A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

I love warm weather and sunshine. Such is the weather today in east Tennessee. I am finally feeling more "normal" since my last chemo treatment. I could almost forget I have cancer, if it weren't for the numbness in my hands, feet and legs and the little ache in my side that I first noticed in July of 2006. On days like today, I feel like living and I pray that the Lord will let me live longer. On other days, after I get chemotherapy, I just pray "Lord help me".

Today my thoughts turned to the Ten Commandments. Here is the first one.

"I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Exodus 20:2-3

When we learn the Ten Commandments, we don't often consider verse 2 that comes before the first "thou shalt". It is, however, a very significant verse. Here we read who it is we are not to have any gods before. It is here that we are told it the LORD who brought the Hebrew people out of Egypt. It is Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

There is a lot to meditate on in those verses. It is interesting that God commands that we shall have no other gods. What other gods? Are there any other gods? My thoughts recalled that in the book of Isaiah God speaks about this very thing.

"Thus saith the LORD, the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and the last; and beside me there is no God." Isaiah 44:6

God declares that he is the only God many times in the book of Isaiah. The nation of Israel, in those days, often fell away from worshipping God to worshipping the idols of the nations around them. Even though the LORD had done so much to prove who He was to them, they soon abandoned Him and fell into idol worship. Since they were His chosen people, the ones through whom He wanted to reveal Himself to the world, it was important that they acknowledge Him; therefore, God gave this commandment.

The commandment is applicable to us today, even if we are not Jews. To follow after any other gods is vain. There are no other gods; therefore, if we want to know the true God, the who is our Creator, our Redeemer, our Lord, and Savior, then we must acknowledge the one who calls Himself Jehovah, the self-existent One. Even today, when people talk about "God", it may be unclear whom they think God is. The Bible makes it very clear.

Doing a study of the names of God is very rewarding. I encourage you to do so. The English Bible indicates the various names of God only through the variations of typeset used for God and Lord, as well as by including the phrases "Holy One of Israel" and "Lord of Hosts", or "God Almighty". You will need to find out the original Hebrew words and their definitions in order to gain the full depth of the meaning of the names of God. It will be a study well worth your time and effort.