What Is Our Life?

These instructions are not empty words—they are your life! By obeying them you will enjoy a long life in the land you will occupy when you cross the Jordan River.” [Deuteronomy 32.47] 

The verse above stands in stark disagreement with every person who discounts the words of the Old Testament as outdated or irrelevant in any way.

But wait! There's more!

Jesus said:

“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]

And, even more revealing are Jesus' words in John 14 (note above and below the word "life"):

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6] 

Everything about the Bible is Jesus and Jesus is everything about the Bible. Everything about Jesus is our life and everything about our life is...

Is it Jesus? Or, something else?

Jesus 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)]  

If everything about our life is NOT Jesus, it is still about something... What IS it? How do we identify it?

Not ironically, in the context of today's One Year Chronological Bible reading, we find a clue:

Where now are those gods, who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their offerings? Let those gods arise and help you! Let them provide you with shelter! [Deuteronomy 32.38]

Follow where the fruit of our labor flows to. Basically, just follow the money. The fat of their sacrifices is the result of their labor raising flocks and herds. So it is with the wine of their offerings - it represents all the work of maintaining a vineyard and the culmination of all that work: wine. In today's society, the fat and the wine are both accounted for in money. 

So, where is our life? It is where our money goes. Have we given up our own way, taken up our cross and followed Jesus? Don't worry, you don't have to answer - your money already has!

Every dime we spend on debt, insurance, medicine and technology is money spent on gods designed to "help" us. The problem with this is that everything debt, insurance, medicine and technology "provide" is provision God jealously intends for us to look ONLY to Him for (I cannot cite the entire Bible here, but you get the point).

The Bible is Jesus. Jesus is our life. Neither the Bible nor Jesus are "empty words." Everything little "g" gods, debt, insurance, medicine and technology offer their "help" on (BTW: in exchange for our money) are the things big "G" God, Jesus said to walk away from in order to follow Him in miraculous provision. 

If we wish to defend debt, insurance, medicine and technology, God will let us. In fact, He says, "Let those gods arise and help you! Let them provide you with shelter!" But how can those things ever bring true satisfaction if indeed Jesus (every Word of God) is our life?

The Bible is NOT just empty words! Religion is satisfied for the Bible to be empty words, but it is not so with Jesus.

The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. [John 6.63]

Is it not interesting that Jesus said "human effort accomplishes nothing"? All our money (the fruit of all our effort) means nothing to Him.  Again, there is only one thing that matters to Jesus:

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)]  

What IS our life? Our money tells the story clearly.

Father, forgive me for "interpreting" the Bible to suit my idolatry. Yes, I said it... May I be found giving up my way, taking up my cross, and following Jesus. So be it.

Old And New Covenant - Old And New Idolatry

At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods. [Deuteronomy 31.18] 

When God hides His face, bad things happen.

Bad things don't happen to good people (no matter how many books have been written or sermons have been preached otherwise), the Bible simply does not teach such.

The only reason God hides His face and bad things happen is disobedience. Disobedience to God starts with violation of the 1st Commandment, digressing from there to consecutively break the 2nd and 3rd Commandments. In short, disobedience to God is idolatry.

The covenant discussed in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading is simply this: obey God and prosper; disobey God and suffer curses. In modern times, we like to call this the "Old Covenant," or the "Old Testament."

Somehow, people came to believe that Jesus deleted the Old Covenant, but that is just not true. Jesus came to fulfill the Old Covenant. The "Covenant" has always been Jesus. What we call the "Old Covenant" indeed only foreshadows Jesus, but Jesus has always been the "light" of it nonetheless. The New Covenant is the same original Covenant, but the 2.0 version. The New Covenant does not foreshadow Jesus, but reveals Jesus.

The mistake most people make is to believe somehow that God's Covenant no longer requires obedience. Parallel to that erroneous thinking, people think blessings and curses (more so curses than blessings) are random occurrences. In fact, religious people have so confused God's Covenant that these very people who are supposed to represent God's Church represent nothing of God at all, but instead represent a divided and fragmented segment of society that is void of God's power but still claims to have it in unrecognizable and abstract ways.

