Not Priority One, But Priority Only

Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, “With the LORD’s help, I have produced a man!” Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD. Abel also brought a gift—the best portions of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected. “Why are you so angry?” the LORD asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” [Genesis 4.1-7] 

The best explanation for the story of Cain and Abel here can be found in something Jesus said:

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. [Matthew 6.33]

From the story of Cain and Abel, it becomes clear that it was indeed "a" priority for Cain to give back to God, but it was "the" priority for Abel to give back to God. The difference between Cain and Abel is spoken clearly by Jesus: Abel put God first and Cain only included God as a priority. For Abel, God was his priority. For Cain, his priorities were his god.

It is not ironic that Jesus included and live righteously in His famous Matthew 6.33 statement. What did God tell Cain? You will be accepted if you do what is right. Right - righteously... see the connection?

As the story of the Bible would unfold, God was crystal clear describing His stance regarding life and mankind:

I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

Cain's offering to God was calculated: he gave some. God was indeed a priority, but Cain had other priorities as well.

Abel's offering to God was without calculation: he gave the best portions of the firstborn lambs. God was his only priority - period.

How this applies to us today is translatable (again) in Jesus' words:

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. [Matthew 6.33]

For all the tendencies we have to calculate and reason with God, Jesus made it clear that God is to be Priority Only. The thing about God being "a priority" is that God simply allows no other priorities!

I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

All the things we want to prioritize "under" God are all the things Jesus unapologetically said God will take care of: he will give you everything you need. Anything God said He would take care of is of no consequence or concern to us, ...unless, of course, we don't trust God. And this very doubt is precisely what our priorities declare regardless how religious it sounds for us to declare them.

Jesus was adamant on this topic:

If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. [Matthew 10.39]

Where are our priorities in the verse above? And, where are our priorities in the following passage? 

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? [Matthew 16.24-26]

What Jesus said above is confirmed in Mark 8.34-36 and Luke 9.23-25.

And furthermore, Jesus had this conversation with Peter:

Then Peter said to him, “We’ve given up everything to follow you. What will we get?” Jesus replied, “I assure you that when the world is made new and the Son of Man sits upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life. But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then. [Matthew 19.27-30]

While it sounds like Jesus was saying we will receive a hundred times as much in return in this life, what difference does it make whether it is this life or eternity following if God is Priority ONLY?

The thing is, our religious calculation of "priorities" in our lives is more like Cain than Abel.

Is God our Priority? -OR- Are our priorities our god?

It would be a shortcoming here to overlook an important fact regarding Cain as his life of priorities continued after murdering Abel. Consider Cain's descendants:

Lamech married two women. The first was named Adah, and the second was Zillah. Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the first of those who raise livestock and live in tents. His brother’s name was Jubal, the first of all who play the harp and flute. Lamech’s other wife, Zillah, gave birth to a son named Tubal-cain. He became an expert in forging tools of bronze and iron. Tubal-cain had a sister named Naamah. [Genesis 4.19-22]

In contrast, consider the descendants of Abel's subsequent brother Seth:

Adam had sexual relations with his wife again, and she gave birth to another son. She named him Seth, for she said, “God has granted me another son in place of Abel, whom Cain killed.” When Seth grew up, he had a son and named him Enosh. At that time people first began to worship the LORD by name. [Genesis 4.25-26] 

Cain's descendants were known for raising food, entertainment, and industrialization - all noble priorities, right?

The descendants of Abel's "replacement" Seth were known for worshiping the LORD. 

You tell me - which one could it be said is in greatest compliance with Jesus' demand in Matthew 6.33?

Oh, our religious defense mechanisms (i.e. doubt and unbelief) are in high gear now, aren't they? After all, everyone knows, "You gotta live, right?" One must have priorities, right? Tell that to Abel whose blood cries from the ground to God even to this day!

If we must categorize "our priorities" by the Bible's standard, we must classify them as idols. We have but one priority and He is God. He will tolerate no other priority in our lives (not my words, His).

