PUT GOD FIRST

 

I cannot stress this point anymore than He already has. He will have no other gods before Him. Period. Whatever you define yourself with, whatever you let consume you, is your god. Even if what it is, is done in the name of God, it is wrong.

Your girlfriend, your boyfriend, your job, your money, your charity work, your friends, your status socially, how much attention you can get, how much appreciation you receive, sex, drugs, pornography, too much co-dependence on another individual for the needs only He is supposed to provide. All these things are commonly allowed to take the place in our heart where only God needs to be.

It can be so sneaky, but it is so very, very crucial that it is fixed as soon as possible. God Himself admits to being a jealous God, and will only put up with our antics and selfishness for so long before He allows something to happen to us that will bring us to our knees, and make us put Him back on the throne of our hearts.

It’s a Relationship.

        I believe that although Christianity is a 'religion' by all standard and common definitions of the word, it is often deemed as being nothing more than just that, a ritual, something passed down from parent to reluctant child, outdated, and banal in the more recent generations. Countless times I have heard the phrases and pejorative terms cacophonously muttered about my 'brothers and sisters' and have personally been called unrepeatable names and labeled as a "religion shoving (verb, adjective)," but truthfully, I understand why certain people believe this way. When history itself describes my faith as a zealous, somewhat insane practice, when so-called modern society lays upon all of us as a whole the stereotypes of a thousand exaggerations, when we ourselves often lack unity and conviction, when we falter and are subsequently called hypocrites, it would be seem exceedingly undermining. But their words cannot hurt me or change my beliefs because this isn't a religion. It's a Relationship.

He is our Sustenance

He raises the poor from the dust,

He lifts the needy from the ash heap

To make them sit with nobles,

And inherit a seat of honor;

For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’S,

And He set the world on them.

“He keeps the feet of His godly ones,

But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness;

For not by might shall a man prevail.

1st Samuel 2:8-9

 

But He (Jesus) answered and said,

It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

Matthew 4:4

 

As for God, His way is blameless;

The word of the LORD is tested;

         He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.

“For who is God, besides the LORD?

         And who is a rock, besides our God?

“God is my strong fortress;

         And He sets the blameless in His way.

“He makes my feet like hinds’ feet,

         And sets me on my high places.

“He trains my hands for battle,

         So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

“You have also given me the shield of Your salvation,

         And Your help makes me great.

“You enlarge my steps under me,

And my feet have not slipped.

I pursued my enemies and destroyed them,

         And I did not turn back until they were consumed.

“And I have devoured them and shattered them, so that they did not rise; And they fell under my feet.

“For You have girded me with strength for battle;

         You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.

“You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me,

1 Samuel 22:31-41.

 

“The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock;

         And exalted be God, the rock of my salvation,

The God who executes vengeance for me,

And brings down peoples under me,

Who also brings me out from my enemies;

         You even lift me above those who rise up against me;

         You rescue me from the violent man.

“Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the nations,

         And I will sing praises to Your name.

He is a tower of deliverance to His king,

         And shows lovingkindness to His anointed,

 1 Sam. 22:47-51

His Will. Our Choice.

Just because something is done in the Name of God - doesn't mean it is OF God.

 

The 2nd commandment was to not take God's name in vain. This pertains to our actions too. Doing something in "the name of God" when it isn't in His Will or acceptable by anyone's standards is, on top of everything else we could claim it as, breaking that God-mandated law.

 

It can be as simple as claiming a single selfish act as His Will, or as devastating  as attempting to destroy entire cultures “for His Benefit.” History has proved, time and time again, that we are capable of horrendous acts all for the sake of ‘Religion’. From ancient times, to the Crusades, to more modern acts such as Hitler’s Regime, internationally dispersed civil wars, and even the War on Terror.

 

But it is crucial that we realize these wars didn’t start out as a war. It started with one choice. The choice someone made to listen to their demons, give into their flesh, and from that fateful choice, spawned actions and reactions that would encompass generations.

 

So we cannot underestimate our choices, the things that we face right now, even as you read this. We have to be sensitive to our Spirit, and reject our human desires, that way we know that when we claim an action in His Will, it won’t lead to our undoing.

 

His aim is not to punish us, not to condemn or cause us pain, He wants us to listen to Him.

 

And the best way to do that is to constantly be SEEKING out His Voice, so we might KNOW His Will, and be WILLING and READY to ACT on it.