God's Covenant in Jesus Christ however, gives laser-accuracy to what obedience to God looks like:

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)] 

The Old Covenant was not so focused, but rather, revolved around seemingly endless rules and regulations that could, at best, only foreshadow Christ.

Jesus' demand above is simply the "2.0" version of the "1.0" 1st Commandment. Nothing about the subsequent Commandments however changed, and that is where modern "believers" are confused. God-ward obedience (love) remains paramount to overcome idolatry, Jesus-ward (Sabbath) obedience (love) remains paramount to being holy, and man-ward obedience (love) remains paramount to the will of God on earth.

Relative to the opening passage above, nothing about that verse has changed in the New Covenant. God still hides His face on account of all the evil man commits by worshiping other gods (idols). If a person has not given up his way (the way of man - the way of idolatry), taken up his cross (the way of faith in Jesus), and followed Jesus, then God hides His face from them.

We can talk about "Old" and "New" all we want. Jesus is God in the flesh and He requires no less obedience to, and trust in, Him alone than ever before. Jesus paid the demanding price for our inability to save ourselves (sin) but none of that matters if we do not give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Him. Jesus IS the "New" Covenant, but a "covenant" of obedience and blessings nonetheless.

It might be understood better if we see the "Old" Covenant as man striving to obey God for blessings, and the "New" Covenant as man surrendering to obey Jesus for blessings. Repentance and faith are essential. 

Idolatry remains the work of the enemy to lure people away from Jesus (and therefore, God). The primary focus of idolatry today is the remediation of curses apart from essential repentance and faith in Christ alone. In other words, man's idols deny that curses have anything to do with sin, but instead attribute them to "just the way things are" and lull and lure people into their costly, and ultimate eternally damning, trap. Idolatry is the lifeblood of the industries of debt, insurance, medicine and technology. 

All the while, idolatry remains out of sight while God's people ignorantly argue about the adjectives "Old" or "New" giving nary a thought to the noun "Covenant" as it pertains to blessings and curses both temporal and eternal. If "Covenant" is minimized and confused in its defining blessings or curses, Satan has accomplished his goal and idolatry remains undetected. 

When God's people think of "Old" or "New" Covenant, they also need to remember that the antithesis is "Old" or "New" idolatry. As long as "Covenant" is important for God's people to focus on, "idolatry" remains the distractor. Idols distract God's people from the Covenant (whether Old Covenant or New Covenant) with its telltale blessings or curses. When idols remediate curses apart from repentance and faith, they take God's people's focus off their Covenant with God that is all about blessings or curses. If curses are not seen as indicators of violation of covenant terms, then there is no perceived need for repentance and faith - and Satan has accomplished his enduring goal, "Has God really said...?"

Old Covenant is about God's people's obedience to overwhelming rules and regulations so they might be blessed.

New Covenant is about God's people' obedience to Jesus so they might be blessed.

When blessings are replaced with curses, covenant has been broken because God has hidden His face on account of all the evil His people commit by worshiping other gods (idols). Those very idols offer remediation for curses to prevent God's people from turning to Him alone and following the rules, "Old Covenant," or following Jesus alone, "New Covenant," in repentance and faith.

The signs (curses) of broken covenant are all around us. But idols cover the signs.

Father, I know this article could be easily misunderstood, but the prevailing role of idolatry to keep Your people out of "covenant" is undeniable. Help us to understand that our covenant with You distinguishes us from all others. Help us to grasp the fact that if we are not distinguished as Yours, then we are in fact not Yours and are hopelessly lost in the blindness and deafness of idolatry. May we be found in the New Covenant of giving up our own way (repenting for the ways of idolatry), taking up our cross (believing only in Jesus), and following Jesus in every single thing we do. So be it.

A Covenant Moment

These are the terms of the covenant the LORD commanded Moses to make with the Israelites while they were in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Mount Sinai. [Deuteronomy 29.1]

What does "covenant" mean? Can we answer that question from the Word without relying on libraries of extra-Biblical literature and ideology? Let's try, shall we?

