Serving God or idols

 

READ Numbers 25–28

When visiting southeast Asia, we saw shrines with plates of food on them offered to the gods. That local dogs or the hungry homeless may have consumed the food didn’t seem to be an issue. The contrast in this compared to worshiping God through faith in Jesus Christ could not have been greater.

It makes me wonder the appeal of foreign gods to OT Israel. They bowed to Baal and others, supposing that these gods were powerful? Today’s reading tells of God’s anger and how twenty-four thousand of them died by a plague he sent until a priest fought back with a spear. At that, God said to Moses:

“Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’ ” (Numbers 25:11–13)

After that, God ordered a census of all twenty years old and up who were able to go to war. That number was 601,730, not including the priests nor any who started their journey from Egypt except Caleb and Joshua. Then the land was divided by lot between these tribes or clans. This include a family of women whose father died without sons so that inheritance was given to them.

God also told Moses he could look at this new land, but could not go in. Moses accepted this because he knew his error in striking the rock for water instead of speaking to it (see Numbers 20) and commissioned Joshua to be his replacement to lead the people. Moses also relayed from the Lord the various offerings required: food, Sabbath, monthly, Passover, Feast of Weeks, and more.

When Jesus came, this regime no longer happened. His offering was once, for all sin and instead of wandering to idols and idolatry, God changed the hearts of His people. Yet there are still needs in Christian lives for God’s grace. We still have a problem at times with misguided worship, not so much with unseen idols but with the notion that we are the center of the universe rather than God. Perhaps this is cultural and isn’t a problem in other parts of the world, but the church in North America has lived under great prosperity and comfort — finding it easy to make “the good life” the center of our lives instead of Jesus Christ.

I’ve wondered if this last pandemic and the current state of economic and social unrest is part of God’s discipline on His church. Certainly world events have affected and even tested our faith, but not even close to the degree experienced by Christians in the middle east and other parts of the world where persecution has resulted in the deaths of thousands. Of course our enemies do not realize that putting God’s people to death actually ushers them into the reality of eternal life.

Idolatry opens the door to all sin. Unless I am worshiping and praising God, I am prone to trusting something else, usually myself, and getting into trouble. In the OT list of Ten Commandments, it is the first for a reason: “No other gods before Me” because God knows that when the hearts of His people think that way, we are able to say NO to all temptation and sin.

Jesus, I need You. I don’t want my days to be filled with selfish choices, self-centered activities, me, me, me. The needs in this world are great. Direct my heart, footsteps and hands to the places where You can use me to be a blessing to others, even in a small way. And strengthen Your people that together we might bring glory to You by our obedience to do whatever You ask us to do. Guide me always to serve You and You alone!

 

 

Is my ‘good life’ the will of God?

Joshua 23; Jeremiah 12; Matthew 26; Acts 3

Not sure where it came from but this quote keeps gnawing at me: “Beware that you don’t make an idol of the good life.”

This week my hubby was talking to another Christian who was bemoaning the prophetic ideas of end times. He was deeply upset over thoughts of tribulation and betrayals, persecution and the end of the world as we know it. My hubby kept reminding him that God also predicts victory — and in the end, Jesus wins. However, this good news was not received as a comfort. The man kept saying, “Yes . . .  but . . . .” Had he made an idol of the good life?

I know the danger. We are comfortable, healthy even though we have health issues, financially stable, and at peace. Thoughts of discomfort, sickness, poverty and stress hardly enter our heads. Yet I realize the danger of being so reliant on the gifts that I neglect the Giver.

I was tested yesterday. One thing that really gets me riled is computer problems. I use technology for many things and when it acts up without any explanation, tension builds . . . usually. Yesterday my email program would not open. This happened after an ‘update’ so I assumed something was changed by that update and spent several hours trying to figure out what it was. I’d opened it several times in ‘safe’ mode, but that didn’t work. Finally I did that again, rebooted the PC and the offending program started as normal with no loss of anything but time. Not my temper.

For once, I was calm during all of this. I credit the Holy Spirit and learned some lessons. One, He is adequate to give what is needed even for stuff that is normally frustrating. Two, I can survive without everything working perfectly — my peace does not depend on technology nor anything else but Jesus. Three, He can take over and show me His ability even when I don’t ask for it. Four, I did ask that the problem would be solved, but the real problem was my attitude. Sometimes spiritual lessons are learned in the classroom of life rather than from a sermon or Bible study.

Peter struggled with the same thing as the man my hubby talked to. He didn’t want to accept anything from Jesus that was going to be upsetting. In Matthew 16, Jesus told His disciples He would be killed and then rise again. Peter said, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” This got him a severe rebuke from Jesus: “Get the behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16:21-23)

The next time was closer to that fateful day. Jesus just had instituted the Lord’s Supper . . .

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” Peter answered him, “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. (Matthew 26:30–35)

This time Peter and the others were ignoring or forgetting their tendency to fail. As I read both incidents in terms of idolizing the good life, I’m aware of how the desire for comfort can block my understanding of how God uses calamity for His purposes. Peter did not want Jesus to die — how horrible. He did not understand the purpose of God, at least not then.

Peter also did not want to betray Him, a lesson perhaps learned from the first rebuke, but this time it was because his trust in himself had a big flaw. To remain true to Jesus requires the power of the Holy Spirit and Peter had not yet learned that this also requires a revelation from God. Otherwise, he didn’t get it even though Jesus plainly said it.

APPLY: The human heart is fickle. My heart is too. Jesus lives there yet how many times have I relied on me instead of Him! The good life is good, but the will of God rises above my ideas of good. Jesus had to die. On this side of the Cross I can see the incredible goodness of that but in Peter’s place, he was not able to — yet. Also, on this side of the end of things and the prophecies of horrors that will happen, I must always take to heart that even though it will not be good, Jesus will indeed win!