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Deuteronomy 5:1-7

At halftime the score was zero to zero. It looked like these were two evenly matched teams. Then, our boys scored a goal. Yes! A little while later the other team scored. Here we were again, back to being evenly matched. My heart sank. There was still plenty of time for them to score another goal. Was it possible that we might be the second place team? Then I heard the sound of the whistle. The official had seen the same thing I had seen. There was a foul on the play that the opponent scored on. The goal did not count. When the clock struck zero appearances did not matter. We were the winners! What appeared to be two evenly matched teams during the struggle were clearly defined when the awards were given.

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And Moses called all Israel, and said to them: “Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your hearing today, that you may learn them and be careful to observe them. The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The LORD did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, those who are here today, all of us who are alive. The LORD talked with you face to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire. I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the LORD; for you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up the mountain. He said: I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.

Deuteronomy 5:1-7

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The first of the 10 Commandments is recorded in this passage. "You shall have no other gods before Me" (v. 7). In the Hebrew, the word translated "before" is a preposition (it governs the noun). The Hebrew word can mean "before" or "beside". What God was saying is that we should not have a pagan deity equal to or ahead of God Himself.

In the book of Judges, there are a couple of stories in which some of the Hebrew people tried to worship a Canaanite god alongside God. Though there had only been a few generations passed since the law was given, they tried this approach. What always happened is that, in the hearts of the people, the pagan god took the primary position. In the hearts of the people, they were before God.

Many people think, what is the big deal? As long as we worship God, what does it matter how we worship Him? We must remember what God said through the prophet Isaiah, "I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise to carved images" (Isaiah 42:8). He will not share that which is innately His, His glory with a pretend god. Neither will He share that which is due Him, praise with a pretend god. It matters because God said 1) Don't do it, and 2) I won't share.

Imagine you come across a girl who starts calling her Barbie doll mama. Not only does she call the doll mama, she stops listening to her mom and dad. She only does what she pretends the doll tells her to do. She lives in the fantasy world of obedience and affection to the doll, and rejects and abandons her real parents. We would say this child has some kind of mental health problem. We would think she needs treatment. We would all agree this is "Crazy" and yet, that is exactly what happens when a person worships an idol. They are worshiping a doll whose personality is a figment of their imagination. God does not like it. He said "You shall have NO OTHER GODS before me" (emphasis mine).

While we may place things equal with God in our lives, or even ahead of them, there will be a time when a foul is called. God will judge that this was a violation of the rules that He set up. What we thought we had moved ahead will be called back to its rightful place. The clock will have run out, and there will be only one clearly defined victor. God will be on the throne, and everything else will be in its rightful place. He just calls us to make that decision now.

Father, we all have times in our lives where we place something ahead of You. We place people ahead of You. Help us to remember that You deserve to be ahead of us, our family, or friends, everyone, and everything. Anything we place in an equal place in our hearts with You, will ultimately take first place in our hearts. Help us to remember that You are God and to keep You on the throne of our lives.