Aa far as I can tell, the first use of the word "covenant" is in Genesis:

But I will confirm my covenant with you. So enter the boat—you and your wife and your sons and their wives. [Genesis 6.18]

Although Genesis 6.18 was the first instance of the use of the word, it certainly was not the last. In the New Living Translation, the word "covenant" is used 328 times (including non-manuscript headings). Of these 328 uses, 293 are in the Old Testament while the remaining 35 are in the New Testament. 

Notice the first use of "covenant" in Genesis 6.18 does not indicate any form of negotiated agreement as we tend to think of a "covenant." Instead, God just told Noah and his family to get in the ark. Then, the next use of "covenant" comes after the flood:

Then God told Noah and his sons, “I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, and with all the animals that were on the boat with you—the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals—every living creature on earth. Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth.” [Genesis 9.8-11]

Again, the use of "covenant" here does not indicate any form of negotiated agreement between Noah and God.

The next use of "covenant" has to do with Abram in Genesis 15.

After the sun went down and darkness fell, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. So the LORD made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River— the land now occupied by the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,  Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.” [Genesis 15.17-21] 

Once again, there was no negotiated agreement between Abram and God. It was just a statement of promise from God just like it was with Noah.

It was not until Genesis 17 that "covenant" actually implied a direct human response to God's promise:

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.” [Genesis 17.1-2]

What follows in Genesis 17 are God's "covenant" conditions including the obedience of circumcision. From there, "covenant" is seen in agreements between men (man to man) and further covenants between man and God (all of which involved man's compliance/obedience).

It should be understood that all the initial occurrences of "covenant" involved God making promises and man complying in terms of obedience. "Covenant" seems to indicate what God promises to those who obey. It is, indeed, an agreement.

As seen in Deuteronomy 29.1 above, the Old Testament seems to be a progressive compilation of "covenants" between God and man. Man's initial consumption of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil insured this would be necessary as with increased knowledge, increased definition of boundaries is necessary. In fact, as man's knowledge blossomed in good and evil, so God's additional "covenants" kept pace. No one will dispute that the Old Testament became an overwhelming manual of rules.

However, if we "back out" all the increased knowledge of good and evil and go back to the first use of the word "covenant," we don't find a negotiation, but simply a promise: get in the boat. Although this is not the first Biblical foreshadowing of Jesus, it is certainly an early one. Just as God foreshadowed Jesus in the Garden of Eden, so He again foreshadowed Jesus in the ark. All of God's blessings can be summed up in Jesus Christ. Jesus was no afterthought to God, but instead, the plan all along. Jesus was the God's "covenant" plan before Creation.

Obedience is what distinguishes man from nature. Nature, simply left to itself, does what it was designed to do. But God did not desire relationship with robots, so, He injected freewill into man. It was a risky move, but the only way to have true fellowship with a being truly "made in His image."

Every "covenant" between God and man foreshadows, or is, Jesus. And, for all the "rules" that evolved from God's first covenant promise to Noah - the rules that eventually became perceived as overwhelming and overbearing, Jesus would then be the climax "covenant" embodying all others. And, here is what Jesus 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)]  

Jesus is every covenant promise of the Old Testament. Jesus is healing. Jesus is provision. Jesus is peace. Jesus is protection. Jesus is life. Every promise of the Bible is fulfilled in Jesus Who didn't give a plethora of rules and regulations to sort out... Instead, Jesus demanded total obedience - giving up every man-way to take up every God-way, in following Him.

While modern Christianity presents the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus in simplicity compared to the overwhelming Old Testament rules and regulations, it often fails to point out that following Christ is not about obeying certain ways of doing things, but is about giving up altogether on man's way of doing things so that God's way of doing things - faith - even to the point of earthly death - might distinguish us as Christ's.

