3rd Sunday of Lent (March 3) No other gods

Prepare to Listen.  Grant me the grace of living by your law.[1]
 
Prayerfully Read Exodus 20:1-7
Then God spoke all these words:
2I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3you shall have no other gods before me.  4You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.  5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.  7You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
 
Prayerfully Wonder and Reflect
How often in recent years have you reflected or heard sermons on the Ten Commandments?
 
The Ten Commandments are one the most well-known passages of Scripture.  In the U. S. we argue, not about their role in our lives, but where to display them, missing the point.  If they’re to play a role in our lives, and that’s critical, we must learn and take them to heart, rather than arguing about where to display them.
 
Lent is an appropriate time to reflect on “all these words” God spoke.  The foundation for them is: “I am the LORD your God” who redeemed you.  There is only one Redeemer for the Christian, and that’s Jesus, not any other.  We know this, but it’s easy to slip up and look to a human to save us.  It happened to Israel; it can happen to us.  Thus, there are three commands against idolatry: “you shall have no other gods before [besides] me,” make no graven image, and don’t take God’s name in vain.
 
The fact that there are three commands against idolatry suggests that God knows how easy it is for us to make God into an image we can control.  If our God is manageable, can be readily understood, hates and loves the same people we do, that’s an idol.  When we claim that a political candidate, a mere human, can save our nation (and I hear that often this election year), we’ve created an idol, replaced the eternal Savior Christ with a temporal and inadequate human savior.  The LORD who redeems is beyond our control, beyond our ability to even imagine.
 
“You shall have no other gods.”  What could become an idol in your life?
 
Prayerfully Respond
Lord, you alone are my Redeemer.  Keep me alert so that I resist the temptation to create a god who is manageable and undemanding.  Grant me the grace to live by your law.  Amen.
 
Live obediently.  Resist idolatry.
[1] Psalm 119:29 (Revised English Bible).