Deuteronomy 5:7-11
In this season of Easter I’ve set a challenge for us to read and think about the Ten Commandments. We’re doing this because we’re thinking about the ways Easter is a celebration of life in the here and now, and because the traditional commandments are sometimes called the “ten best ways to live.” I want to think about them together not as rules but as world-view – a description of how we understand life in general and God’s relationship to us in the thick of that life.
So today we start with what are the first two or three commandments, depending on how you count:
You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make idols.
You shall not take God’s name in vain (or make wrongful use of it).
Our spiritual ancestors lived in a time when people related to many different gods – one for each aspect of their daily lives. We read stories about Greek, Roman and sometimes Egyptian gods of thunder, beauty, wine, fire, and more. We see paintings and statues of these various which we associate with idols or images that are worshiped. Each country or city had its own favorite God which they hoped to persuade to protect them and send them what they needed – rain, sun, harvest.
In the oldest passages of our scriptures God is called El or the plural Elohim. This is the god associated with Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Leah and Rachel. El is not thought of as the only God but simply as the Hebrews’ god, better than the gods of their neighbors. The first commandment “no other gods before me” implies that there are other gods, and people would have thought that way. In fact several times in the biblical narrative people get in trouble for worshiping other gods, particularly Ba’al, who was god of the Canaanites.
More recent (as in only 3500 years old) passages use the name Yahweh for God. This is the name revealed to Moses in the burning bush. With this new name for God the people began to move from “our god is the best god” to “our God is the only god.” This is monotheism (one God) and echoes earlier movements in Egyptian and Zoroastrian religions. It’s not widely popular because having more gods improves your odds of survival. Maybe that’s why there are such awful threats made for the consequences of worshiping idols. Becoming monotheists was hard.
An idol is not actually a god, it’s a representation of the god to help people remember their relationship with god. It could be argued that a crucifix functions in the same way ancient idols did – reminding people of Jesus. It’s not the image that’s worshiped but the god behind the image. Yahweh has no images, being more than any one thing can represent, but the Ark of the Covenant functioned for early peoples in the same way that idols might. It was the “throne” of God, where God “sat” in fire or smoke when present with the people. It was placed in the holiest place in the tabernacle and later the temple and represented the presence of God. After it was lost in war the thinking about God’s presence had to evolve to a higher level which didn’t require an object but was still associated with the place in the Holy of Holies. Devout Moslems take this commandment to another level and forbid any art which depicts actual objects or people and therefore we get the beautiful mosaics of medieval mosques.
Then there’s the command not to make wrongful use of God’s name. We think of that as “don’t swear” and it’s not widely enforced today. Originally people swore oaths in God’s name, asking God to confirm that they would keep their word. It was like signing a contract and bound a person’s honor and God’s honor together. Not taking it lightly meant not obligating God to a promise you didn’t intend to keep. When we studied The Four Agreements we talked about “be impeccable with your word.” Be truthful and accurate in your speech. This commandment is really about honesty and integrity more than about colorful vocabulary.
Let’s think more about what it means to honor only God in our time. We take this with its original meaning of “our god’s better than your god.” I was raised to believe that Christianity is the one true religion and all others worship false gods. But what if the world’s religions don’t worship different gods but instead worship a single god in different ways. Islam sees Allah as the god of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. One god. Hinduism talks of 3000+ gods but also understands one holy being uniting all gods. Buddhism doesn’t worship god but still sees a universal connection of all life. We might benefit from considering whether our religion has become an idol that we worship more than we worship God. Looking for connection rather than rejection of others would help the world respect everyone better and perhaps expand the ways we honor God.
We also need to consider the ancient assumption that God chooses us for special privilege – for the blessings in life. It’s good to be chosen and cherished. It’s not helpful to think that others are rejected. In our country we have a great fear of Sharia law practiced in some Moslem countries, but we’re quick to make laws that match our personal preferences and name them as God’s will. The current debate about abortion law isn’t about how to best care for mothers and children. That debate would be helpful and important. New laws are more about controlling women than about helping them bear and raise children in healthy relationships. Under the doctrine of Manifest Destiny we conquered the native peoples of North America and took their land, saying it was God’s will that we rule from sea to sea. Some folks currently are lifting up Viktor Orban as a wonderful ruler because he’s restoring Hungary to Christianity, beginning with the oppression of LGBTQIA+ folks. Is it really God’s will that some people be persecuted for who they are?
As a congregation we have made a commitment to justice and equality. We try hard to understand economic justice and to encourage mental and physical health for everyone. We question systemic racism which leads to unequal incarceration rates, unequal educational opportunity, and fear of immigrants. It’s important that we continue to speak out as a faith community to correct the mistakes of the past because at the same time folks are claiming such injustice is God’s will. That seems like idolatry to me: claiming God’s support for our personal preferences. Even as we speak out in support of change, we need to constantly examine if we are doing what we accuse others of doing. With humility we seek to understand Jesus’ teachings about compassion, mercy and justice and not assume we’ve got it right.
We are working to make rightful use of God’s name in shaping a world in God’s image. Not as an idol but as a growing life. We ask ourselves in every situation if we are acting out of love, God’s love for every creature. We remain open to learning more about what it means to live in God’s way. We try, we change, we try again.
This commandment isn’t about being Christian like we’ve always been and assuming we’ve got it right. It’s about seeking to align our lives with what is holy and loving and inclusive and learning every day to do better. To be more respectful, compassionate, generous and just. To not let convenience take the place of God in all we do and say.
Honoring God as having first place in our lives is a way of understanding life as holy. It sets the tone for all the other commandments and covenants we’ll consider in this season. It’s the framework for understanding who we are and what we do. That’s a good beginning.