A mission to overcome idols

George Sneddon October 23, 2024 4 3

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Psalm 96: 5-6 (NRSVA)

5 

For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
    but the Lord made the heavens.

6 

Honour and majesty are before him;
    strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

When I was little, we had an amazing sweetshop in our village. I remember it being a treasure trove of colourful confection. To my childlike eyes, it was a masterpiece: Red poles of minty stalky rock, those big blue sour lollipops, the squidgy fudge in little miniature bricks all on the counter, the sweetest sherbet lemons, and the dustiest bon-bons. I can remember the shiny purple foil of the chocolate bars. The big glass jars of temptation. Oh, how I wanted it all.

And that is the problem still, isn’t it? So much stuff around us can distract us from what is really good for us. The Bible tells us to seek first His Kingdom, to put the Lord first before all things, get our eyes to looks straight ahead, fix our gaze on the prize, to set our minds on things above. The gods of the nations are the stuff, but the Lord made the heavens that even splendour and majesty serve him. That should help us all to help the world fix its eyes on the heavenly things, not the temporal. And once they see him for themselves, they’ll never turn to saccharine delights again, because nothing can ever compare to the unwrapping of God’s everlasting love. 

Prayer:

Lord, draw our eyes from fixating on other stuff
Lead us to your own sweet love
Bring us into your presence
To taste you, to witness you
to be embraced by you
To unfurl the riches of heaven
in our lives, and the lives of those we meet.
Amen.