Question 94: What does God require in the First Commandment?

 

Question 94: What does God require in the First Commandment?

Answer: That I must avoid and forsake all idolatry, magic, and superstitious sacrifices, and all prayers to saints or other creatures, on account of the danger of losing my salvation; that I must rightly acknowledge and trust in the one true God alone, humbly and patiently desire to receive all good from Him, and love, fear, and honor Him with all my heart. In short, that I will never do anything contrary to the will of God.

The First Commandment: You shall have no other gods before me.

People of the world worship gods by their own names. Even believers call their gods "God." But is the God they envision truly Jehovah God? God is not distant; He approached the Israelites in various ways. Yet, the people perceive Him as a fearful God. When Moses went to Mount Sinai to receive the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, they made a golden calf idol and worshiped it as God.

In this way, people in the world worship their own version of God. The same holds true within the church today. Everyone believes in God, but unless they become Emmanuel, they are simply believing in their own version of God. This is idolatry.

Emmanuel means God is with us. God is not distant, but when He enters the hearts of believers, He becomes the true God, Jehovah. When the God Jesus Christ calls "Father" is the true God, and believers become "Emmanuel," the Father, Jesus Christ, and believers become one in the Holy Spirit.

 

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