I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

And, just to be sure we get the message, God went on to clarify His intentions for us:

You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. [Exodus 20.4-6] 

Go ahead, offer explanations... But know this: the Bible supports only one priority in our lives, and He is God. More specifically, He is Jesus, God With Us, Who said:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

Any way of our own - any other "priority" - is an idol. Really, God doesn't want to be Priority One, but instead, Priority Only.

Mmm.

Father, may we all have a serious "come to Jesus" concerning our "priorities." May we take Jesus' words in Matthew 6.33 seriously - giving You Priority Only status in our lives, allowing You to make good on Your promises without any help from us whatsoever. So be it.

And, It Begins

The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. [Genesis 3.6-7] 

The woman was convinced...

What was the woman convinced of? Whatever it was, it caused shame and fear. Shame is mentioned in the context above and fear is mentioned shortly thereafter:

He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.” [Genesis 3.10]

So, again, what was the woman convinced of that invoked shame and fear? Let's look at what led up to the woman being convinced:

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” [Genesis 3.1-5]

Let me paraphrase what Satan convinced the woman of: "There is more to living than what God has said. You need to do something about it."

The moment a person makes it his (or her) way, instead of God's way to preserve or improve their life, their insufficiency is revealed and shame and fear are the result.

Any time anyone doubts God's Word, shame and fear lead them to do something on their own. In Adam and Eve's case, it was first to cover themselves and hide from God.

The irony of Adam and Eve hiding from God is that Satan had convinced them they would be like God. So, in thinking they could do something - anything - to improve the condition of their lives, they inadvertently revealed their own insufficiency. What seemed like a good idea quickly and irreversibly bound them to overwhelming shame and fear.

Man's ways, brilliant as they may seem, always ultimately reveal his vulnerability - his inability to attain the goal, his sin.

As the Bible plays out, there are two ways man may choose to deal with his vulnerability: one is to yield to the taskmaster of Satan enslaved to the constant toil of seeking new and better ways to preserve or improve his life, and the other is to yield to Jesus (God With Us) turning away from any hint of self-preservation in order to trust entirely in Him. Jesus said it like this:

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

Our only role in preserving or improving our own life is complete trust in, and subsequent obedience to God. The moment we take our eyes off Jesus, looking to ourself and our inventions born purely of human reason and logic, is the moment that shame and fear find their relentless authority over our lives trapping us as slaves to "self" - slaves to our own ways, slaves to our own reason and logic, and slaves to our own resulting man-made idols. This bondage costs man in every way: time, money, and ultimately, his very soul.

Father, as I begin this New Year, may I be found methodically shedding every layer of my own ways (the ways of man) so that my trust in You is pure and unadulterated. May the shame and fear that exist because of my disobedience (faithlessness) be addressed only by Jesus as I strive to live in humble repentance and faith in Him. May I truly seek first Your Kingdom and righteousness while You take care of the things I otherwise would try to remedy myself out of shame and fear. May I genuinely understand my vulnerability. May I genuinely understand there is nothing I can do to preserve or improve my life because that is entirely Your role... You alone are my God. So be it.

New Year's Resolution: Worship Only God

Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.” [Revelation 19.10]

What do you believe in?

Do you believe debt is a gift from God? How about insurance? Is it God's way to protect? And medicine, is it God's way (Way)? Is technology a blessing from God?

If, as alleged among Christians today, debt, insurance, medicine and technology are all extensions of God's goodness to mankind, why does man have to pay so dearly for them? No understanding of the word "gift" includes a requirement for payment!

Is it possible that debt, insurance, medicine and technology (man-made solutions) have all been misunderstood just as John misunderstood the angel addressing him in Revelation 19.10? Is not what we give our money to largely what we worship - what we trust? And, do not the words told John by the angel apply just as much to us; to worship only God? Are we not told to give a distinct, clear witness for Jesus?

If worshiping the angel, made by God, was wrong for John, how much more wrong is it for us to worship anything made by man? Again, large sums of money point straight to what we worship and trust - our idols - follow the money. Are not interest, premiums, prescriptions and gadgetries significant costs in our day? Do not the man-made industries of debt, insurance, medicine and technology make up much of our economy today?