Just as all God's Old Testament covenants initially revolved around man's devotion and ultimately required man's obedience, following Jesus Christ involves ultimate obedience, surpassing all previous covenants, dying altogether to oneself. This is God's 'progression of covenant.' He fulfilled it Himself! God effectively made it so difficult that only He Himself could meet the demands of His requirements. Thus, all man can do is surrender... giving up his own way, taking up his cross, and following Jesus. Man's only way to please God then, is faith in Jesus.

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [John 14.6]

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. [Hebrews 11.6] 

I apologize if this all seems scattered. The one thing that should stand out is that we are nothing apart from Christ Jesus. All our religion means nothing unless we realize that we have nothing apart from Jesus. The only covenant we are capable of keeping with God is Jesus. The only covenant blessing we are entitled to is Jesus. And, that "entitlement" is only afforded through our obedience of humble selfless faith.

Father, I can only repent today for my insistence upon self-sufficiency. I surrender to You - to Jesus. All my ways are wrong and only Jesus' ways are right. May the world not see me, but see Jesus in me. May "Jesus in me" be seen as what the Bible reveals of Jesus and not what the worldly Church depicts. I am having a "covenant moment" today - and I welcome it... So be it.

Are We God's ALONE?

“You must put four tassels on the hem of the cloak with which you cover yourself—on the front, back, and sides. [Deuteronomy 22.12]

Although I have speculated on this passage before (Four Tassels?), today I realize there is actually a very good explanation for this distinction and it is found in Numbers:

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: Throughout the generations to come you must make tassels for the hems of your clothing and attach them with a blue cord. When you see the tassels, you will remember and obey all the commands of the LORD instead of following your own desires and defiling yourselves, as you are prone to do. The tassels will help you remember that you must obey all my commands and be holy to your God. I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt that I might be your God. I am the LORD your God!” [Numbers 15.37-41]

Although I am sure there is some deep revelation as to why there are "four" tassels, the significance is seen simply in their existence. The four tassels distinguish the person wearing them as a worshiper of God alone. 

Why do I emphasize God "alone" in the paragraph above? I do so because of the last part of Numbers 15.37-41:

I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt that I might be your God. I am the LORD your God!” [Numbers 15.37-41]

God and "the land of Egypt" have quite the documented history. The fact that God brought His people "out of the land of Egypt" makes a clear distinction of God in His omniscience. And, it is here we should understand that this distinction has everything to do with the prevention of idolatry. Consider this:

When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. “Come on,” they said, “make us some gods who can lead us. We don’t know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt.” So Aaron said, “Take the gold rings from the ears of your wives and sons and daughters, and bring them to me.” All the people took the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron. Then Aaron took the gold, melted it down, and molded it into the shape of a calf. When the people saw it, they exclaimed, “O Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!” Aaron saw how excited the people were, so he built an altar in front of the calf. Then he announced, “Tomorrow will be a festival to the LORD!” The people got up early the next morning to sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings. After this, they celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry. [Exodus 32.1-6]

From the time God distinguished Himself as the "God who delivered His people out of Egypt," the title was established that idols have competed for ever since. The occasion of Exodus 32.1-6 contains the defining characteristics of idols:

• They are the result of impatience (the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain)
• They are man-made (make us some gods)
• They are costly (the people took the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron)
• They claim glory that is not theirs (O Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of the land of Egypt!)
• They induce guilt that needs to include God (Tomorrow will be a festival to the LORD!)
• They lead to pagan revelry (they indulged in pagan revelry)

But this article is not about idols. It is about tassels. The tassels are an intentional and distinct reminder to God's people that they are His alone and therefore tassels cannot be discussed without discussing idolatry.

Tassels also serve as an intentional witness to all others that the person wearing them is distinctly God's alone. This also means, "no idols."

The question looms over us then: "Are there any distinct indicators in our lives that we are God's alone?" Or, do we look and act (are we 'slaves to Egypt') just like everyone else?

