"You shall not worship their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their deeds; but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their sacred pillars in pieces."--Exodus 23:24. God, giving instructions to Israel as to what they are to do upon entrance into the Promised Land. There will be other people that they are to conquer when they enter the land and in this verse God instructs the people what they are to do to their gods.
Their gods. Now of course what we are talking about here in Exodus are the instructions given to Israel as they are about to enter the physical Promised Land in Canaan. But I looked at this passage and began to ask what can we learn from this specific instruction about what Israel is to do the other gods.
Their gods. I think Christians can relate to this specific instruction for two reasons. First, because it reflects the first of the ten commandments that we are to have no other gods before God Himself. Second, this instruction emphasizes the fact that we need to get rid of anything that might prevent us from serving God with all our heart, soul, and mind.
Their gods. When we look forward in the Old Testament, we realize why it was so important for Israel to follow this instruction to the T as their failure to get rid of the foreign influences caused them to suffer in ways that could have been avoided.
Their gods. So what does this mean to us? Well, we know that Christ expects commitment from us as seen in Matthew 10:37-39. What we have to realize is sometimes that will mean disposing of the world's gods in our own lives.
Their gods. The world's gods can and do keep us from loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind and as with Israel, failure to get rid of those gods can sometimes cause us to suffer.
Their gods. So what is keeping us from being who God wants us to be? What is keeping you from being the Christian God wants you to be?
Their gods. Is it too much time on the Internet or on Facebook? Is it the people you hang out with? Is it how you spend your money? Is it movies or TV shows you watch or even music you listen to? Is it sports or even your job? These are all gods our society has created for themselves.
Their gods. The things I just mentioned are a few examples of the worlds gods. I am not here to say that we should completely purge ourselves of these activities but we need to ask ourselves and make sure these activities and others are not negatively impacting our relationship with God.
Their gods. So my encouragement to you is this. Take some time off. Take some time off from the Internet. Take some time off from movies or TV. With your money, rather then spending it on your own pleasures, use that money and put a few extra bucks in the collection plate next Sunday. My point is take some time off from some other activity in your life and use that time for the Lord whether it's through some extra time in prayer, in His Word or getting more involved in some sort of ministry at your congregation.
Their gods. So when it comes to the world, what will you do with their gods?
DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!
Their gods.
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