(This is a re-post of my “Rock the Commandment” series of posts. I’ll be running these on Tuesdays and Thursdays each week as we lead up to Palm Sunday.)
Last week I started a ten week series on the Ten Commandments. This is week two.
This isn't about legalism, either. The point is to learn how we can use the commandments to grow in our walk with God, to grow in our love for both God and for neighbor.
Last week we looked at the First Commandment. You can find that post here. Today we'll look at - yeah, you guessed it.
The Second Commandment
"You shall not make for yourself an idol or a likeness of anything in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them..." (Ex. 20:4,5a).
This one sounds so easy. Sure, there's no golden calf in my living room. I don't bow down before some woodcarving of a goat. Move on to the next.
Wait.
There's more to this than meets the eye - or the woodcarving. We have ways of making false idols of all kinds of things in our lives. For me it tended to be the women in my life. For others it may be success, money, fame, food or a favorite sports team. Anything we place before God. For each of us it might be different, but many have struggled with this.
Let's consider:
+ Have I made an idol of any person or thing?
This is the one that got me, in a most obvious way. But we can do this in other ways, too. Sports heroes, celebrities, and those we love. Things? Houses, cars, big screen televisions come to mind. Other things may come to yours.
+ Have I given to anyone or anything the worship that is due to God alone??
Take the one above - and go just that one more step.
+ Have I set before myself the holy life of Jesus and tried to imitate Him?
Have I surrendered all those things I want in this world to His will? Really? Do I treat everyone I meet as though they are Christ? Remember, as we do to the least of these...
+ Have I read the Holy Scriptures regularly?
Dust on the Bible? Pull it out, open it up and read. Listen to it on audio in the car. Make a regular schedule. It takes three weeks to form a habit - so start now.
+ Have I been irreverent during church services, let my attention wander, or been insincere?
How many times have I been in church, listening attentively and thinking about something else. Oh, that means I wasn't attentive at all - just looking like it. And it's usually the silly thoughts that get us. Sometimes it's even good thoughts. The enemy doesn't care - just so long as he can distract us and separate us from the Lord.
+ Have I neglected to receive Holy Communion regularly or without proper preparation?
Tradition on this differs in different churches. In the Orthodox Church, this is the center of the liturgy - the reason we gather. It is not just a legal point to do as the Lord commanded. It is the very life of God within us. (Orthodox vs. Catholic vs. Protestant views are a discussion for another day.) As for proper preparation, consider St. Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 11:27-32. The point is: be at peace with your neighbor before you come before the judge.
Bet you didn't think of all that when considering the commandment. I hadn't. These questions come from A Pocket Prayer Book for Orthodox Christians.
Next Monday we will consider the Third Commandment. But I think there's plenty here to last for a week.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
-Psalm 23:1 (22 LXX)
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