You shall not bow down to them or
worship them; for I, the LORD your
God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the
third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a
thousand└ generations┘ of those who love me and keep my commandments.
(Exodus 20:5)
"Hey Mom, I want you to meet Lu (Lew)."
You recognize Lu/Lew. Just this afternoon, you overheard him/her talking to some friends in a store. They were discussing drugs, sex, and theft. She/he had her/his arm around someone else. Those feelings of concern and anger? They are a form of jealousy. You want to protect your child from harm even if that child doesn't like it.
Most of the time, we think of jealousy as "you have what I want and therefore I don't like you." Jealousy can also be a positive response against someone who is dangerous. This is the sort of jealousy I believe God is talking about. We are so easily distracted by or attracted to things that aren't good for us: bad boys, bad girls, bad things. We're taught that rebelliousness is not only normal but positive in teenagers. They're just trying on different personas, to see which one is really them. The truth is that rebelliousness is normal and negative in people of all ages and it does harm. God responds jealously but wisely, always with the goal in mind of His child's well-being. Think about the things that entice you. Do you bring them to God, or do they draw you away from God? It doesn't matter what it is, if it draws you away from God, isn't it doing you harm?
I'm grateful to matter enough to God that He would respond with jealousy if something or someone began to draw me away. That doesn't mean that I don't tend to resent His jealousy when I'm being drawn away. Over and over I have to learn that separation from God is death, and that those people and things that want to draw me away are vampires. They suck the life out of their victims.
"Hey Mom, I want you to meet Lu (Lew)."
You recognize Lu/Lew. Just this afternoon, you overheard him/her talking to some friends in a store. They were discussing drugs, sex, and theft. She/he had her/his arm around someone else. Those feelings of concern and anger? They are a form of jealousy. You want to protect your child from harm even if that child doesn't like it.
Most of the time, we think of jealousy as "you have what I want and therefore I don't like you." Jealousy can also be a positive response against someone who is dangerous. This is the sort of jealousy I believe God is talking about. We are so easily distracted by or attracted to things that aren't good for us: bad boys, bad girls, bad things. We're taught that rebelliousness is not only normal but positive in teenagers. They're just trying on different personas, to see which one is really them. The truth is that rebelliousness is normal and negative in people of all ages and it does harm. God responds jealously but wisely, always with the goal in mind of His child's well-being. Think about the things that entice you. Do you bring them to God, or do they draw you away from God? It doesn't matter what it is, if it draws you away from God, isn't it doing you harm?
I'm grateful to matter enough to God that He would respond with jealousy if something or someone began to draw me away. That doesn't mean that I don't tend to resent His jealousy when I'm being drawn away. Over and over I have to learn that separation from God is death, and that those people and things that want to draw me away are vampires. They suck the life out of their victims.
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