Jesus was no less demanding for distinction that we are His (God's):

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)]  

Father, I feel pretty good not having mentioned debt, insurance, medicine and technology as the four major idol groups of our day... That said, help us to see that idolatry is not that hard to recognize if we indeed know the symptoms for what idols are. Open our eyes to the reality of idols born of our ways of impatience, man-made solutions, where our money goes, the glory we give, the need (guilt) we feel to justify our solutions, and the general pagan revelry surrounding man-made solutions. Help us to make a distinction in our lives so that our ways - or the ways we give up - serve as tassels to say that we are Yours alone. So be it.

Idolatry Is The Way Of Man Without God

“But these instructions apply only to distant towns, not to the towns of the nations in the land you will enter. In those towns that the LORD your God is giving you as a special possession, destroy every living thing. You must completely destroy the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, just as the LORD your God has commanded you. This will prevent the people of the land from teaching you to imitate their detestable customs in the worship of their gods, which would cause you to sin deeply against the LORD your God. [Deuteronomy 20.15-18] 

We should understand that the Promised Land (Canaan) had its own thing going on with God entirely unrelated to Israel.

“Listen, O Israel! Today you are about to cross the Jordan River to take over the land belonging to nations much greater and more powerful than you. They live in cities with walls that reach to the sky! The people are strong and tall—descendants of the famous Anakite giants. You’ve heard the saying, ‘Who can stand up to the Anakites?’ But recognize today that the LORD your God is the one who will cross over ahead of you like a devouring fire to destroy them. He will subdue them so that you will quickly conquer them and drive them out, just as the LORD has promised. “After the LORD your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The LORD has given us this land because we are such good people!’ No, it is because of the wickedness of the other nations that he is pushing them out of your way. It is not because you are so good or have such integrity that you are about to occupy their land. The LORD your God will drive these nations out ahead of you only because of their wickedness, and to fulfill the oath he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. You must recognize that the LORD your God is not giving you this good land because you are good, for you are not—you are a stubborn people. [Deuteronomy 9.1-6]

The detestable "wickedness" of the people of the Promised Land that aroused God's anger against them started and ended with idolatry. Just the context of Deuteronomy alone (up to this date in the One Year Chronological Bible readings) declares the problem of idolatry over and over (I apologize for the length, but the numerous references below prove the point).

“You saw for yourself what the LORD did to you at Baal-peor. There the LORD your God destroyed everyone who had worshiped Baal, the god of Peor. But all of you who were faithful to the LORD your God are still alive today—every one of you. [Deuteronomy 4.3-4]

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. [Deuteronomy 4.23] 

“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 4.25] 

“So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The LORD is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other. [Deuteronomy 4.39] 

So Moses told the people, “You must be careful to obey all the commands of the LORD your God, following his instructions in every detail. Stay on the path that the LORD your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives in the land you are about to enter and occupy. [Deuteronomy 5.32-33]  

“You must not worship any of the gods of neighboring nations, for the LORD your God, who lives among you, is a jealous God. His anger will flare up against you, and he will wipe you from the face of the earth. [Deuteronomy 6.14-15]

“When the LORD your God brings you into the land you are about to enter and occupy, he will clear away many nations ahead of you: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. These seven nations are greater and more numerous than you. When the LORD your God hands these nations over to you and you conquer them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaties with them and show them no mercy. You must not intermarry with them. Do not let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters, for they will lead your children away from me to worship other gods. Then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and he will quickly destroy you. This is what you must do. You must break down their pagan altars and shatter their sacred pillars. Cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols. For you are a holy people, who belong to the LORD your God. Of all the people on earth, the LORD your God has chosen you to be his own special treasure. [Deuteronomy 7.1-6] 

“You must destroy all the nations the LORD your God hands over to you. Show them no mercy, and do not worship their gods, or they will trap you. [Deuteronomy 7.16] 

“You must burn their idols in fire, and you must not covet the silver or gold that covers them. You must not take it or it will become a trap to you, for it is detestable to the LORD your God. Do not bring any detestable objects into your home, for then you will be destroyed, just like them. You must utterly detest such things, for they are set apart for destruction. [Deuteronomy 7.25-26] 

“But I assure you of this: If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods, worshiping and bowing down to them, you will certainly be destroyed. Just as the LORD has destroyed other nations in your path, you also will be destroyed if you refuse to obey the LORD your God. [Deuteronomy 8.19-20] 

