Foundations for Success > Second Commandment

No Pretend Gods

You have decided to follow after God. In your newfound zeal you wish to express your love and honor to Him as freely and sincerely as possible. You want to honor God for what has been done for you. This is only right and a mark of one who has truly decided that they are not their own Creator. Yet how do we properly honor God? Is there a wrong way? Can we go about seeking to love God in ways that actually are offensive? The second commandment says yes, there are some parameters to honoring God.

We are tempted to rush right over this commandment because none of us have any totem poles are sacrificial alters with strange creatures in the back yard. Bowing down before a golden bull is not something we have ever even contemplated. Accordingly, we think this particular command is somewhat culturally irrelevant. But consider what is actually being prohibited here. What God is saying is that we should not transfer to someone or something the awesome trust, loyalty and honor that belongs to God alone. Now ask yourself if THIS may be something that is relevant to us today.

There is a story in the Bible that takes place while Moses is actually up on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments. The people down in the valley decide that Moses isn't returning so they ask Aaron, Moses' second in command, to lead them. They also decided that it would be a good idea to craft a golden bull using all their golden jewelry and use it in religious worship service the next day.

In reading the story you will notice that Aaron refers to this worship service as a feast to the Lord. (Exodus 32) He isn't thinking that he is worshipping some other God. Possibly this bull is going to represent the power and strength of God! What can be wrong, with this? After all they had not turned to a false god so had not broken the First Commandment. What could be wrong with a visual aid for worship?

What is wrong is that images cannot depict who God is. By their nature they will, at best, only symbolize various attributes of God but in doing so they misrepresent God by not revealing all that God is.

Such "symbols" also run the risk of leading us to associate God with the thing we have made in such a way that the two become one: the bull doesn't merely represent God, it becomes an extension of God. In other words, while our hearts may be seeking to honestly love God, we actually replace the Creator with the creature. To keep us from such a foolish and dangerous error, this rule tells us to refrain from visual aids that are to represent God.

But there is more here than a warning to not place golden bulls in your living room! Let's go back to the fact that what we are being told is to not transfer to something or someone what belongs to only God. What belongs to God alone? What about trusting in God alone for our eternal welfare? Isn't this something that only God can provide? Yes. So what if we begin looking to someone or something else besides God for our eternal happiness?

Gurus Are Full of Bull

"Well, Monte, I certainly am not going to start trusting in some cult leader or minister for my salvation." But are there people whose approbation is so critical to us that we will do most anything to please them? Is their rejection or displeasure so painful that we feel as if we have disgusted God? Are some people tempted to allow others to have a sort of influence or even control over them that is god-like?

There are people who feel so impotent or see themselves as ignorant or who simply do not wish to take responsibility for their choices that they freely turn their lives over to others. I am not speaking of children or those elderly people whose faculties are diminishing I am referring to individuals who are fully capable of making choices and for being accountable for those choices yet allow someone else to live their life through them. It is one thing for me to learn from someone, it is quite another for me to turn my mind over to them.

There are times when it is tempting to trade in a God we cannot see for a god we can see. Mentors, spiritual guides, clergy and such are all wonderful gifts when they cross our paths. But none of them are allowed to take God's place. Our life, our gifts and talents, our spiritual journey is ours. God is not going to ask others about what you did with your life: He is going to ask you. And since you are accountable to Him for your choices, you must be the one who makes the choices. Certainly there are times when you need a teacher or guides, but in the end it will be you who gives an account for what you did or didn't do.

Read The Next Commandment:
Do Not Use God's Name Irreverently