How can we begin to give clear witness for Jesus if we are so preoccupied with the industries (economy) of man's way? How can we think Jesus was not directly addressing this situation when He said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]?

THINK! There are two significant mentions of idolatry just in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading:

“But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” [Revelation 21.8]

Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. [Revelation 21.27] 

How can idolatry be consistently mentioned in the book of Revelation (the end) and all through the Bible (from the beginning) and not be a significant problem now, in our time? The angel's words should ring loud and true in our ears every day in contestation of idolatry, "Worship only God! Give a clear witness of faith in Jesus Christ!"

FYI: The argument that God gave leaves for healing (what medicine today claims to be derived from) should be understood for what it is. Here are two scriptures, one from Revelation, and one from Ezekiel that both appear to be one and the same occurrence in the future:

Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. [Revelation 22.1-2]

Fruit trees of all kinds will grow along both sides of the river. The leaves of these trees will never turn brown and fall, and there will always be fruit on their branches. There will be a new crop every month, for they are watered by the river flowing from the Temple. The fruit will be for food and the leaves for healing.” [Ezekiel 47.12] 

Now, let's compare the abovementioned future references to "healing leaves" to earlier references to a "tree of life":

The LORD God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit. In the middle of the garden he placed the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. [Genesis 2.9] 

Then the LORD God said, “Look, the human beings have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!” So the LORD God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made. After sending them out, the LORD God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. [Genesis 3.22-24] 

"Leaves for healing" is a real thing. However, it is not for now. Fallen man was forbidden to continue to partake of the "leaves for healing" because of his sin problem. And, what was that sin problem? Idolatry - the idolatry of self - the idolatry of making decisions independent of God. All Satan had to do was say, "Has God really said...?" and the self-serving pride of man took it from there. Man 'made his own way' when he ate the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, and so God forbade him of partaking of the tree of life in that condition. The default "good" of the Garden of Eden became from that point forward something obtainable only by faith in God alone... "I am your Healer..., I am your Provider..., etc."

What we trust is what we worship. Trust is an act of worship. We not only worship debt, insurance, medicine and technology by trusting in them, but we do so at great expense. I am reminded of something else Ezekiel wrote relative to this "paying for" sin:

So you are the opposite of other prostitutes. You pay your lovers instead of their paying you! [Ezekiel 16.34]

I highly recommend a focused read of the entire context of Ezekiel 16 - it's all about idolatry - and, it's gross.

Are we giving a clear witness for Jesus, the Son of God, the Healer, the Miracle-worker, the Forgiver, ...the Savior? Or, is our witness of Him clouded, diluted, and confused by our trust in other things?

This is an excellent question to ask ourselves as we conclude a year of reading the Bible in anticipation of another year of learning more... another year of our faith becoming more focused on God alone because faith comes by hearing God's Word.

Father, as I conclude the year 2025 with this article, I realize that You, being a jealous God, are unwilling to share my faith with other things. I realize how the sin of idolatry that began in the Garden of Eden (Adam & Eve trusting their own judgement) has exponentially grown from then until now. I realize that it will always be a problem on earth as it paces man's every advancement, becoming more entwined in the fabric of society with each passing day. I furthermore realize that a "break" from idolatry in this present condition will be more divisive, more ostracized, and more persecuted than at any time in history. If Jesus' words to the rich young man caused him to go away sad in his day, how much more will people go away sad today as they consider His words: If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. May we have eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to understand - and may our faith be singularly and distinctively in You and You alone. So be it.

Turn To God (Away From Idols)

...and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. [Revelation 16.11] 

This verse stood out to me today from Revelation 16. I realized a timeless value in what it says; all by itself, it reveals a universal problem among people.

When things go terribly wrong (as is described in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading), people blame God. I cannot say their blame is misplaced, but their cursing of God is. The root of this problem is idolatry; they would not repent (turn away from idols) and turn to God.

