23. Who Are You Devoting Your All To?

Exodus 20 verse 3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.”

How would you define God? Who is God to you?

God can be defined in numerous ways, but to me, He is the ultimate Creator of the universe. A Spirit who enables all possibilities. He provides life and every resource needed to co-create. A Protector who never forsakes us, a wise Teacher who imparts only truth, a guiding Light that leads us to the right paths, and a fair Counselor who disciplines us with love. He is also a Healer who brings restoration. The list of His qualities can continue endlessly, based on the various situations we encounter and how we come to understand God.

The Mandate

How we choose to understand God emanates from the choices we make in our lives. The choices we make in life whether good or bad impact the results we will receive. As God has given us a free will. The verse contains the verb ‘shall’. It signifies a mandatory expression, a command not offering alternatives but requiring compliance with the Law. Even though we are given free will to choose, we are also encouraged to follow Jesus. Meaning we are mandated to adhere to His teachings. It is common knowledge that once a law is broken, repercussions need to be enforced. This underlines a vital dependency that we simply cannot function without.

One crucial point I failed to mention is that God is eternal. He has no beginning and no end. He holds knowledge of our tomorrows. As I emphasized earlier, God is the provider of all resources. It is our purpose to co-create the magnificent masterpieces exhibiting His love and continue what He initiated at the beginning, for His glory, not ours. Magnifying our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for making it the way possible, for He holds all the keys.

Even Satan Admit God Is Powerful

These are the keys that Satan desired when he tempted Jesus and said, “If you bow down and worship me.” In essence, he was enticing Him to submit willingly, emphasizing that it would be His decision.

Satan concedes his powerlessness, acknowledging that it is only when we diminish the presence of God within us and forsake Him that he can uphold any influence. He resentfully admits the holiness of Jesus as the son of God.

Satan’s grip on us only tightens if we willingly abandon our values and surrender everything that makes us who we are. He’s powerless unless we invite his influence into our thoughts and make room for him in our hearts. In other words, he is saying to Jesus: ‘If you let me distract you from your mission, your purpose, put me before God, and devote yourself to me I’ll offer you all the worldly pleasures.’ You can worship me in plain sight or cover-up but all of this will be at the cost of your soul.

And we see in the Bible nations crafting and worshipping images of their perceived gods, shaping them in their own likeness. This practice was openly carried out. However, Ezekiel 8:7-12 has a message where God reveals to Ezekiel what was done in secret by those who publicly proclaim “Jesus is the Lord” from their pulpits. It is revealed that they even have their own chambers filled with each choice of images they worship.

And the devil continues to relentlessly tempt generation after generation, trapping countless souls and empowering them to lead double lives disguised as normalcy. He shows no regard for whether one is a steadfast churchgoer or not, rich, or poor, young, or old. He fuels the insatiable hunger in us to delve deeper into the darkness. He groomed many to remain oblivious and empowered them to defend and legalize unnatural lifestyles.

Opposing the submission of living under God’s Law is a surefire way to reduce God to our own standards. In doing so, we elevate other gods above Him and construct a world where our instincts or higher self diminish, leading to a severance of our connection with God. This disruption breaks the flow of receiving and giving back to our God. And traps us into this bubble of lost souls that are ready to defend mediocre.

Put God First

Then the verse closes with these words, where God declares, “Before Me.” Let me ask you this question: Have you ever been encouraged by your parents or elders in your family to be cautious of someone, but you chose to ignore them. Later on, you faced challenges that uncovered the true character of that individual, who has either tainted your credibility or led you to potential harm. Did you feel that you could have heeded the advice to distance yourself from that person?

This is exactly what happens to us when we don’t put God first. Would you not find peace and follow obediently if you had Jesus physically present in your life? Picture being guided by someone who knows the outcome of not only your life but everyone’s lives. Imagine following in the footsteps where you saw Jesus walk and trusted it to be secure. Imagine entering doors that He enters first, knowing that no harm came to Him, and you walk through confidently. Picture encountering storms, knowing that He has already prepared a way for you to pass through

Put God first and do not attempt to supplement Him; there are no shortcuts to our dreams. Let’s embrace the opportunity to work on ourselves rather than running from it.

I deeply appreciate your commitment to staying until the very end, and I genuinely desire to hear your thoughts on what the message in Exodus 20 verse 3 personally means to you.

May God Bless Us All

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