Any idols in your life?
what have you placed ahead of the lord your god…
'So do not corrupt yourselves by making an idol in any form—whether of a man or a woman, an animal on the ground, a bird in the sky, a small animal that scurries along the ground, or a fish in the deepest sea. And when you look up into the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the forces of heaven—don’t be seduced into worshiping them. The Lord your God gave them to all the peoples of the earth. Remember that the Lord rescued you from the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt in order to make you his very own people and his special possession, which is what you are today.
“But the Lord was angry with me because of you. He vowed that I would not cross the Jordan River into the good land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession. You will cross the Jordan to occupy the land, but I will not. Instead, I will die here on the east side of the river. So be careful not to break the covenant the Lord your God has made with you. Do not make idols of any shape or form, for the Lord your God has forbidden this. The Lord your God is a devouring fire; he is a jealous God.
“In the future, when you have children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time, do not corrupt yourselves by making idols of any kind. This is evil in the sight of the Lord your God and will arouse his anger. ' Deuteronomy 4:16-25
as we are instructed, or least i’ve heard it said, if something is repeated multiple times in The Bible it must be important, so pay attention and focus on the message at hand.
here, we have moses telling the israelites not to make idols, not once, not twice, but 3x; also which types - which is all, every kine. this is similar to when your parents yell at you and say, just don’t do it. why, as a dumb kid i ask, because i (your parent) said so and that’s all you need to know.
because the israelites failed to do so, moses was left out of the promised land and had to stay where he was. he got punished for those that did not listen. totally unfair, yes, but a lesson was to be had for not following instructions. hopefully they would now and in the future.
while you may not understand why you are told to do certain things, if it is from someone or people that love and care for you, best to listen and do it than to face the consequences from not. i’ve made my fair share of mistakes from letting my pride and selfishness override this common sense lesson. placed things of this world above God and in the forefront of my life; seen my life spiral out of control - i may not have lost out on ‘the promised land', what i did lose is that time having a deeper, meaningful, true relationship with Jesus.
rather important point - if The Word of God says “NO” or “DO NOT,” remind myself to not be a bonehead and give it a go. failure to do so will result in me/you faceplanting and regretting my/your life choices. instead of suffering for our insubordination, why not enjoy the rewards for doing so…. choose wisely!
Father God, thank you for providing us direction, instructions as a great parent does. to help your children to not make the mistakes that brings nothing but grief and pain. teach us to listen attentively, move accordingly, and to trust that what we don’t know and understand is in the care of our Lord Jesus who does. in His might and glorious name i pray, amen!