But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood—idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk! [Revelation 9:20]

Everyone was burned by this blast of heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over all these plagues. They did not repent of their sins and turn to God and give him glory. [Revelation 16:9]

...and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. [Revelation 16:11]

Turning to God is what the 1st Commandment is all about:

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3] 

Turning away from God is idolatry and what the 2nd Commandment is all about:

“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. [Exodus 20.4-6] 

Cursing God for troubles and not repenting and turning to Him, but instead unrepentantly turning to man-made idols for solutions (thus attributing god-status to them or God-association with them) is a violation of the 3rd Commandment:

“You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.7] 

Every curse described in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is designed, by its manifest pain and suffering, to alert and cause man to turn to God. To turn to God, one must necessarily turn away from idols (including "self").

For all the difficult to understand events and circumstances described in the book of Revelation, this one fact stands out: God desires that man repent and turn to Him (turning away from idols). As long as man remains in unrepentant denial about his idolatry, he will naturally remain dazed and confused about the book of Revelation. 

Pain and suffering, in the times detailed in Revelation, as well as in our time now, call us to one and the same response: repent of sin (idolatry) and turn to God. 

The solution of repentance and turning to God at the onset of pain and suffering is too simple for religious people and preposterous to the ungodly as, in common pride, both refuse to repent and turn to God. Neither the religious nor the ungodly are willing to turn away from their idols, their man-made products and services promising relief from pain and suffering, requiring payment but not repentance, and turn only to God (Exodus 20.3).

For the record, turning to God means turning to God ALONE (away from every idol).

Why is it absolutely necessary to turn away from every idol? Because idols, by their very nature, invoke lifelessness:

Their idols are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, and noses but cannot smell. They have hands but cannot feel, and feet but cannot walk, and throats but cannot make a sound. And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. [Psalm 115.4-8]

The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have  mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, and mouths but cannot breathe. And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. [Psalm 135.15-18] 

Jesus said: 

For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes— so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’ [Matthew 13.15]

Father, may Your people grasp the necessity of humble repentance (actively turning away from idols) and turning to You - as a lifestyle. As we hear Your Word spoken in truth, may we turn from the blindness and deafness of idolatry so that we might understand and be healed (delivered from our pain and suffering). So be it.

Are God's People Paying Attention?

Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. [Revelation 13.9] 

Wow. Just wow.

The reason the book of Revelation has been so illusive in its meaning is simple: God's Word has been ignored. Hence, there will be no understanding of the book of Revelation until God's people have begun to listen to and understand all of God's Word.

The key to understanding Revelation is found in the phrase, "ears to hear." This phrase is 'idol-speak' as the Bible goes - it is used exclusively to alert God's people that idolatry is afoot. The prophet Isaiah revealed this fact, establishing that idolatry was the problem, and then, establishing "ears to hear" in its role in the problem of idolatry.

Here is where Isaiah identifies idolatry as the problem:

Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the LORD! For the LORD has rejected his people, the descendants of Jacob, because they have filled their land with practices from the East and with sorcerers, as the Philistines do. They have made alliances with pagans. Israel is full of silver and gold; there is no end to its treasures. Their land is full of warhorses; there is no end to its chariots. Their land is full of idols; the people worship things they have made with their own hands. [Isaiah 2.5-8]

And, here is where Isaiah reveals where the inability to hear is resultant to the problem (idolatry): 

Harden the hearts of these people. Plug their ears and shut their eyes. That way, they will not see with their eyes, nor hear with their ears, nor understand with their hearts and turn to me for healing.” [Isaiah 6.10]

Not to be overshadowed in Isaiah's association between idolatry and ears that do not hear is the fact that deafness is clearly associated with idolatry in the Psalms:

Their idols are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, and noses but cannot smell. They have hands but cannot feel, and feet but cannot walk, and throats but cannot make a sound. And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. [Psalm 115.4-8]

The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have  mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, and mouths but cannot breathe. And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. [Psalm 135.15-18] 

So, when we read ears to hear in the book of Revelation, we should understand that we are being alerted to idolatry. And, the very statement that precedes our subject passage form Revelation about ears to hear above is this:

And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made. [Revelation 13.8]

Worshiping the beast is NOT worshiping God! Worshiping the beast is idolatry. Therefore, John the Revelator follows up with idol-speak:

Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. [Revelation 13.9] 

Now, it is incumbent upon God's people who recognize (understand) this truth, to identify the digression of humanity into the gross idolatry described in Revelation.

