Day 80 - God says, "I am Serious!"

Today's Reading: Deut. 12-14 and Romans 2

Today's reading is quite an eye-opening wake-up call. In the previous chapters, God has talked about the blessing of obedience and the curse of disobedience... and now it's time to get serious. In fact, what He commands the children of Israel to do is quite.... well... VERY SERIOUS...

In these chapters I see God saying, "This is no joking matter. You can't fool around with idols and live. You can't fool around with other gods and live. You can't play in the shrines of idolatry and live. That's why, when you go into the land of Canaan to claim the territory I have given you, you must root out all signs of idolatry. You must break down the shrines and burn the idols. There is no exceptions allowed--NONE! Just to show you how serious I am, here's what I want you to do:

• When you go in to posses the land, completely destroy all the places where there was idol worship. 
• Destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their idols
• Every man is not to worship as he chooses or do what is right in his own eyes. He's to do what I choose! (hmmm.... lots of lessons for us today here!)
• You are to put away ALL evil from your midst!
• If someone (even in your own family) tries to entice you to serve other gods, kill them! 
• If someone entices those in their city to serve other gods, then you are to destroy the city including man, woman, child, and all the livestock. You are to utterly burn that city! (And that city shall never be built up again!)
• If there is any compromise, any ties to idolatry among you, I cannot and will not bless you.

Wow! Talk about drastic. Talk about religiously intolerant. Talk about politically incorrect! And yet this just goes to show how serious following after other gods is in the sight of God. It is not permissible! And why is that? Because it means death to our souls. 

In today's reading of Romans 2:24 this verse seemed to coincide with Deuteronomy as it shows what happens when profess to be followers of Christ, but don't follow His commands: "For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you [Jews who say and do not do]..." This rebuke is for us today too.

I think Hudson Taylor gives us a small hint. He says: "The inconsistencies of Christian people, who while professing to believe their Bibles have been yet content to live just as they would if there were no such book, has been one of the strongest arguments of my skeptical companions."

No only does God want to deliver us from the idolatry of our age... But He desires us to learn to be consistent Christians that His name is not blasphemed to those watching.

While the application is obviously different in our day and age... We best not go burning down buildings or killing people that don't believe in God ... the seriousness of modern day idolatry is something worth thinking on. I think Psalm 139:23,24 applies here...

Tomorrow's Reading: Deut 15-16 and Romans 3