Many of us will say, "There is only one God." But according to scripture, saying it isn't enough. God didn't ask that we simply believe He exists or merely carry the label of "Christian". Let's be honest, our society is a lot like Israel and Judah during the time of Jeremiah. We tend to get sucked right into other belief systems, adopting a little bit of this and a little of that, until the things that were once clear to us get watered down and then forgotten --and The God is dishonored. We've all done it, including myself.
I'm not saying we're supposed to be rude, intolerant and closed-minded. And I'm not saying we should ever stop learning. I'm saying that we are in control of our own hearts and our own faith, and the lifestyle we choose influences those things. Without a real relationship with God, we don't really know who He is and we are easily swayed. But we can't blame anyone else when we allow every thing that comes along to steal away our dedication and devotion to that One God. When this happens, it's telling of a lack of deep connection or root, revealing we never did our part to start with.
For my people are fools; they do not know me. They are foolish children without understanding. They are skilled in doing what is evil, but they do not know how to do what is good. Jeremiah 4:22
The first thing I notice here is the link between a lack of understanding and evil. And because God is angry here, it's clear that the lack of understanding, the lack of knowledge of Him is out of a choice on the people's part. I was once one of them, I lacked it. I was superficial and had no real sight beyond the surface of life...i lived most of my life that way and I was miserable. But then one day I wanted it. I asked for understanding. I sought it. I still crave and seek it. Why? Because I've tried many things and I know that there is no other hope. Nothing else fulfills. Nothing else is this solid and no one else is as stable as my God. The stuff in this world is temporary, but God is permanent.
There is no one so trustworthy and merciful. But when His tenderness is disregarded, when we deal treacherously with Him, He will not tolerate it. He has boundaries. Good ones. He loves us, He cares. He wants our hearts to care for Him and love Him in return, but He will not be used and abused. He won't have us mixing who He is with any other. He won't have us mixing His gospel with feel good theologies of humanistic-based religions. He wants our whole heart, the surrender of self. Nothing less.
I have some personal experience in this area beyond myself. Just to help you understand how bad this mix of gods with God has gotten, here is an example. I have personally been judged for sharing my faith. People have tried to manipulate me to stop sharing it and have even gone so far as to challenge it. They mean well and are usually "Christians". It's as if many "believers" in this culture want to keep the gospel to themselves for fear of offending other religions. I will go a step farther and say it's as if the acting out of radical, real, life-changing faith is too convicting for many of those who have heard the gospel and claim to believe it. But their obvious offense says there must be some lack of faith...some watering down of sorts.
What did I learn? That the things that offend us say something about our own hearts. The things we take seriously do too. Please understand that I say this in love. If the sharing of scripture or personal experiences that others have with God offend you, maybe you've been influenced by a little bit of this and a little of that. Maybe it's time to repent and ask God to clean out those areas that aren't influenced by Him. Ask Him to help you get to know Him so that you aren't so easily pulled into, or influenced by other gods. May the One true God be first in our hearts..your and mine. Always.
