FALSE GODS

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

"Then the Lord said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh and say to him, 'This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs. The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. The frogs will go up on you and your people and all your officials.' " Then the Lord said to Moses, "Tell Aaron, 'Stretch out your hand with your staff over the streams and canals and ponds, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.' " So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land. But the magicians did the same things by their secret arts; they also made frogs come up on the land of Egypt. Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, "Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord." Moses said to Pharaoh, "I leave to you the honor of setting the time for me to pray for you and your officials and your people that you and your houses may be rid of the frogs, except for those that remain in the Nile." "Tomorrow," Pharaoh said. Moses replied, "It will be as you say, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God. The frogs will leave you and your houses, your officials and your people; they will remain only in the Nile." After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. And the Lord did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields. They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said." Exodus 8:1-15

Well, seven days of blood in place of Egypt’s water wasn’t enough to convince Pharoah to heed God’s commands so the Lord sends Moses back to Pharoah saying, "Go to Pharaoh and say to him, 'This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me. If you refuse to let them go, I will plague your whole country with frogs. The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. The frogs will go up on you and your people and all your officials.' " And so the frogs did come in great numbers just as God has said they would after "Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt." Scripture tells us they "covered he land." And this led Pharoah to ask Moses and Aaron to pray and ask for the frogs to be taken away in exchange for him allowing the Israelites to go and offer sacrifices to their Lord.

Well Moses, after telling Pharoah that he will "know there is no one like the Lord our God" after "the frogs…leave you and your houses, your officials and your people," cries out to the Lord the next day and we read where the frogs all died "in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields." The Egyptians "piled (the frogs) into heaps, and the land reeked of them." You would think that these events would have been enough to sway Pharoah but, once again, he "hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said." He also didn’t keep his promise to allow the Israelites to offer their sacrifices. Two plagues were obviously not enough…and the Lord had further plan for Pharoah and his wickedness.

Maybe you’re wondering…why did the Lord choose frogs? Well, just as the Nile was sacred to the Egyptians, so were frogs. They were thought to possess divine powers and the Egyptians actually worshipped a goddess named Heqet who had the form of a woman but with a frog’s head. They believed that she breathed life into the bodies created by her husband, the god Khnum, from the earth’s dust. Thus, it was against Egyptian religious law to kill a frog and now they had more than they knew what to do with. God had once again turned one of the Egyptian false gods into a curse against them.

This made me think a little bit about us and our culture today. How many false gods do we worship today and does God use these false gods as a curse against us? Consider these points and ponder:

We are a society obsessed with money. Typically, people are not very good stewards of what the Lord has blessed them with and actually, most people don’t even acknowledge that their money is gift from God in the first place. Well, we have worshipped money so much that we can it even when we don’t have it. It’s a little thing called credit. So we spend and spend and spend and get more and more in debt. Soon, we can’t buy anything else because our credit has worn out and we can’t pay our credit because we don’t have enough real money to pay off the borrowed money. Our worship of money as a false god becomes a curse to us.

And I could add possessions under this category as well because typically, we’re using our credit to get anything and everything we want. Notice I said "want" and not "need." There is a distinct difference even though most people don’t see one today. Everything is a need whether they really need it or not. And before long, a person will learn that unchecked, possessions will end up possessing you.

Let’s look at another false god…alcohol and/or drugs. We’re near a new year and most people will be ready to go out and party. You can bet that alcohol or drugs or both will be enjoyed in mass quantities as we usher in a new year…a year full of hope but also a year that will see the carry over of any unresolved issues of the year prior. Maybe debt has piled up…maybe a broken relationship is lingering…maybe you’re unemployed…whatever the issue, it doesn’t disappear with the new year. Yes, we are a people who have our share of problems. Too bad we rarely turn to the only One who can truly help us. Instead, we often turn to substance abuse…seeking escape from all that burdens us. We’re so desperate to feel good that we turn to a drink or a hit or a toke…anything to help us get that high. And when we get over that high, we find that our problem are still right there waiting for us so maybe we do a little more to feel better. And as our body gets acclimated to the alcohol and drugs, we find we need more and more to reach that high…and soon we find that we can’t live without artificial stimulants…in other words, we’re addicted to them. Worshipping to the false gods of alcohol and drugs leads to the curse of addiction.

And let’s add sex to this category as we can obsess over it so much that we end up seeking it any place we can get it…often leading to broken relationships, venereal diseases, AIDS…any of a number of problems. We have taken something God intended to be beautiful and we have abused it…cheapened it…and worshipped it. And the false god of sex has led to people who can’t get away from pornography …people who turn to rape to satisfy their sex addiction…people who can’t stay faithful in relationships.

I could keep going but I think the point has been made. We’re worshipping just as many false gods today as they did in the days of the Greeks, Egyptians, and Romans. And know that God is no more pleased with people today than He was back then. He might not be turning our waters into blood or sending frogs across our nation but He has other ways to send us signs. Maybe you are experiencing those signs in your own life.

Question: Are you worshipping any false gods in your life? If so, now is the time to turn to the only One worthy of worship…the only One worthy of praise…the only One who can show you true joy, peace and contentment in life...the only One who can help you in whatever your circumstance. Won’t you come to the Lord today and worship Him and Him alone? Won’t you come to Him and accept His only Son Jesus as your personal Savior? Today is the day you can turn your life in the right direction forever. And there isn’t a better way to start the new year than with God and Jesus first and foremost in your life.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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