Friday, January 24, 2020

You Believe- But Do You Live For God?


Run as fast as you can from idolatry! Run! Faster! Run! But first…

You have to recognize a threat before you can be frightened by it, or if not frightened at least concerned that the threat exists.  There are many kinds of threats but one thing about a threat it bodes no good for anyone being threatened. Whether you are threatened by something out of your control- say a hurricane threat, or you are threatened by a thief with a knife- neither of these is under your control. When we are threatened by something of our own making, that's where we have to stop and take inventory of our own selves. You've heard it said and maybe quite often, that we are our own worst enemies and that's true a lot of the time. We self-sabotage, we give in and do things that harm us with either short term or long term damage. Some of our harming is ongoing daily, unendingly. People will see therapists to help them stop their own negative self-destructive ways hoping to get out of the habit (natural or learned) of harming themselves- mentally, emotionally and even physically.

The specific threat in this study we are discussing is one of idolatry. We are told to flee from it…

1Co 10:14  Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry. 

Yesterday we touched much more in-depth on what idolatry is, today I want to touch on a few of those verses.

Rom 1:25  Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 

Idolatry- when we WORSHIP the CREATURE MORE than the CREATOR.

I need you to re-read that, and think about what it is saying.

We are in grave danger when we worship OURSELVES more than we worship God. We are in grave danger when we worship OTHER PEOPLE more than we worship God.

The first commandment of the royal law, the decalogue, states this--

Exo 20:3  Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 

You say you don't have any other gods before God, now do your actions prove what your mouth is saying and your mind proclaiming? This is the greater test your life and how you are living it. It is so easy to check the 'yes, I believe in God' box and yet live a life void of the actions to prove the validity of that statement. You might be chuckling and thinking- It's valid, I believe God exists but that doesn't mean I'm going to live my life for Him. The Bible even says that devils believe. (James 2:19) We know devils don't live for God. So it isn't enough to believe.

How many can check the box, 'I live my life for God.'  That's a better gauge than the 'I believe' box.  And if you can check that living your life for God, do you? Is this your daily waking desire, to live your life for God? A life He can use for His purposes, a life He can accept as surrendered to Him? A life that holds true to having NO other gods before Him?

Is the creature (self or others) ranking much higher in your estimation than the Creator?

We are also told this-

Rom 1:28  And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient

Retaining the knowledge of God. Do we? To retain the knowledge of God is to not forget God's will. When we choose NOT to retain the knowledge of God we are choosing to discard His will and replace it with our own. And if our focus is our will being done and not God's then we are not God's at all, but liars and deceivers trying to pretend we belong to God by mouthing the words of belief and showing up to church or Bible study without any heart desire for the will of God to be done.

Faking a relationship with God, or having a half-hearted relationship with God to serve our own ends isn't a real relationship with God. As soon as we decide to serve ourselves we are allowed to be godless, we are given up to our own will. The self-serving, godless mind is an awful thing - even if it comes from a beautiful, seemingly sweet, kind, and gentle façade of a pretend God-fearing person.

We must pray with David…

Psa 139:23  Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 
Psa 139:24  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. 

We need to flee our SELF serving, idolatrous ways. We need to flee idolizing other people. We need to run to God and give ourselves over to Him and His leading, worshipping God and no others.

All by the grace, the mercy, the will of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Now and forever!




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