A Jealous God
It is not the fact that I own lots of "techy" toys that drags me down. It's the fact that I spend far too much time playing with them. It's not the fact that I enjoy eating (I am, after all, Italian). It's the fact that I get fat when I eat too much. It's not so bad that I can now combine one of my favorite pastimes (reading a good novel) with my techy obsession (reading on a kindle), what's bad is when I spend too much energy and time with it.
The whole point of Exodus 20:5 isn't that we are going to be surrounded in life with many things that can take up our time and energy; the point is that we are not to worship those things. There is no clearer picture of the essence of worship than this verse. I think most of us are just afraid to read it for what it is: a call for us to have a single-minded focus of worship - the Lord God. The essence of worship is putting God above all else. Things. Relationships. People. Possessions. Careers. Jobs. Wealth. Causes. Interests. Hobbies. Activities. Yes, even sports or shopping.
Worship isn't just about God; it's ONLY about God. When the Lord himself says that He is a "jealous" God, He's not kidding. He wants all of our attention, all of our efforts to be focused on Him. Do you ever let your mind stray when the Pastor's praying? God is jealous. Do you ever go through your "to do" list during the sermon? God is jealous.
When the Bible talks about God being a jealous God, it isn't like a boyfriend who is jealous when another male shows interest in the girl. God's jealousy is for what is already rightfully his - our worship. He is not jealous of something that belongs to another - like being envious - rather, he is jealous regarding the substance and subject of our worship. When our worship is deflected to something other than God, he is jealous.
If we're going to truly understand worship, we need to learn this concept regarding God's desires. To truly worship we must make sure that He alone is the subject of our worship.
What's got your attention today? Probably a thousand and one things, right? But when it comes to worship, there's one room for one thing. So trash those idols. Get rid of those obsessions. God is jealous for your worship, and He won't relent until He's got your FULL attention.
Created over 2 years ago
