Sermon: "We All Worship" (the First Commandment) September 19, 2021

This week we're continuing with our sermon series on the Ten Commandments. This week it's number one: “you shall have no other gods before me.” You shall have no other gods before me.

In order to understand this commandment, though, it's necessary to first understand what we mean by “gods.” Which gods not to put first.

From the perspective of ancient Israel, the gods were basically bad news.

You'll remember that Israel was in bondage in Egypt for 400 years. 400 years of back-breaking forced labour, theft, and humiliation. Of course they were under the thumb of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and were there to serve him. Pharaoh's the one who cracked the whip. But Pharaoh had a master, too. Masters, actually. Egypt, like many ancient peoples had hundreds, if not thousands of gods. And while these gods were benevolent in the sense that they brought the rains, they ensured fertility, and made the crops possible, human beings more or less existed to serve them. To meet their needs. So even though Pharaoh was at the top, he had a boss, too.

So the Israelites were the least of the least, at the bottom of the social pyramid, if you'll excuse the pun. And Egypt's gods were the ones that put them there. The gods were the justification for their degradation. They spent all day seven days in the brickyard. They were whipped and worked to death not just for Pharaoh's sake, but for the gods and their glory. These gods were incredibly cruel task masters, it was take, take, take. With only the bear threads of existence given in return.

From the perspective of ancient Israel the Egyptian gods were basically bad news. They were selfish, vindictive, and oppressive. Used to justify their bondage. Why you wouldn't want to worship these gods makes a whole lot of sense.

It may have perfect sense to Moses and the Israelites, but it makes a lot less sense to us. Of course the ancient world was packed to the gils with all sorts of gods. Statues were everywhere, there was a temple on every corner, and a shrine in every home. But in our post-Christian world, we more or less tuck these things in the “mythology” section of the book store. Ancient superstitions that we have—thankfully—left behind us with a flat earth.

The famous atheist biologist Richard Dawkins once wryly said that the only difference between him and Christians is that he believes in one fewer god. This was, of course, to suggest that one god is just as superstitious as many. But it does illustrate a point—religious and non-religious people alike highly unlikely to turn to polytheism, to the Egyptians and their gods. We won’t be rolling out the red carpet Zeus, Odin, or Amon-Ra when times get tough any time soon. This commandment may have had made more sense, demanded more urgency for Moses and other ancient peoples. But for us, not so much. Our choice seems to be one or none.

This, however, depends on a rather narrow definition of “gods.” The great Reformer, Martin Luther, commenting on the first commandment way back in the 16th century, defined “gods” more broadly than just the personalities of the pagan pantheons. “What is it to have a god?” he asked. “What is it to have a god?” “Answer: A god is that to which we look for all good and in which we find refuge in every time of need. To have a god is nothing else than to trust and believe him with our whole heart... That to which your heart clings and entrusts itself is, I say, really your god.” Gods don’t have to be a tiny gold statue, or a guy wearing a viking helmet wielding a giant hammer. Luther says that if someone has “great learning, wisdom, power, prestige, family, and honour, and trusts in them, he also has a god.”[i] Whatever we put our hearts to, dedicate our lives to is our god.

I mean it’s interesting that the first commandment that's broken in the Bible really is the first commandment. Way back in Genesis. Adam and Eve eat fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, despite the fact that God warned them not to saying that they would be “like god, knowing good from evil.” The first instance of this commandment being broken is when human beings wanted to be gods themselves. The primal sin is self-centeredness, putting ourselves at the center of the world. Whatever we organize our life around, direct our hearts towards. That is our god. You don't even have to believe in gods to have them.

What's more, though, is that today’s gods operate in the same way as the old ones do.

I'm reminded of a commencement address given by the late journalist and novelist, David Foster Wallace in 2005 titled “This is Water.” Wallace struggled his entire life with depression, and flirted with multiple faith traditions—trying Catholicism twice—before ending his life in 2008. In this address he kinda sounds like Luther. And he warns college students as they graduate and enter the real world to be on guard against our many gods and their demands.

