Much like Abraham allowed his dream of a son to bear idolatry in his heart, Hannah has to come face-to-face with her own struggles with this pernicious sin. God’s first commandment to His people through Moses on Mount Sinai was, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exod. 20:2–4). It is a simple command which precludes any other loves that might supersede the One who is love. Sometimes God, in His wisdom and mercy, will not allow us to have something we want so badly, because He knows it will destroy us by distracting us from the One who is all we need. In Samuel 1:24–28 I talks about Worship unto the LORD. God’s desire is that we give up what we deem “good” for what He deems “best.” This requires faith in God’s heart and God’s Word. It could not have been easy for Hannah to give up Samuel. After all, she was physically and emotionally attached to this child. Yet she found strength to carry out her promise to God because she was spiritually attached to the LORD. In her carnal mind, she could have provided a thousand reasons to keep her greatest gift. But instead, she offers Samuel back to the LORD, which is nothing short of an act of worship that God uses to bless a nation. A great test of whether something is an idol in your life is to ask: “Do I sin to get it or sin to keep it?” Examine your heart everyday for any idols you might find. What idols in your life indicate a settling for something “good” over possessing what is God’s “best”? Seek with all sincerity to separate that which may separate you from the Lord.
Posted on: Sun, 02 Feb 2014 04:44:45 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015