Then the LORD said to me, ‘Get up! Go down immediately, for the people you brought out of Egypt have corrupted themselves. How quickly they have turned away from the way I commanded them to live! They have melted gold and made an idol for themselves!’ [Deuteronomy 9.12] 

“But be careful. Don’t let your heart be deceived so that you turn away from the LORD and serve and worship other gods. [Deuteronomy 11.16] 

But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the LORD your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before. [Deuteronomy 11.28] 

“When you drive out the nations that live there, you must destroy all the places where they worship their gods—high on the mountains, up on the hills, and under every green tree. Break down their altars and smash their sacred pillars. Burn their Asherah poles and cut down their carved idols. Completely erase the names of their gods! “Do not worship the LORD your God in the way these pagan peoples worship their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.2-4] 

“When the LORD your God goes ahead of you and destroys the nations and you drive them out and live in their land, do not fall into the trap of following their customs and worshiping their gods. Do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations worship their gods? I want to follow their example.’ You must not worship the LORD your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.29-31] 

Serve only the LORD your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him. The false prophets or visionaries who try to lead you astray must be put to death, for they encourage rebellion against the LORD your God, who redeemed you from slavery and brought you out of the land of Egypt. Since they try to lead you astray from the way the LORD your God commanded you to live, you must put them to death. In this way you will purge the evil from among you. [Deuteronomy 13.4-5] 

“When you begin living in the towns the LORD your God is giving you, you may hear that scoundrels among you are leading their fellow citizens astray by saying, ‘Let us go worship other gods’—gods you have not known before. In such cases, you must examine the facts carefully. If you find that the report is true and such a detestable act has been committed among you, you must attack that town and completely destroy all its inhabitants, as well as all the livestock. Then you must pile all the plunder in the middle of the open square and burn it. Burn the entire town as a burnt offering to the LORD your God. That town must remain a ruin forever; it may never be rebuilt. Keep none of the plunder that has been set apart for destruction. Then the LORD will turn from his fierce anger and be merciful to you. He will have compassion on you and make you a large nation, just as he swore to your ancestors. [Deuteronomy 13.12-17] 

“When you begin living in the towns the LORD your God is giving you, a man or woman among you might do evil in the sight of the LORD your God and violate the covenant. For instance, they might serve other gods or worship the sun, the moon, or any of the stars—the forces of heaven—which I have strictly forbidden. When you hear about it, investigate the matter thoroughly. If it is true that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, then the man or woman who has committed such an evil act must be taken to the gates of the town and stoned to death. [Deuteronomy 17.2-5] 

“When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD. It is because the other nations have done these detestable things that the LORD your God will drive them out ahead of you. But you must be blameless before the LORD your God. The nations you are about to displace consult sorcerers and fortune-tellers, but the LORD your God forbids you to do such things.” [Deuteronomy 18.9-14] 

But any prophet who falsely claims to speak in my name or who speaks in the name of another god must die.’ [Deuteronomy 18.20] 

This then brings us up to the opening subject passage above (Deuteronomy 20.15-18). God knows that idolatry breeds idolatry! In fact, idolatry infectiously blinds those who refuse to turn from the idolatry that they first see, effectively blinding themselves from seeing any further idolatry, and worse, from seeing God. 

Why let the nations say, “Where is their God?” Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes. 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 115.2-8] (see also Psalm 135.15-18)

God is one hundred percent intolerant of idolatry because, even just a little idolatry blinds people from seeing Him. God's jealousy is therefore well-founded for our protection! God is intolerant of idolatry for our own good!

And you must always obey the LORD’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good. [Deuteronomy 10.13]

And, herein is the difference between God's jealousy and the jealousy 1 Corinthians 13 speaks against (in case you are wondering): God's jealousy is for our own good where human jealousy is selfish. 