“In the day-to-day trenches of adult life,” he says, “In adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.” He continues:

“If you worship money and things, if they are where you tap real meaning in life, then you will never have enough, never feel you have enough. It’s the truth. Worship your body and beauty and sexual allure and you will always feel ugly. And when time and age start showing, you will die a million deaths before they finally grieve you [...] Worship power, you will end up feeling weak and afraid, and you will need ever more power over others to numb you to your own fear. Worship your intellect, being seen as smart, you will end up feeling stupid, a fraud, always on the verge of being found out.”[ii]

You’re likely familiar with Naomi Osaka, the Japanese-American tennis player. Osaka, one of the world’s highest ranked tennis players, has been candid in the news about her mental health struggles. Most recently she decided to take a hiatus from playing, citing these same concerns. “Recently,” she said, “recently when I win, I don’t feel happy. I feel more like a relief.” “When I win, I don’t feel happy. I feel more like a relief. When I lose I feel very sad and I don’t think that’s normal.”[iii] Tennis, for Osaka, has become a cruel task master. One that doesn’t give joy, or meaning, or purpose. But simply relief when she wins. Rejection, and devastation when she doesn’t.

We still have our gods, even if we don't believe in them. Everybody worships. Whether its money, beauty, sex, beauty, youth, family power and intellect, we all have gods that we organize our lives around. They may not be the old gods, but they're just as demanding, self-centered and deceptive. Even good things like family, community, friendship. Incredible athletic abilities. They promise everything but never actually deliver on any of it. It's why we're so damn unhappy. We can give them our whole lives, and in the end they'll leave us hungry, empty, anxious and alone. We all have gods.

What's yours?

Everybody worships. We all have our gods. Who just take and take and take, and leave us unsatisfied.

So what's the alternative?

A friend of mine in university once told me that his god was “doing good.” That's certainly appealing, sounds good. What's wrong with that? The truth, though, is that “doing good” can be just as demanding a god as all the others. Because there's no way we can ever be good enough or do enough. It's a reason why activists often throw in the towel after a few years. It's why “compassion fatigue” is a thing. The world is bottomless need.

The alternative, I guess, is the first commandment. “Do not put any other gods before me.” The “me” being the God of Israel. The God of Jacob, Isaac, Abraham and Sarah. Yahweh, the God who brought the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery. The God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead.

Why? Well, because this god is different from all the other gods. Whereas the Egyptian gods enslaved the Israelites to further their gains, this God's first purpose was their liberation. Whereas the Egyptian gods were dedicated to their own selfishness and aggrandizement, putting themselves before the needs of humanity, this god's first move was satisfying their needs in the wilderness. Water from the rock, bread from heaven.

It's part of a larger pattern in the Bible.

This is the kind of God, though she needed nothing from the world, and brought it into being out of pure, self-giving love.

This is the kind of god who breaks chains, brings exiles home, and fills the hungry with good things.

This is the kind of God who sends the rain on the just and the unjust alike. The kind of God who heals the sick, has mercy and compassion on sinners. The kind of God who isn't waiting for us to get our lives together to bless us or to help those who can help themselves. But one who gives us all good things abundantly, generously and without fail.

The kind of god who came not to be served, but to serve, that we may have life, and have it in the full, the kind of god who would give himself in the form of his Son on a cross... for the salvation of the world.

This god is unlike all the other Gods.

And the alternative to all the other gods who will just eat us alive is to put this God first above all others. This is why faith is so central to our tradition. It's not about simply believing God exists, or about holding particular doctrines, ideas, or concepts. As important as these may be. It's about what our hearts cling to. It's about who we trust to give us life. And, unlike all the others whose mode is take, take, take. This God's very nature is love. To give, and give, and give, from beginning to end. Even the commandments themselves are a gift, the gift of full life with God. And there’s nothing we have to do to earn it. It’s already given.

The truth is that we all have our gods, whether we call them gods or not. They promise everything, but in the end we are left with nothing. The good news is that there is an alternative—the first commandment. To put the true, good god above all others. A god who isn’t out for herself, but is heaven-bent on bringing us life. The promise is that if we put our trust in this God, If we put this god before all others, all those other things we long for. Truth, beauty, goodness, peace, justice, hope, and love. These are all simple longings for what only the True God can give. And with this God, all those things the other gods promise on, but won't deliver, all these are given for free and without price.

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be given unto you.”[iv]

May the ever-giving God of grace have mercy on us, and incline our hearts to keep this law.[v]

Amen.

[i]     Martin Luther, quoted in Thomas Oden, “No Other Gods,” in I am the Lord Your God: Christian Reflections on the Ten Commandments, ed. Carl Braaten and Christopher Seitz (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 41.

[ii]    David Foster Wallace, “This is Water,” Address to Kenyon College, 2005. https://fs.blog/2012/04/david-foster-wallace-this-is-water/

[iii] https://www.nbcnews.com/news/sports/naomi-osaka-thinking-about-taking-break-tennis-while-after-u-n1278507

[iv] Matthew 6:33, King James Version.

[v] Refrain from the Ten Commandments in The Book of Common Prayer used in this morning’s service for confession.