew this. They just didn’t want to miss out on what was happening around them. Being with God and walking as His people was just not enough. They wanted more, and the “more” they wanted always took them in the wrong direction.
Is walking close to God enough to anyone today? This week as we look again at the first three commandments, I want you to reflect on just what they envision and consider how obeying them determines our most important life matters. If we do these first three, they will shape our relationship with God and make it the determining factor of everything else in our lives. These first three commandments center us. Does anyone here know who to make pottery on a wheel? When the potter takes clay and begins his work. He or she must first center the clay on the wheel. This is extremely important. The clay MUST be centered. You literally can’t work the clay if it is off center on the wheel. Like a record on a record player, the record has a little hole in the center that controls how the disk spins on the turn table. A record just won’t play accurately unless it is centered on the pin. Or imagine a car wheel off center. How would your car drive if one or more wheels were off center?
God wants our lives to center around Him. He designed us for that and we can’t live life correctly unless we practice that. These first three commandments align us and center our lives on God. Let’s explore them this morning and listen to God as he calls us to himself in them.
Let me read Deuteronomy 5:6-11 again. (read)
These commandments have a certain order to them, don’t they? We know that the first four commandments point to our relationship to God, and the final six point to our relationships with others. Even the first three have a particular order. Is there any significance in this sequence? Let’s go through them thoughtfully and see what that might be. There is an opening statement followed by three “Do nots”.
God first announces who He is and reminds them of what He did in bringing them out of Egypt, specifically, out of the land of slavery. Notice that God reminds them, saying, “I am the Lord your God…” It’s as if God has to sort of pound it in: I am your God. Who is your God? Me, the Lord. Any questions? I brought you out of Egypt, remember? I took you out of the land of slavery, got that? It’s me. I am the Lord, your God. That should settle it for us, but it doesn’t. We need more. Look with me at Leviticus 19. Check out the end of verses 3,10,12,14,16,18,25,28,30,31,34,36,37. What do these tell us?
Parents: have you ever had to tell your child these words? “Because I say so!” That used to be common. I think many parents have forgotten who they are today. Why? Because many parents don’t listen to God and follow His lead. They are parenting from a different center than scripture. They are listening to parenting experts who don’t know how to raise their own children, but can write clever books telling you how to raise yours.
God establishes His own authority by opening with these words: I am the Lord your God. If we accept that, the rest will follow. But if we do not, we will resist everything else God says.
Looking back at Deuteronomy and where the people are, you would think by now Israel would know and embrace that the Lord is her God, but what did they say about the golden calf that Aaron made for them while Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving these very commandments? “These are your gods O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt!” Exodus 32:4
Even after the ten plagues, even after the parting of the Red Sea, even after the drowning of their Egyptian pursuers, AND even after they heard the very voice of God speaking these commandments to them before Moses went up the mountain to have them engraved on stone… in less than 40 days, Israel returns away from the Lord God to idolatry. It appears that God wants Israel, but Israel doesn’t want God. They want a god, or gods, but not the Lord God.
This resistance to God is so embedded into their systems that it takes killing off the entire group and raising up their children under harsh desert conditions to form a nation that accepts the Lord as their God.
What does it take for us to accept the Lord as our God? These first three commandments show us the way. Look again at these first three commandments:
1. God is exclusive. It is the Lord God and Him alone. No other gods allowed.
2. As Ray Vanderlann said, “I don’t want you to have any pictures of other gods either.” No images of any god or gods are allowed.
3. Revere the name of the Lord. Honor His name, treat it with respect. Keep it holy.
These three commandments constitute the very foundations of how we can have a relationship with God. This is how we can practice loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. These are not optional suggestions as a way you can do it. These are THE way.
When Jesus was tempted by Satan and the devil offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, if Jesus would just bow and worship him, what did Jesus say? “It is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve.”
Israel, even in their best years, struggled with this.
Joshua 24:13-18
13 So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.'
14 "Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."
16 Then the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! 17 It was the LORD our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. 18 And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because he is our God."
23 (read)
I’m going to leave this lesson open ended. Let’s just finish today’s part with a Bible story that illustrates this issue. Turn to Judges 17 and notice how idolatry was mixed in with Israel’s worship practices.
Jesus calls us to repent and live toward a higher path: to look to God, listen to God, learn from God, live for God, love God, and look like God.
