July - 10
TRYING TO CONFINE GOD
“You shall not make for yourself an idol . . . . You shall not bow down to them or worship them.” Exodus 20:4-5
The first commandment isn’t so easy, but this one sounds a little simpler, right? How many people would actually make idols of God and worship them?
But the issue isn’t simply about making an idol. It has to do with understanding what can get in the way of our relationship with God. At the heart of this command is our tendency to somehow confine God so that we can “see” him, manage him, and even pocket him for easier access or convenience.
God isn’t simply talking about images in worship; God is talking about our creating an image of what we want him to be. It may be an idea of God as a heavenly Santa Claus to whom we look for gifts. Or it may be an idea of God as an impersonal being out there somewhere. It may be thinking of God as confined to some charm—say, a piece of wood we claim to be part of the cross. Or it may be the idea that God is only a lifeline that we grab when all else fails. But all these are idols of our own making.
God wants us to get to know him as he reveals himself in creation and in Scripture. This means that the way we take down barriers and build relationship with God is by appreciating the grandeur of his creation, listening to what he says about himself in the Bible, and praying that the Spirit will reveal God to us.
PRAYER
Dear God, I want to know you and not be stuck in my boxed ideas of you. I don’t want to confine you to what I need or to my comfort level. Help me see you as you are. Amen.
第一条诫命不容易做到，但这一条是否较为简单？有多少人会真的雕些神像来敬拜？
然而，问题不是雕刻偶像那么简单，乃是我们要明白甚么能妨碍我们与神的关系。诫命强调我们往往尝试规限神，这样我们便可以「见到」祂，控制祂，和甚至把祂放在衣袋，以方便我们随时找到祂。
神不单单在说敬拜偶像，祂指的是我们按我们心中的想法来把祂塑造成某个形像。我们想象中的神可能是天上的圣诞老人，我们可向祂索取礼物；我们可能认为神远在天边，与我们毫不相干；我们可能把神规限在某件吉祥物中—— 例如一块我们称之为十字架的木头；我们也可能当神为救生绳索，当甚么方法都行不通时，我们可以抓着它。以上这些都是我们造出来的偶像。
神要求我们按祂在祂的创造和在圣经中的示来认识祂。意思是说，若要除去障碍和与神建立关系，我们应当欣赏祂壮丽伟大的创造，聆听祂如何在圣经中示自己，又祈求圣灵向我们示祂。
祷告
亲爱的神，我盼望认识祢，摆脱对狭窄的观念，我不愿意根据我的需要或我的舒适来规限。求祢帮助我们认识真正的祢。阿们。