So, the back story of Israel acquiring the Promised Land is the story of God's disdain for Canaan's idolatry. God's destruction of the people of Canaan is not at all inconsistent with His warnings against idolatry. We then are faced with an object lesson of our own... Do we want to be like the hated blind idolaters of Canaan or like the loved recipients of the Promised Land beholding our God?

The New Testament totally supports all of this. Jesus spoke of "seeing..."

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]

Then when they were alone, he turned to the disciples and said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you have seen. [Luke 10.23] 

Idolatry is the way of man without God. A man without God is an idolater in all his ways. As Israel foreshadowed the Church, and the Promised Land foreshadowed God's Kingdom, so idolatry is everything today that prevents the Church from enjoying the benefits of the Kingdom. Again, idolatry is the way of man without (or in doubt of) God. And, for this reason, Jesus, in unmistakably intolerant language, 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)]  

"Your own way" is the way of man without God - idolatry. "Take up your cross" is the way of undivided, unshakable faith in God alone. Jesus' life demonstrated what this looks like and therefore we are commanded to "follow Him."

But, the idols must first go. We must first give up idolatry.

Father, You have been faithfully giving further insight into the reality of idolatry today among those who claim to be Your people (myself included). Our man-made idols prevent us from seeing You and prevent us from seeing the plethora of idols we serve in blind succession. May we come back to the fact that You are the God Who delivered us from our slavery and that You demand singular, undivided trust in You alone. May this our repentance be joined by our faith in Jesus ...giving up our own way (the way of man - the way of idolatry), taking up our cross (the way of undivided faith), and following Him. May our repentance and faith manifest in us seeing Jesus in ourselves - in our words and in our works. So be it.

Wolves In Sheep's Clothing (Today's Idols)

“Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles, and the predicted signs or miracles occur. If they then say, ‘Come, let us worship other gods’—gods you have not known before— do not listen to them. The LORD your God is testing you to see if you truly love him with all your heart and soul. Serve only the LORD your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him. The false prophets or visionaries who try to lead you astray must be put to death, for they encourage rebellion against the LORD your God, who redeemed you from slavery and brought you out of the land of Egypt. Since they try to lead you astray from the way the LORD your God commanded you to live, you must put them to death. In this way you will purge the evil from among you. [Deuteronomy 13.1-5] 

It doesn't require creative license to say that debt, insurance, medicine and technology all offer "signs" or "miracles" in the particular benefit they each provide. Neither does it require abstraction to see that debt, insurance, medicine and technology all promote their respective benefits also appealing to men and women in the ways John wrote about:

For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. [1 John 2.16]

It is not enough that debt, insurance, medicine and technology simply offer a utility benefit. Their promotions and advertisements, more often than not, go beyond utility benefit depicting additional benefits ranging from the right to self-fulfillment to the normalcy of unrestrained sexual pleasure.

First to consider is this: what debt, insurance, medicine and technology offer at a price, God offers for free. This should cause suspicion (and even alarm) among God's people, but the subtlety in which this trickery progressed "walked right through the door" of Christianity with most Christians even "holding the door" for it to enter.

Then, as if it is not "idolatry enough" to pay elsewhere for what God offers freely, it is what debt, insurance, medicine and technology offer additionally - bringing with them (ranging from the right to self-fulfillment to the normalcy of unrestrained sexual pleasure), that flies in the face of God proving they are actually wolves in sheep's clothing! These additional benefits are the covert goal of all idols: to lead people as far away from God as possible and to do so in the most glaringly defiant way possible.

God offers a zero-tolerance policy for this offence: death.

It is this "death sentence" that Jesus died for. However, we should not be fooled by "cheap and easy" grace. No person may enjoy Jesus' substitutionary work without obedience. Jesus was not unclear what that obedience looks like:

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)]  

What are debt, insurance, medicine and technology if they are not man's own way? And, as man's own way, they come at a price. The price paid for debt, insurance, medicine and technology is "sacrificially" paid in lieu of obeying God and freely receiving His benefits. The Bible is clear about the distinction between sacrifice and obedience:

But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams. [1 Samuel 15.22]

It is a false prophet, according to the subject passage above, who uses God-like signs or miracles to ultimately lead people away from God. Debt, insurance, medicine and technology fit that description.

