THE VERSE
They exchanged the glory of God for the image of an ox that eats grass.~Psalm 106:20
THE THOUGHT
Oh the absurdity of sin! The people of Israel, having seen the great deliverance that God wrought in bringing them out of slavery in Egypt, forgot the glory and power they had seen, and turned instead to a metal cow. Absurd, ridiculous, suicidally insane... these are words that come to mind to describe their idolatry.Jeremiah 2 describes the continuing foolishness of Israel's idolatry. "My people have exchanged their glory for that which does not profit." Once again, they are trading God for something worthless, something that doesn't profit. This goes far beyond bad business practices; this is foolish, reckless, and destructive. "They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." How is it that people dying of thirst can still turn away from the fountain and try to suck moisture out of dirt? Oh the absurdity of sin!
But lest we quickly relegate this absurdity and evil to people like the Israelites, safely contained within the pages of a book, read Romans 1 with open eyes. Paul describes the entire human race-- including us-- with these words: "Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images." Whether our idols be images of gold and stone to bow down to, or whether our idol is the image in the mirror, all of us by nature exchange the infinitely beautiful, infinitely valuable, infinitely satisfying glory of the immortal God for something infinitely lesser. Oh, that we would see the absurdity of our sin, and flee to the Savior who has promised us pardon and restoration and wholeness!
THE PRAYER
God, Please have mercy on me, a foolish glory-exchanger. I confess that I daily trade the infinite joy of making much of You for the fleeting pleasures of sin. I choose to give free rein to anger rather than to honor Your just judgments. I trade the satisfaction of seeing and savoring Your infinite beauty for the indulging of sensual, sinful lusts. My heart would always choose TV over Your Word. O God, I am in desperate need of a Savior. Thank you for providing atonement for those like me, for providing a way for me to know You despite my sin, for capturing my soul with Your great love, and for giving me Your Holy Spirit to renovate my heart with new desires. Lord, free me from my glory-exchanging ways, so that I can find fullness and freedom in knowing You.EXTENDED READING
Psalm 106:6-23Jeremiah 2:11-13
Romans 1:21-23
Romans 3:23-36
THE QUOTE
"Whatever makes us more and more able to enjoy making much of God is a mercy. For there is no greater joy than joy in the greatness of God. And if we must suffer to see this and savor it most deeply, then suffering is a MERCY. And Christ’s call to take up our cross and join Him on the Calvary road is love." ~John PiperTHROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Jeremiah 1-2Ecclesiastes 1
John 1:1-18
James 1:1-11
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