In our text Yahweh recalls His covenant with Israel. This is the basis of
His action to rescue Israel. Our text includes a list of things that Yahweh
will do for Israel because of the covenant relationship that He has with
them. In the midst of that we find this summary statement explaining the
covenant. ‘I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you
shall know that I am Yahweh, your God, who has brought you out from under
the burdens of the Egyptians.’ [verse 7]‘I will be your God.’ This is the
heart of the covenant. We’re going to look at this summary statement in the
hope that it will help us understand our own hearts and thus follow Jesus
more faithfully.
Let’s start with a question. What does, ‘I am your God’ mean? Some might
misunderstand the question and answer this way. ‘Well, that means that He is
God. You know, He dwells above in heaven, rules over all things, is eternal
and omniscient. You know, He’s God.’ But that isn’t what our text is saying.
It isn’t a claim to divinity. It says, ‘I am your God’. It is a fact of life
in this, our very fallen world that there are many gods. Consider Egypt.
They weren’t atheists. They had faith in a god. They called him ‘god’ and
probably also ‘lord’. But the name of the god of the Egyptians wasn’t
Yahweh. It was Ra. That was the name of one of the Egyptian gods. So, it
makes sense when Paul writes this to the Corinthians: ‘… there may be
so-called gods in heaven or on earth – as indeed there are many "gods" and
many "lords" …’[1 Corinthians 8:5] Today, we know about these other gods.
They have names like Allah, Adonai, Vishnu. They are all ‘gods’ and are
called ‘Lord’. But our text isn’t a claim to be the only true God. In our
text Yahweh is merely saying, ‘I am your God. They may have their gods, but
I am your God.’ Everyone has some god or gods. That’s because of the way we
have been created. There is a role in each person life that can be filled
only by a god. A person’s god is intended to meet his needs and satisfy his
longings. And each person responds to his god. This is who or what he loves,
fears, hopes in, receives comfort from, looks to, worships, serves and more.
And so, in our text – and in many other texts – Yahweh is saying to Israel,
‘All that a god is to do and be, that is what I am to you. I am your God.’
So, while the people around us have their various gods, for us, Yahweh is
God. And He has made Himself known to us through Jesus. This text speaks to
us. ‘I am your God’. We acknowledge that as true. That is why we have
gathered this morning. We are here to worship our God through Jesus and in
the power of the Holy Spirit.
But there is a problem. We are not consistent. We say that we believe in the
one God of the Bible. We say that He is our God. And we say this honestly
and sincerely. But when you get down to the nitty-gritty of life you will
find that there are other gods in your life filling the role reserved for
Yahweh. That is the essence of sin. In this or that situation, you look to
someone or something other than Yahweh to act as your God.
Before we go any further I want to make sure that I’ve been clear. I’ve told
you three things. First, I’ve explained the idea that there are many gods
out there, each with its own group of followers. Second, for us there is but
one God. Yahweh – Father, Son and Spirit – is our God. That is the sum of
the covenant. And then third, there is a problem. We are not always faithful
to our covenant relationship. There are times when we allow someone or
something else to intrude on this relationship and fill the role of God in
our lives.
It’s this third part that I want to develop. My goal is for you to be able
to understand your own heart in this matter so that the false gods residing
there will be exposed and dealt with. But how do we get to the heart?
Understanding our own hearts can be very difficult. The best way to know the
heart is to see how it reveals itself in the behavior. Jesus said, ‘Out of
the heart the mouth speaks.’ How you act reveals what is going on in your
heart. So, let’s develop this with a question. What gets you up in the
morning? I mentioned this to Gabrielle when I was talking with her last
week. Her answer was, ‘My alarm clock.’ I hope it’s obvious that I’m talking
about something else. Do you know one sign of a very depressed person? He
doesn’t get out of bed. Do you know why? There isn’t a good enough reason.
Each of you gets up each morning. You have a good enough reason to do that.
What is it? What justifies leaving the comfort of your bed to start the day?
How you answer that question reveals your heart. It reveals who your god is,
at least at that time each morning.
Consider Bill. Bill is a faithful Christian who has been having some
problems lately. So, he goes to his pastor to try to get some help. He tells
his pastor that life has been really hard lately. He seems to be feeling
down all the time. There is no joy, and he has these vague thoughts of
trying to escape his life in some way. So, the pastor asks Bill our
question. ‘What gets you going in the morning?’ Bill replies, ‘Well, that
has been getting more and more difficult, but ultimately I tell myself that
I really need to get to the job.’ The pastor follows this with, ‘Oh, why is
that? What would happen if you didn’t get to the job?’ Here, Bill physically
flinches. ‘Oh, I couldn’t do that. I might get fired. My boss isn’t very
understanding. Too many mess ups and you’re gone. I’ve seen it happen.’ ‘And
why would losing that job be so bad?’ ‘You have no idea of the bills that I
have. My mortgage is huge. There are the credit cards. And then I want to
take good care of my kids. You need to feed and clothe them. And college is
looming. Plus, my wife enjoys buying things to make the house look nice.