Rather than simply disagreeing with me on this topic and putting it out of mind as ridiculous or fanatical, prove me wrong! Search the Scriptures for yourself to eliminate any uncertainty and confirm my error. Please, do me this favor - give me this relief!

Otherwise, pray this prayer with me:

Father in heaven, forgive us for our idolatry that has lured us into further idolatry. Help us as we intentionally give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Jesus. Prepare us to humbly face the ire of the world, but more importantly, prepare us for the ire of the carnal Church (revealing those who are wolves in sheep's' clothing). Prepare us for the reality of Jesus' words that say "only few" will find the Kingdom. Help us to understand that all this preparation can only be accomplished as we intentionally prioritize Your Word and it permeates our being. So be it.

God Demands Distinction In His People

“Do not worship the LORD your God in the way these pagan peoples worship their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.4] 

God demands distinction in His people.

You must not worship the LORD your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.31]

Let me just say that "relevant" is a term of idolatry. 

Jesus' demand says it all:

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)]  

God did all the 'blending in with man' that He is going to do when He gave His only Son. Now it is time for man to 'blend in with God' by following Jesus. 

Notice both of the Deuteronomy passages above are not specifically about worshiping other gods, but are about not worshiping God the same way.

Interestingly enough, the modern Church looks nothing like the early Church. The way we worship God today is the product of years and years of evolution - or should I say devolution? The way we worship God today has become much more about the convenience of man than the holiness of God. 

The Church has stooped to the level that it is not about Jesus and His Body together glorifying God in word and deed as much as it is about a one-man-show complete with an emotional opening act music sideshow. Consequently, the people walk out in the same condition they walked in except for perhaps they got emotional. They call this emotion a "move of the Spirit" even though it is strikingly similar to the "good vibes," "tears shed" and "hands raised" at an entirely secular music concert. The blind do not see. The deaf do not hear. The lame do not walk. The dead are not raised.

So low has the Church digressed that when an infirmed or sick person is encountered, the first question asked of that person is "what do the doctors say?" What the hell? Literally, what the worldly HELL? Doctors and medicine are the same way the world (going to hell) treats sickness and disease. In fact, the Church today resorts to all the same major solutions as the world (debt, insurance, medicine and technology) regarding blessings and curses instead of being distinguished as God's people.

“Look, today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse! You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today. But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the LORD your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before. [Deuteronomy 11.26-28]

 Just sit tight... it gets worse!

To worship God the same way the world worships their gods is to effectively worship those worldly gods instead of God!

About now it should make much more sense that Jesus would demand (not suggest) that a true follower must "give up his own way (the way of the world and its gods), take up his cross (the way of faith even in the face of death), and follow Jesus, Who makes the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame to walk, and the dead to live.

Yes, the paragraph above describes what "church" today should look like. Does our current church model reflect this? No. Is it redeemable? Not likely because the modern church model, at its foundation, is the way of man (an IRS compliant business) when it should be the way of God.

The details that define the True Church model should be the same as Jesus defined:

John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” [Matthew 11.2-5]

If the Church today is not built upon Jesus in His description of Himself, then there is only one solution in a two-part action: repent and believe. In fact, that is how Jesus ministered:

Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” [Mark 1.14-15]

The popular "faith movement" has proven that faith alone has only underwhelmingly come to this solution. There must be repentance - and lots of it. We will know we have repented enough when our faith makes us look and act like Jesus in all His ways. Without repentance, we areworshiping God the world's way - man's way - the same way pagans worship their gods - and we are just wasting God's time.

Father, the words written here are hard. We are on the road to hell and expecting to arrive at heaven. May we be found repentant because our faith does not have us looking like Jesus. May we be found repentant because our church does not have us looking like Jesus. May we be found repenting and believing in proper proportions! May we recognize that proper proportion when Your glory manifests all Your power among us. May we understand that we are tasked to give up our own way. May we understand that we are tasked to take up our cross. May we understand that we are tasked to follow Jesus. So be it.