(REFLECTIONS ON Deuteronomy 13:1-18)

Moses’ instructions to Israel were clear, if anyone tries to entice, convince, suggest to them saying, “let us go and worship other gods,” then they need to be shown no pity, put to death, purged from amongst them, and utterly destroyed.

Perhaps when we read this, we think to ourselves, is this necessary? Is it that serious? However, if we think about it, it is that serious. If Israel is led to worship other gods, then how could they still be God’s? How could they continue to be the chosen people of God. That they are only to worship the one true God is not negotiable.

What if they keep worshiping God and share God with their other gods as well? That can’t happen either because God’s relationship with Israel is a covenant relationship, and any other god is a betrayal of that relationship.

Allowing other gods into their worship of God also presents another problem. That is it would mistakenly equate the gods of this world to God the Creator of the heavens and earth. God is not one of the many gods, but He is the only one that can be called God. He is not one out of many to be shared, to be picked out of a group, but is the Creator, the beginning and the end, all in all.

This applies to the church as well. Are we a church if we don’t worship God and God alone? Take out worshiping God from our midst, and we are just a social club, a religion, anything but a fellowship of true believers bound in relationship through Jesus Christ.

The question for us then is how we deal with those that say, “let us go and worship other gods.” Perhaps they are our friends, our family, the world, and perhaps sometimes whether we know it or not, it is even our own voice. “Let us go and worship other gods,” we say without knowing it, when we compromise our faith and worship, put our faith and trust in anything or anyone besides God.

Moses instructions to Israel might shock us, but may it awaken us to how big this problem was for Israel, and still is for us today. We know Israel’s history, never being able to live up to God’s standards, constantly worshiping idols, and breaking the heart of the God that called them into a relationship with Him.

We also break the Lord’s heart when He has given us everything, even His Son, Jesus Christ to be in relationship with us, and we desire to have others besides Him, or sometimes instead of Him. Let us be aware, not only when we hear the call, “let us go and worship other gods,” but also when our hearts betray us and our actions speak out saying, “let us go and worship other gods.”

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy 13