Skip to main content

Laws

            Praise the Lord. Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands. (Psalm 112:1)

 

          “You shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)

 

          Are you happy about gravity? The day/night cycle? Season? The way plants grow and animals grow? The fact that chicken generally tastes like chicken ever time instead of tasting like chicken one day and week old vomit the next? When we think of the commands of the Lord, we tend to think in terms of “Thou shalt not kill,” not what one might call “natural laws.” Granted, there are natural laws we don’t tend to like, such as excess calories turn into fat. Two I’m finding somewhat difficult at work is that flowers cannot move through plexiglass and that one more flowerpot will not fit in this box.

As you read about my irritations with natural law, did you smirk? They really are silly. It’s impossible to calculate the benefit of physical laws remaining basically constant. Life would be a problem if gravity didn’t work for a randomly chosen 10% of the time. And we tend to get upset when people die because they’ve eaten tainted chicken.

So what about the other kinds of laws that the Lord has established? Shouldn’t we be just as grateful? With that in mind, let’s consider an example from the Ten Commandments. How reasonable is it for God to say “You shall have no other gods before me”? If you check a study Bible, it’s likely to point out that “before” can be translated “besides.” Basically, God is saying that we’re not to consider any other god to God. He’s it, period. Odin, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or even Nature are not only not to take His place, but they’re not to be runners up. You don’t have the option of “God and” – only of “God or.”

Is this unreasonable? Let’s consider other relationships. If you’re a citizen of America, is America going to consider it appropriate to demand your loyalty to America? Will the nation think you’re American if you act against America by acting on behalf of a hostile nation? Is your employer likely be willing to keep you on the payroll if you also work for the competition? How many times do you think you can marry another spouse or have sexual relationships with other folks before your spouse says, “Nope!” Even supposing such duality of relationships were acceptable, how long do you think it would be before you started betraying one for the benefit of the other? How long before you start playing them off against each other.

Exclusivity is normal in our legal contracts, and Exodus 20 is part of a legal contract between the Jews and God. It makes perfect sense that, to be a Jew, one would be required to be a Jew, to follow the laws given to the Jews. But this is actually the less important of the two reasons why we should have no other God before the Lord. Let’s return to the idea that God is it, period. If Odin, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or Nature are not actually gods then granting them the status of god alongside God is logically unjustified. It follows logically that if the thing we are putting anywhere near God is not truly a god, and not truly His equal, we are deceived or are deceiving ourselves and possibly others. If there is no other god, then God’s telling us not to have any god before Him not only makes logical sense, it makes psychological sense. It has nothing to do with God protecting His ego.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10)   “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.   By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)           Joshua grinned when he saw Rex standing by the door, studying something on the ground. "Hey, man! Are we ready to do this thing?"          Rex looked up. "Josh, I can't do it. We're still best buds, but I can't stand your fiancée."           I've met "Rex" many times. I've been Rex. Joshua (Jesus) loves the Church. He's not a fool. He knows the Church is far from perfect, but she is His chosen bride. The Rexes of this world, who think themselves His friend, turn away from her. "You don't need the Church to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ssssssubmmissssssionnn

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ . (Ephesians 5:21)             "Ssssssubmmisssssssionnn." Can't you just hear the serpent hissing this most horrible of words? If you listen to the serpent or the world, submission means groveling, allowing yourself to be abused, denying yourself your own humanity. Nothing could be worse than submission, could it?             Submission has never been a problem for me, as long as things are going the way I want them to. The rest of the time? Well, let's just say that while I don't know how to fight physically, I don't know how to not fight mentally. One of the fights I've been having with myself for years is about submission.             My first breakthrough took place on a trip to a bookstore. As I walked into the store, my thoughts were very clear. 1) I was goi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Shark Fins, Triple Dog Dares, Heroes, Villains and Sidekicks

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)            There's a scene in Jaws in which someone sees a shark fin and starts a panic. As   all the swimmers scramble to shore, boats surround the fin, which falls over to reveal two kids. With several guns pointed at them, one of the kids points at the other. The message is clear: it was his idea. In Christmas Story, there's a scene in which one kid "triple dog dares" another to do something stupid. Since it's a triple dog dare, well, what choice does the boy have? There doesn't seem to be any end to the trouble that peer pressure can cause. ...
Post a Comment
Read more