In Exodus 20, Moses spoke to the Israelites about the danger and consequences of idol worship or idolatry. He was sharing God’s instructions to them from the Ten Commandments. The first statement from God, concerned his relationship with his people. He brought them out of Egypt and they were to serve no other gods but him. They were not to make any carved images of anything in the sea, on land, in the sky or under the earth. Many of the gods worshipped by the Egyptians, embodied images that were made from raw materials and represented the sun, the sea, illness or other elements. None of the gods were all powerful, all knowing or omnipotent. The worship of these other gods represented spiritual pollution. All other gods are deceptions created by the devil to draw people away from God.

Serving other gods, other than the true and living God can be traced back to the worship of satan. God’s instruction to his people to serve ‘no other god’ is for their own protection. “You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me” (Exodus 20:5). Serving other gods will open people up to generational curses, that can affect their children for up to four generations. Turning their backs on God often meant, coming into covenants and contracts with the devil and creating demonic family altars. There are many people who notice particular patterns in their family history, such as illnesses and other dysfunctions that they cannot explain.

An ancient family altar or a covenant or contract with a foreign god (satan), could be at work in that family. Anyone who surrenders their lives to God and creates an altar of prayer, can overthrow demonic family altars. On the subject of idols, many people may not be as ritualistic as serving another god or willingly serve the devil, but material things and people can become an idol. An idol is an image or representation of a god used as an object of worship. It is also a person or thing, greatly admired, loved or revered. Many people can easily meet the criteria for the last definition, as they have idols such as musicians, actors and even pastors that they revere. The devil is crafty and subtle and as long as we give unto another person what belongs to God, he takes the glory for it. Many celebrities are sold out to the devil and even some ‘men/women of God’ are no longer in right standing.

Don’t put people on a pedestal. We are all human and Jeremiah said, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it” (Jeremiah 17:9)? Even Jesus corrected a rich young ruler who called him good. “And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God” (Luke 18:19). I am not promoting cynicism and I am not saying that we should not honour people. It is when our admiration borders on idolatry then it becomes a problem. Only God is all good and as long as we are on this earth, we are flesh and blood. As such, we are subject to failure and weakness. Our gaze should eternally be on God and our relationship and admiration of others, should lead us closer to God. We cannot become too overly focused on the creation and not the creator. “You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you” (Exodus 34:14).

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Paul taught the early church about the role of the five fold ministry. “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12). This is so that we can grow and mature in the things of God. Spiritual growth ensures that we are not caught up in every contrary wind of doctrine and easily led astray by deception. We have to study and understand the word so that we can discern the heart of God. We cannot allow the Devil to gain the advantage over us by being ignorant of his devices (2 Corinthians 2:11).

Although we are many members, we are one body in Christ Jesus and each member, needs the other parts of the body to grow. We need the gifts of the other members within the body of Christ to help us. For example, we need preachers and teachers to expound the word of knowledge so that we can understand and interpret the word. We need gifted singers and musicians to minister praise and thanksgiving to God. Anointed singers are skilled at leading the church into intimate places of worship and anointed music is transformational.

“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers” (Ephesians 4:11). We should desire the gifts of the spirit and spend time in the presence of God to understand what we are called to do. Our gifts and talents will make room for us to express our God given assignment. There are too many people occupying positions that they have not been called to fill. Plants grow when they are planted in soil that is appropriate for their anatomy. Your environment and those who you are surrounded by have a direct impact on your growth and maturity.

Sometimes it feels more comfortable to be around people who are just like us or who make us feel comfortable and familiar. Similarities are often important and there are times when it helps to be relatable. We have to also allow God to choose the people that will help us to grow and mature in him. We ask God to choose our friends and associates and help us to determine the environment that is appropriate for us to grow. Growth and maturity are an intentional process which takes commitment, discipline and relying on the Holy Spirit to guide our decisions.

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Following Jesus’s ascension, the apostles went around preaching the good news and continued the work of Jesus Christ. These men were so full of the presence of God that even their shadow caused people to be healed. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed (Acts 5:16). Imagine your shadow causing people to be healed from all forms of sickness and diseases. The apostles walked in divine authority and understood what Jesus meant when he said, that they would do even greater works than he did.

During the Old Testament, the ark of the covenant carried the presence of God. The people carried the ark around as they moved from place to place and the presence of God stayed in the Ark. There was an instance in the Old Testament, when David tried to transport the ark and it caused the death of one of his soldiers. David was both angry and afraid of God so he left the ark in the house of a Gittite. “And the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household” (2 Samuel 6:11).

