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Sermon - No Other Gods - 29th July 2007
St Alban’s 7:00am, 8.00 am and 10:00 am
And God spoke all these words: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. "You shall have no other gods before me”. Exodus 20:1-3
What are you afraid of?
Future, death, terrorism, insufficient finances, relationship breakdown, or one of the many other “phobias”: arachnophobia, acrophobia, agoraphobia, claustrophobia…..
There is a site on the internet called “The Phobia List” on which there are 530 phobias listed. Some are very interesting: monophobia/autophobia – fear of being alone; zoophobia – fear of animals; agrizoophobia – fear of wild animals; fear of anything new – neophobia; fear of cars – motorphobia, etc etc
It seems most of us have one “phobia” or another……
I have always suffered from claustrophobia: recent trip to Egypt I was confronted with tunnels under pyramids in Giza – took one look and backed off…not for me, I couldn’t do it.
However, I went to King Tutankhamen’s tomb in Valley of the Kings. There was a $15 entry fee!! I thought if I paid $15 bucks for this I’m going down,,, Amazing how money can affect our phobias!! And so, I went down into the tunnel into the tomb, totally petrified and came our running!!
Psychologists tell us there is healthy “fear” – fear can serve as a motivation; fear pumps adrenaline into our muscles and we can run faster; fear can freeze the brain for an instant and pump hormones in which allow us to choose the most accurate reaction to the threat, etc…
Today I want to talk about the First Commandment and I want to…
1. BEGIN WITH THE FEAR OF THE LORD Exodus 20:20
Fear of the Lord has mostly been defined as: awe, deep respect, reverence, etc. I think it is all that but I wonder if it is more:
We often sing a song based on Psalm 96 (we sang it last week) - O worship the Lord – “tremble before him all the earth…. our God reigns”….
In Exodus 19:16-19 we read not only the people trembled but also the whole earth trembled as God began to speak:
“16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, 19 and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.
In Hebrews 12:21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear" – even Moses trembled with fear ….it was an awesome experience for him and all the people. Then God gave his commandments and this is the First Commandment: : "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. "You shall have no other gods before me”
The lightning, thunder, trumpet blast and earthquake that accompanied the receiving of the Ten Commandments were intended for a purpose: in Exodus 20:20 we read Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning." The fear of God will keep you from sinning….. Is this what keeps us from sinning? Does anything keep us from sinning?!!
About the “fear of the Lord” Psalm 111:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do His commandments: His praise endures for ever.” A key proverb is Proverbs 1:7: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
As the people heard God’s words, they were ready to be obedient to every word: “We will do all that the Lord has said” - yet history records that the memory of this event faded quickly.
The First Commandment instructs us to put God first. Without starting in the right direction, everyone will ultimately reach the wrong destination. The First Commandment points us in the right direction. Getting it right from the beginning is crucial.
Jesus emphasis: Matthew 6:25 -34 – “seek first…”
Another way of putting God first is clearly set out by Jesus in Matthew 6:31-33.
31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ (there goes the food and restaurant industry!) or ‘What shall we drink?’ (there goes the wine, beer and soft drink industry) or ‘What shall we wear?’ (there goes the fashion industry!) 32 For the pagans run after all these things (Isn’t that the truth – and so do a lot of Christians!!), and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Here is a vital key that Jesus gives us to obey the first commandment: Matthew 6:33 –seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness….he’ll provide the rest…
The First Commandment also says: 2. AVOID FALSE GODS
Some might think that obeying the First Commandment is relatively easy. WE don’t worship statues or pagan gods….. But you could easily break this commandment without realizing it. People who worship false gods are most often oblivious to that fact. Whatever occupies your interest and/or time more than anything else could well be your god. Technically, idolatry is the worship of idols. But there is another form of idolatry. That is the blind or excessive devotion to anything. The object of that devotion becomes a false god and the blind devotee becomes an idolater.
Probably the “god” that people most often put before the true God is money. Certain people “worship” sports figures, entertainers or themselves in place of God. “It’s all about me!” many people cry out! “It’s all about me” is idolatry – because it’s really all about God.
Most people turn to materialism, in one form or another to find fulfilment in their lives: cars, clothes, consumerism. The three “f’s” reign: fun, food and fashion - “You can spend for the rest of your life” says the Lottery ad – is nothing less than a vain attempt to fill the emptiness that exists in people’s lives - the absence of God’s Spirit, Christ in them, and it’s also a rejection of simple obedience to the first commandment – “no other gods before me…”
Jesus’ emphasis is about “treasures in heaven” : Matthew 6 v19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Finally I think the First Commandment is positively encouraging us to… 3. KNOW AND LOVE THE REAL GOD in every aspect of our lives
Jesus’ emphasis: Matthew 22:37-38 “ Jesus replied: "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
“heart, soul and mind” – know and love God with the totality of our being…and remember - “You Shall Have No Other Gods Before Me”….
An alternative version of The 1st Commandment and its immediate implications are also found in Deut. 6:
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
People, created in the image of God, were designed to practice the Ten Commandments as a way of life. God commands that we also teach them to our children, discuss them and meditate upon them.
John Lennon – Imagine:
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...
But I am sorry, John, I simply can’t imagine that. It would rip the heart out of all that I believe and hope for.
But I have an alternative “Imagine”. Imagine if everyone obeyed the first commandment and got it right…..Well….
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one….”as we worship and serve forever the God who says: “I AM the Lord your God….you shall have no other gods before me”.
Conclusion
My favourite place on my recent trip to Egypt was Mt Sinai with St Katherine’s Monastery at the foot of the mountain. It is very rugged, desert, mountainous country at the bottom of the Sinai peninsula. It was a fitting place for Moses to receive the Ten Commandments from God. And I think this is a fitting place this morning, here in this church, for me to remind yourselves and myself of the First Commandment:
"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. "You shall have no other gods before me”
Let’s pray for God’s help to obey.