No Other God

(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)

Within our lives we each possess a sacred “God place”—that place designed by God for God. Only He has the right to occupy this position in our lives. From this God place He rules over our souls and replenishes our hearts with His validating love while establishing our identity. When any other entity occupies this place, we are guilty of idolatry.

The Old Testament is replete with warnings and consequences that result when idols invade the lives of God’s chosen people. Although we may dismiss these passages because they are often connected with the pagan gods of Baal or Asherah, these admonitions also apply to modern life where we continuously allow other entities to fill our God place and dictate our lives.

Any substitution for God we permit to establish our identity, love, significance, or security is an idol. These counterfeits break the heart of God. He aches as He watches our foolish endeavors to find completion in our lives through empty alternatives.

This is what the LORD says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies:

“I am the First and the Last;
      there is no other God.
Who is like me?
      Let him step forward and prove to you his power.
Let him do as I have done since ancient times
      when I established a people and explained its future.
Do not tremble; do not be afraid.
      Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago?
You are my witnesses—is there any other God?
      No! There is no other Rock—not one!”

How foolish are those who manufacture idols.
      These prized objects are really worthless.
The people who worship idols don’t know this,
      so they are all put to shame.
Who but a fool would make his own god—
      an idol that cannot help him one bit?
All who worship idols will be disgraced
      along with all these craftsmen—mere humans—
      who claim they can make a god.
They may all stand together,
      but they will stand in terror and shame.

The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool,
      pounding and shaping it with all his might.
His work makes him hungry and weak.
      It makes him thirsty and faint.
Then the wood-carver measures a block of wood
      and draws a pattern on it.
He works with chisel and plane
      and carves it into a human figure.
He gives it human beauty
      and puts it in a little shrine.
He cuts down cedars;
      he selects the cypress and the oak;
he plants the pine in the forest
      to be nourished by the rain.
Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire.
      With it he warms himself and bakes his bread.
Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it
      and makes himself a god to worship!
He makes an idol
      and bows down in front of it!
He burns part of the tree to roast his meat
      and to keep himself warm.
      He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.”
Then he takes what’s left
      and makes his god: a carved idol!
He falls down in front of it,
      worshiping and praying to it.
“Rescue me!” he says.
      “You are my god!”

Such stupidity and ignorance!
      Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see.
      Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
The person who made the idol never stops to reflect,
      “Why, it’s just a block of wood!
I burned half of it for heat
      and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat.
How can the rest of it be a god?
      Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?”
The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes.
      He trusts something that can’t help him at all.
Yet he cannot bring himself to ask,
      “Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?” (Isa. 44:6–20 NLT)

What idol are you holding on to?

Christ Is Relevant to Feelings

“I can’t change my feelings!”

All too often our feelings expose what we would rather keep hidden. When confronted by the exposure, we argue that we can’t change our feelings. And then we deceptively believe that we must be dictated by our feelings. This may include feelings of anger, love, fear, insecurity, and on and on the list could go.

The excuses come in forms such as:
      “You can’t help who you love.”
      “He can’t control his anger.”
      “This is just the way I am.”
      “You know I can’t change how I feel.”

Jesus teaches that behaviors reveal the soul as easily as a tree is known by its fruit.

"Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions." (Matt. 7:15–20 NLT)

Behavior is a direct descendent of belief that reveals the condition of the soul. Mark adds to Matthew’s narrative by emphasizing the reason the behavior can reveal the heart—the heart establishes the behavior.

And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” (Mark 7:20–23 NLT)

Our spiritual condition ultimately is what controls our values, which affects our beliefs and establish our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Behavior modification may work on dogs, and even on people for a time; but if the heart is not set on God and His ways, then all thoughts, feelings, and behaviors will continue to pursue whatever self desires.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things,
      and desperately wicked.
      Who really knows how bad it is?
But I, the LORD, search all hearts
      and examine secret motives.
I give all people their due rewards,
      according to what their actions deserve.” (Jer. 17:9–10 NLT)

God must reveal our condition to us as we draw so close to Him that His light can make all things clear. We must desire to see the truth of who we really are and who God really is. Only when we yield our hearts to God’s will and our wills to God’s heart can we know that our values, beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and actions are in line with His desires for us.

Do you have feelings that need to be changed?

Yes, Christ is capable of changing your feelings!

Christ Is Relevant to Hurt

“You hurt my feelings.”

When we utter these words, what are we really saying?
“Shame on you. It is your job to make me feel good, and you failed in your job.”
“How you make me feel can change my day.”
“I am unstable and need you to not rock my world.”
“Christ is not sufficient for me. You can affect my mood more than He can.”

Ouch!! You want to quit reading, don’t you? All our defense mechanisms rise to counter with, “So you think I shouldn’t have any feelings?” “If Christ is really relevant in my life I’m not suppose to feel anything; I’m just going to be happy all the time?”

The truth of the matter is that our hurt feelings are symptoms of the fact that we getting our validation from someone other than God – some one or some thing is making us feel love, significant, and secure. God designed us to find our love, significance, and security in Him. He is the One who never changes, and therefore can offer us stability as He validates our identity.

God wants us to be complete in the person of Christ, the position of His child, and the possession of His righteousness. His love tells us, “You are valued.” As His children we have significance that states, “You have purpose.” Because of His righteousness we have security that declares, “You are safe.”

