Articles
The Gods We Have Chosen
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“You have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!” (Judg. 10:13-14)
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Their first few hundred years in the land of Canaan served as a test of Israel's ability to shun the gods of their pagan neighbors. These gods were tangible and visible; their own God, Jehovah, by contrast, was abstract and distant. He even refused to be represented by an image. How can people get close to a god so ephemeral? So again and again, the nation failed the test and yielded to the allure of the other gods.
Of course, worshiping the pagan deities came as a package deal with a lot of other baggage that debased the nation's character: sexual immorality, injustice, treachery, violence, and so on. The gods they had chosen were the product of minds driven by selfish passions, so it was no coincidence that these gods would drag the nation down into a hellhole of reckless behavior. God knew what He was doing when He warned Israel to avoid idolatry, but they had to learn the hard way. The gods they had chosen came with a lot of terrible consequences--and no remedies.
Like ancient Israel, we are free to choose our gods--and there are plenty from which to choose: careers, money, entertainment, sex, alcohol and drugs, hobbies, education, investments, bigger and nicer homes and cars, vacations, and on and on. All of these provide a short-term thrill, but eventually the stimulation gives way to boredom, then to decadence. As we drift farther and farther from God, the quality of our inner life sinks lower and lower. Eventually we reach a point where God can no longer save us. God's reaction may seem cold, but we brought it on ourselves: "Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!"
Of course, they can't save us, and that's the tragedy. When we invest all our hopes and aspirations in the things of this world, they will inevitably let us down. That is why God insists that we put Him first, all the time and in every way. Serving Him is harder to do, but in Him alone will we find the strength to get us through the vicissitudes of life.
—David