And, like any good husband, I want to make her happy. If I lost my job at my
age I don’t know if I could get another that pays as well. I think my wife
would be mad at me and I’d be a failure to my kids. I couldn’t imagine
trying to make ends meet on less.’
What gets Bill up each morning? At 6 A.M. who or what functions as his god?
There’s the job and what it provides for him and his family. ‘Gotta have
this job.’ Then, there is his boss who can ruin his family by firing him.
‘Have to keep him happy.’ Then there is the wife and kids and the pressure
he feels because of them. ‘Need to please them.’ Bill has a true faith in
Jesus, but at 6 A.M. each morning Bill’s functional god is someone other
than Jesus. Do you see the point? A god is whoever or whatever you love,
fear, hope in, receive comfort from, look to, worship, serve and more. Jesus
says to us, ‘I am your God.’ But that is breaking down in Bill’s life.
Consider another scenario. Samantha is a new believer. She has been coming
faithfully to Sunday worship and the weekly Bible Study for several weeks
since her conversion. She’s growing in her understanding of the Gospel as
her questions at the Bible Study show. In getting to know Samantha the
pastor of the church discovers that her boyfriend sometimes stays overnight
at her apartment. As the pastor gently asks questions it becomes clear that
there is immorality occurring. And so, the pastor shows Samantha what the
Scriptures have to say about this. Samantha has questions which the pastor
patiently and fully answers. Then the pastor reminds Samantha that Jesus
will graciously forgive any sin and gently calls her to repent. But Samantha
replies by saying, ‘But it seems so right to have him stay overnight.’ The
pastor reviews what the Scriptures teach, but Samantha again replies, ‘But
it seems so right to have him stay.’ In this situation, who is Samantha’s
god? Who or what is she submitting to and obeying?
One more. Andy is a high school senior all set to graduate. He finds out
that he has been accepted by Yale and is he ever excited. He shares his
excitement with his pastor. But the pastor tells Andy, ‘I’d like you to
consider something Jesus said.’ Then he quotes from Luke. ‘A disciple is not
above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his
teacher.’ [Luke 6:40] His pastor tells Andy that the teachers at Yale will
train him to think as if there were no God, as if Jesus didn’t matter. His
pastor warns Andy of the dangers, to which Andy replies, ‘But if I graduate
from Yale I’ll be sure to get a job that pays really well.’ Who or what is
Andy’s god in this situation?
I hope my point is clear. Our behavior – the things that we say, the choices
we make, the fears that we give into, the dreams we pursue – all reveal what
is going on in our hearts. They reveal who or what is functioning as our god
in that particular situation. Aware of this, Jesus speaks, and He says to
each one of you, ‘I am your God. I am the one you are to honor, fear, love,
hope in, flee to, trust, obey, enjoy, delight in, praise, submit to, standup
for, live for, suffer for, die for.’ Anything that doesn’t fit with your
embracing Him whole-heartedly as your God exists in you because of another,
competing god. Your goal is clearly stated in Psalm 73. ‘Whom have I in
heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.’
This does not mean that you should become a monk and just pray all day. It
does mean that all that you do is done for Jesus, is done as a response to
Him as your God. What you do, you do because you love Jesus. A quote from an
early Church Father fits here. ‘He loves Thee too little who loves anything
together with Thee which he loves not for Thy sake.’ [St. Augustine]
Because of all that I’ve said there is a sad fact that you must confront.
You are an idolater. There are other gods alive and well in your heart. And
in different situations they fill the role that only Jesus is supposed to
fill. You may not have some statue in your front yard, but the fact remains
that you have broken the First Commandment, ‘You shall have no other gods in
my presence.’ You have broken the covenant. It may have happened so subtly
that you have not even noticed it. Jesus should let you pursue your gods for
the rest of your life and suffer the consequences when they fail you. And
they will fail you. Every false god does, sooner or later. And then, He
should consign you to the hell that you deserve. But He is a gracious God.
Instead, He calls you to repentance and faith. Repent of your sin and then
come again to Jesus for forgiveness and for change. Come, believe the
Gospel.