Idolatry is most often associated with the world and its ways. We should understand that the world has seven continents... Now, stay with me here as this takes a minute to see. 

There is a dragon described in Revelation 12:

Then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. [Revelation 12.3]

This dragon is eventually identified in Revelation 12 as Satan. Satan is worldly. Satan has seven heads and the world has seven continents. The description of Satan in Revelation 12 is a description of him in heaven before he was cast to earth. And this description identifies Satan's seven heads with ten horns with seven crowns on his heads. What follows then describes Satan's fury upon earth against the woman (mankind) and God's Son (born of that woman).

THEN, Revelation 13 mentions another creature: a beast. This beast has also seven heads with ten horns, but instead of seven crowns on its seven heads, there are now ten crowns on the ten horns. Think "succession."

Then I saw a beast rising up out of the sea. It had seven heads and ten horns, with ten crowns on its horns. And written on each head were names that blasphemed God. [Revelation 13.1]

The seven heads and ten horns should cause us to understand that this beast is a later manifestation of the dragon, Satan. However, at his revelation as "the beast" he now has ten crowns that have moved to the ten horns. But, when is now in Revelation 13? Is it "now" as in currently, or is it "now" in the point of history Revelation is describing? Please stay with me...

In a matter of "succession" what does it mean that the seven crowns on the seven-headed, ten-horned dragon's seven heads are now ten crowns on the seven-headed, ten-horned beast's ten horns? The crowns progressed from the heads to the horns, and now (Revelation 13), the crown count has increased to ten to match the ten horns.

It was pointed out that seven heads are the seven continents indicating the worldliness of Satan. Crowns represent power. The progression of the seven crowns from the dragon to the ten horns of the beast indicates an increase in the number of crowns (powers). Again, this should be understood as now for the time Revelation 13 is describing but may still be in the future for us at this time. Perhaps the crowns (powers) are not ten yet in our time... But they are increasing in number, and, when they reach ten, THEN the rest of Revelation transpires.

Ten crowns (powers), in modern understanding of power should be considered as individual nations found randomly across seven continents. Power, in modern terminology, is measured in military terms. The pinnacle of military power is nuclear capacity (nuclear warheads stockpiled). There are currently nine nuclear-capable nations in the world, but Iran is desperately trying to become the tenth!

Are God's people paying attention?

Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. [Revelation 13.9]

If God's people today do not understand idolatry's role in their day, how will they ever understand what the book of Revelation describes for end times? The only way to understand idolatry's perpetual digression as described cover to cover in the Bible is to hail Jesus (the Living Word of God) as Lord ALONE:

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

To follow Jesus, we must actively give up our own way - the ways of the world (the seven continents), take up our cross (willing to die in open defiance to the ways of the world - its solutions apart from God), that we might then, and only then, effectively and singularly follow Jesus ALONE! Only when Jesus is "everything we hear" are our eyes opened to see the gross idolatry all around us. Only when Jesus is everything to the Church will she be prepared to knowledgeably and confidently face the events of Revelation.

I apologize for the length of this article, but not for its content! God's people simply must understand that turning to anything of the world is turning away from God. The Church must identify and reject the idols of today in preparation to identify and reject (not worship) the beast as described in Revelation 13!

Father, help Your people to understand that as long as Revelation remains a mystery for the future, it is certainly an indictment of idolatry for today - an indictment of not listening to Your Word (all of it) and therefore not seeing the idols that progressively abound. May Your people give Your Word (Jesus) all priority, giving up their own ways, taking up their cross, and following Him! So be it.

It Is Still The Problem

But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood—idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk! And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality or their thefts. [Revelation 9.20-21]

On this day in 2024, I wrote the article Idolatry - Still A Problem. I encourage readers to give that article great attention and so, I will refrain here from long discourse to that same end.

However, there is one point I wish to highlight regarding this passage in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading: it should be understood that it is idolatry that warrants the terrors unleashed upon the earth described in the book of Revelation! 

