Some thoughts about Deut 13
Have you ever been invited by someone to worship another god (could write another post on gods-du-jour in our contemporary cultures)? You might have to think hard on this one. The question might sound like a trick, but really it's not. Has another believer ever tried to entice you to do something that would put that "something" ahead of God (upper-case G this time) on your priority list for life? Was it a relative...a friend...a minister?
I was reading Deut. 13 this morning and thinking about this question. I was also thinking about whether or not I've ever taught or preached something that didn't reflect the character of God fully. I pray that I haven't as it would be devastating to me to know that I'd led someone astray.
Wouldn't that be something if we were still called to practice the laws that God gave us in Deut. 13 regarding people who lead others to worship other gods? Action was to be swift and resolute: stoning to death. It didn't matter if that person was a relative or a stranger. It also didn't matter if an entire village was responsible for leading others astray. In the case the difference was that the entire village (including livestock and "plunder") was to be destroyed completely.
As we live in a time that focuses almost exclusively on God's grace we don't think about issues like this with much severity in mind. Why wouldn't God still hate it when one of His children is led down the wrong path by some "false prophet or dreamer"? Surely He does.
So, maybe the question needs to be turned around now. Have you ever invited someone to worship another god? Have you ever invited someone else to re-arrange their priorities in life so that God was not in that vital first position?
God is so serious about our devotion to Him. It is to be pure and unpolluted by other devotions...to Him alone. Anything else is plain unacceptable. He is also serious about how we have influence on others' devotion to Him. And while we no longer live under the "yoke" of the Law, it is good for us to examine ourselves in the light of these truths.
I was reading Deut. 13 this morning and thinking about this question. I was also thinking about whether or not I've ever taught or preached something that didn't reflect the character of God fully. I pray that I haven't as it would be devastating to me to know that I'd led someone astray.
Wouldn't that be something if we were still called to practice the laws that God gave us in Deut. 13 regarding people who lead others to worship other gods? Action was to be swift and resolute: stoning to death. It didn't matter if that person was a relative or a stranger. It also didn't matter if an entire village was responsible for leading others astray. In the case the difference was that the entire village (including livestock and "plunder") was to be destroyed completely.
As we live in a time that focuses almost exclusively on God's grace we don't think about issues like this with much severity in mind. Why wouldn't God still hate it when one of His children is led down the wrong path by some "false prophet or dreamer"? Surely He does.
So, maybe the question needs to be turned around now. Have you ever invited someone to worship another god? Have you ever invited someone else to re-arrange their priorities in life so that God was not in that vital first position?
God is so serious about our devotion to Him. It is to be pure and unpolluted by other devotions...to Him alone. Anything else is plain unacceptable. He is also serious about how we have influence on others' devotion to Him. And while we no longer live under the "yoke" of the Law, it is good for us to examine ourselves in the light of these truths.
posted by Michael Shattuck at
12:25 AM
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