Happy Weekend!

Good morning family!  I hope everyone had a safe Friday night and continues to have a safe and blessed weekend.  I went to see the movie Colored Girls last night.  It was interesting...and that's all I'm going to say about that. 

I started this blog not knowing what I was going to say this morning, but I feel the spirit leading me back to some notes I wrote earlier this week on idolatry.  So let's start there.  It is sad to me that we are so quick to shake our heads and criticize people in the bible when in reality we are falling into the same traps.  For example, God told the Isrealites not to marry with other nations (Exodus 34:12-17).  This had nothing to do with racism and everything to do with their relationship with God.  God didn't want them being influenced to do anything that was contrary to Him.  This is still God's desire. And this is not God's desire out of pride or selfishness, but out of love.  Anytime we get off God's path for us, we put ourselves in grave danger of heading toward destruction (I'm sure there are some people reading that can testify to that). and that's the last thing He wants for us.

Whether marriage or friendship, when we bind ourselves with someone who doesn't share our love of God, this is called being unequally yoked.  The bible says in II Corinthians 6:14-16,

Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.  For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness?  And what communion has light with darkness?  And what accord has Christ with Belial?  Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols?  For you are the temple of the living God.

If you look at the picture above you will see that a yoke was a tool used to keep oxen in line with each other when plowing the field.  If one of the oxen was out of alignment, it would put undue strain on the other oxen.  The same is true in the spiritual realm.  If we are yoked at differnt spiritual levels we are bound to experience some undue strain in our lives, and I can tell you from experience it will be a lot easier for them to pull you down then for you to pull them up.  If you look at the yoke again, you will notice that it wasn't a fixture that could be easily broken out of.  Once you were hooked up, you were in it for the long haul.  So God, isn't telling us not to go around unbelievers at all.  That would go completely against Matthew 28:19.  For some people we know, we may be the only bible they ever see.  Instead God is telling us, do not be joined so tightly that their every move effects the steps we take. 

When we are determined to be unequally yoked despite what God says, we are putting our love for other people over our love for Him, and this is idolatry.  This is probably one of the most familiar forms of idolatry in present day, but it is by no means the only form.  I want to share a list of things that I think the world consistently puts ahead of God, so that we, being made aware, can be strong and uncompromising in our faith.  I'm sure I've missed things so don't hesitate to add to the list.

• fame
• fortune
• success
• power
• pursuit of education
• science
• history
• drugs
• sex
• alcohol
• sororities/fraternities
• friends
• family
• spouse
• self
• superstars
• talk show hosts
• president
• pastor
• ministires
• Mary
• angels
• holidays
• morals
• the cross
• other religions