Just because we don't see people bowing down to images of trinkets and primitive dolls does not mean idolatry has gone away in our day. As mankind has advanced, so have his idols. What were once the aforementioned primitive images have evolved into highly advanced systems of man's design. They still remain "the works of man's hands and ingenuity" and thereby, remain idols. Debt, insurance, medicine and technology should be the first place we suspect we have turned away from God. Again, read Idolatry - Still A Problem.

What began in Genesis 3 is the reason for the terrors described in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading. It is still the problem.

Father, help us today to realize that idolatry has not gone away, but has instead become even more intricately woven into the fabric of our society, making itself "necessary" to everyday life. Forgive us for willful blindness to this fact. May we find the strength to repent of this evil and turn to You. So be it.

Listen To The Spirit - And Understand

“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.” [Revelation 3.22]

What is said to "the churches" in Revelation 3.22 (as well as in Revelation 2.7, 2.11, 2.17, 2.29, 3.6, and 3.13) is said timelessly to the Church. The Church simply must listen to the Spirit and understand what He is saying to it. This demand is not optional.

It would seem that the individual descriptions of each of the seven churches of Revelation chapters 2 and 3, speak corporately of the conditions found in the Church at large. After all, the Church is one body and, if we are careful in our understanding of this fact, must conclude that corporately the Church possesses not only the strengths defined for each of the seven churches, but is also corporately infested with the defined weaknesses as well.

Throughout the context of the seven messages to the seven churches, we find wording alluding to idolatry if not openly mentioning it. Any mention of "turning back to" or "repenting" are specific "idol-speak"; one cannot turn to God except that he first turn away from idols - anything a person has turned away from God and therefore to, is an idol. Sexual sins and food offered to idols are both tied directly to idolatry and its practices.

Likewise, the LORD upholds His sovereign position every time He says, "I know..." which, by the way, He said to each of the seven churches signifying His "knowing all." Idols only know what they know (if anything) and it is usually specific and limited (god of war, god of sex, god of fertility, god of harvest, sun-god, moon-god, etc...).

It is also worth repeating that anyone with ears to hear is also idol-speak as elaborated in Ears To Hear.

The point is, to hear and understand what God is saying to the Church (the churches), one will see that idolatry will be heavily involved in the conversation. No amount of spiritualizing the text will remove this Biblical reality. 

In the beginning of His earthly ministry, Jesus specifically used repentance and turning to God as principal requirements:

From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” [Matthew 4.17]

And, it is only natural that Jesus, God Incarnate, would do so...! 

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. “You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God. The LORD will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. [Exodus 20.2-7]

If we are to EVER listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches, it will be to understand that the sin of idolatry, beginning with idolatry to "self" ("Has God really said...?") and growing from there, is what separates man from God. Every form and version of sin can be traced back to idolatry - ultimately the idol of "self."

Having established what is said to this point, it is critical to see it further demonstrated as the "scene changes" in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading from Revelation chapter 3 to Revelation chapter 4. The scene shifts from the Church on earth to the audience in Heaven. What is taking place in heaven? Profound (unadulterated, un-idolatrous) worship of GOD ALONE:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty—the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.” [Revelation 4.8]

The record of this transition in the book of Revelation is no mistake! The opposite of adulterous idolatry as found in the Church is singular and profound worship of God alone in Heaven. As the seven letters to the seven churches reveal, no hold to idolatry in the Church is acceptable on earth because it does not exist in heaven.

We must train our ears to hear this message! But, we will not understand if we remain in gross ignorance of the Bible. Gross ignorance of the Bible is gross ignorance of God's 1st Commandment and consequently gross ignorance of the sinful idolatry decried therein (from beginning to end). Gross ignorance of the Bible is also gross ignorance of Jesus and His consistent demand (as "God with Us") for singular obedience:

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.” [Revelation 3.22] 

Father, Your Word is so amazing! May we truly become students of Your Word - of Jesus - and find strength to turn away from our idols and turn to You. May our eyes be opened to the idols of our day - idols that must be turned away from - idols at the root of the gross sins we see all around us, so that we behold only Jesus as the fulfillment of Your every promise! So be it.