Day 3 – God is a loving God

Exodus 20:3 “I am the LORD your God: you must not have any other god but me” KJV

As Christians, we must not miss the important aspect of the law of God. These commandments disclose the nature and character of God and who God is in this world. The values that God treasures are embedded in our hearts. The first commandment is all about the love God has for us. God is saying: love only me and love me with your heart, life, and soul.

For Israel:

In Exodus 20:2 the Lord reminded the Israelites that He rescued them from Egypt where they were enslaved. They were forced to worship the Pharaoh and the Egyptian gods. They were severely punished or even executed if they didn’t comply. In Deuteronomy 4:28 the Lord said “There, in a foreign land, you will worship idols made from wood and stone – gods that neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell” God is a loving God and wants the Israelites to be free from worshipping Pharaoh and its many gods. In verse 5 God establish His ultimate authority by warning His people that He will not tolerate any other gods. When reading Exodus 19:5-6 it says Israel is His special treasure and His kingdom of priests, specially selected to be the image bearer of God. God showed His might and power during the ten plagues of Egypt, yet the Israelites doubted God’s holiness, sovereignty, and tri-unity.

For today:

Exodus 3:5 and Deuteronomy 4:24 say that God is a jealous God and will not share our hearts with anyone else. We put the world first and try to fit God anywhere in between. If we put God first in our lives, we acknowledge that God has an honourable place in our hearts. God bless us for obeying this command. By obeying this command we must surrender the following:

• Pride/Self – Matthew 16:24 “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself”.

• Possessions – Colossians 3:5 “Fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry”

• Pleasure – Philippians 3:19 “Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things”.

• Family – Matthew 10:37 “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of Me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of me”.

Matthew 6:33 sums up the first Commandment in the most understandable way, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”. We are commanded to put God first in all things, to seek Him, worship Him, and to love Him above all else.

Prayer: Lord, teach me to put You first and take away any doubt I have in my heart that You are the only God. Help me to not have little faith but let my heart overflow with faith and let me not worry about anything because You already know all my needs. Thank You for loving me so much that You sent Your Son Jesus to die for my sins. In Jesus Name, Amen.

By Marie Swanepoel for www.womenoftheword.co.za