After the coming of Jesus, the promise of the Holy Spirit is the tangible presence of God. We are vessels unto honour and the presence of God lives in us and moves through us. “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you” (1 Corinthians 3:16)? Our presence should signal to the kingdom of darkness who we are and who lives in us. With the presence of God in us, our work environment, homes and communities should be blessed. People who come in contact with us should know, that God lives in us and be able to experience his presence in our lives.

We need in this season to be so full of the presence of God and his anointing, that his power can flow through us. This power will help us to transform lives to bring healing, deliverance and freedom to those around us. Can people tell the difference in you and is it evident to those around you that God lives in you? Are people better off from knowing you and spending time with you? Does your life point people to the light of Jesus Christ? Do people want to know more about God because they see the difference that he makes in your life? Do you bear fruits of righteousness that are visible for others to see? Let us live so that others can see and experience the presence of God in us.

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Paul declared himself an apostle to the Gentiles to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who were not Jews. When he visited Athens, he was disturbed in his spirit when he saw the level of idol worship. He spent his time in the synagogue teaching the Jews and others about the salvation of Jesus Christ. “Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection” (Acts 17:18).

They took Paul and brought him before the Areopagus who were the leaders in Athens, to try to gain an understanding of what he was saying. The Athenians had a thirst for new philosophies and new ways of thinking. In addressing the group of leaders, Paul mentioned that he noticed an inscription: ‘To the unknown God.’ Paul told them about God whom he knew but to them was unknown. He told them that God made the earth and everything in it. “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place” (Acts 17:26).

Paul urged them to seek God although he was not far away from them. In expounding to them about God, Paul quoted one of their famous writers who said, ‘In him we live and move and have our being.’ Paul was telling the Athenians that they were indeed the children of God who was able to live in them as they live in him. As such there was no distinction between race, class, culture or geographical location. We are all children of the most high God and God does not show partiality. It is humans who divide people into categories to satisfy our desires for recognition and status.

We are equal in the sight of God and our qualification, experience, credit rating or bank balance does not determine our place in God. This is why Jesus said in Matthew, “whatever you have done to the least of these, you have done it unto me” (Matthew 25:40). We have taken nothing into this world and we can take nothing out with us. Let us hold our physical possessions and titles loosely as they can be here today and gone tomorrow. God created us in his image and likeness and he has assigned great value to each of his children.

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After Job lost his family and all his possessions, three of his friends came and sat with him for a few days. They took turns speaking to Job and admonishing him about his condition. Eliphaz spoke and suggested that perhaps Job was not pure in all of his ways. He admonished Job to return to God so that be would be built up and his treasures would be restored. He said that Job would be able to decree a thing and it would be established unto him and the light of God would shine upon his ways. When someone is cast down, perhaps due to pride, then there is a lifting of others who are humble. He may have suggested that Job was brought low due to pride. However, if Job knew how to humble himself, then God would raise him up again.

David was well acquainted with being low in spirit and trusting God to raise him up. In Psalm 3, he lamented of the increase of those who made trouble with him. There were many who had risen up against him and said there was no hope for him in God. “But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; My glory, and the lifter up of mine head” (Psalm 3:3). David cried unto the Lord and he heard him out of his holy hill. He laid down and slept and the Lord sustained him. His spirit was encouraged so that he was confident, not to be afraid of ten thousand of people, who set themselves against him. He trusted in God to arise, save him, smite the enemy upon the cheek and break the teeth of the ungodly.

In Psalm 24, David declared that the earth belongs to God and everything in it. He asked who would ascend into the hill of the Lord and who would stand in his holy place? Those who have clean hands and a pure heart, who had not lifted up their souls unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. Those who are holy will receive the blessing from the Lord and righteous from our God. “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; And be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; And the King of glory shall come in” (Psalm 24:7). The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord of host is our king of glory. As we lift our eyes towards God, he will lift us up, as we sit with him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Isaiah wrote of a new Jerusalem, which will arise and shine for the light of God and the glory of the Lord will be risen upon her.

We are living in dark times, yet the Lord will shine his light upon his people and his glory will be seen among us. “And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isaiah 60:3). God is gathering his people from all nations of the earth and the abundance of the seas will be converted to us. Nations shall gather around the children of God and strangers shall rebuild our walls. God will not forsake his people and he never forgets his covenants or his promises to us. It does not matter what the circumstances look like or the worldly predictions about disaster and gloom. God will raise his children and establish those who are his, so that the world will see our light and come to glorify God. “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid” (Matthew 5:14).

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