By expecting to gain validation from another, we give them access to the God-place of our souls—that place designed by God for God. Only He has the right to occupy this position in our lives. From this God place He rules over our souls and replenishes our hearts with His validating love while establishing our identity.

Inevitably when our chosen God substitute fails to give us the validation we desire, we experience marginalization – the sense that we are not valued. The outcome is a diminished sense of love, significance, and security. With wounded souls, our feelings are hurt. This warning signal should cause us to notice that God is not in His proper place in our lives.

Jesus said, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26 NLT).

The God place of our souls is designed for Jesus. Boundaries should be built around this sacred place to assure that none other but Christ resides there. It should be guarded by our fear of God with our appropriate view of God serving as the sentinel. The highest of all that is lofty should be ascribed to Jesus so that He attracts in full our hearts, minds, and souls, capturing our strength with the truth of His glory and virtue. Then Jesus becomes central because He is preeminent. We come to see Him in truth, as He actually is—Lord, Savior, lover of our souls, champion of our hearts.

When we choose to place Christ in His rightful position in our lives, peace and joy begin to pervade as the resident norm. Life now is a continuous process of experiencing Jesus relevantly to our lives—exploring how He is relevant to every new challenge of our souls.

Why then would we seek another?

Christ Is Relevant to Entertainment

relevant: having significant and demonstrable bearing on the matter at hand; affording evidence tending to prove or disprove the matter at issue or under discussion. (Webster's dictionary)

This is Travis' story:

Although I was raised in church my whole life, I was really only saved about four years ago. I had lived a life full of idolatry. I had so many gods in my life – alcohol, motorcycles, dependency on women, rock music, and positions I had, not just at work, but my ranking with other people.

About two years after I became a Christian our small group started working through the concepts of Desperate Dependency. It was a huge eye opening experience for me. My perception of what it means to be a Christian fundamentally changed. It was not necessarily just a change in how I view God, but how God views me and therefore, how I am to live in light of that.

When I was saved I was very heavily involved in alcoholism. God didn’t just help me work through it, He took it from me. He literally took the taste for it out of my mouth overnight. Which is an amazing thing to say.

But I had two idols that didn’t go away as easily – my participation with the motorcycle culture and my involvement with rock music. I was struggling with those things still. The lure of my motorcycles sort of moved out by the wayside over time, but I was still clinging to my music. It had been an anchor of my life for over 20 years. It wasn’t just that I enjoyed listening to the music, but I invested my time, my money, and my energy in traveling around the country to tape concerts for my personal pleasure. I enjoyed the thrill of being able to capture the moment and the prestige that came from others as a result. And then I would spend countless hours categorizing my accomplishments to put on display. I was very proud of my treasures.

As our small group started studying Job, I was impressed by the concept that God said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job?” (Job 1:8) Then we came to Isaiah 44:8 where God speaks and says,

“‘Do not tremble and do not be afraid;
Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?
And you are My witnesses.
Is there any God besides Me,
Or is there any other Rock?
I know of none.’” (NASB)

God used those Scriptures to hammer home to me what I was doing. I pictured God saying, “Have you considered my servant Travis?” and pointing me out to the world saying, “Here is my witness that there is no other god.” Then a lost world looks at me, but still I was hiding behind my back the idol of rock music that gave me my worth, value, and significance. It may seem simple to have something like that there, but it was a huge thing that took away so much time from my relationship with God. It was getting to the point that when I was presented with the choice between music and studying God’s Word, I was having a real tough decision about what I wanted to do.

That whole concept of me sitting there holding this god behind my back while people were looking at me just tore me up. It came down to the choice, “was I going to be obedient to what He was showing me?” It wasn’t that God was just going to take this from me like He did alcohol. I was faced with a decision as to whether or not I was going to be obedient to what God was asking me to do.

I struggled with that for two months. Once I started laying it down, the peace came to me and it started being easier and easier. The concept of divine enablement meeting with personal empowerment became clearer to me. God is giving me the strength I need to accomplish the task He asks me to do.


What idol is God asking you to put away?

Christ Is Relevant to Your Burdens

relevant: having significant and demonstrable bearing on the matter at hand; affording evidence tending to prove or disprove the matter at issue or under discussion. (Webster's dictionary)

(excerpt from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)

As a three-and-a-half-year-old boy, I (Kirk) remember carrying water during a drought in a galvanized bucket from a spring across the dirt road where we lived in rural North Carolina. I recall using both arms and bumping the heavy pail full of water from side to side between my legs. While water sloshed out onto the ground behind me, Mama said, “Honey, there won’t be any water left by the time we get home.” Still, I was determined to carry the water. I wanted to be strong like Daddy. My hands hurt as the old metal handle dug into my palms. The bucket dragged the ground, providing temporary relief as my hands swelled with pain. But we still had not crossed the road.

Then came the unexpected. From somewhere behind me with a singular motion my dad swooped his little boy onto his shoulders while he shifted my load into his large, strong hands. With both my trembling hands I desperately grasped his jet-black hair. I was terrified, I was thrilled, and I was on top of the world. Though only three-and-a-half years old I now possessed all the power of my father. I was living beyond myself, beyond my capabilities. I was now walking in the awesome power of my dad. No longer did I need to struggle to accomplish my task; I merely had to rest in his strength.

The extent of God’s blessings does not stop with the discovery of the divine treasure of salvation, for within the celestial cavern glows the continuing grace of God through Jesus Christ our Sustainer. Grace, practically understood, is the power to live supplied by God. Jesus literally gives us the capacity to live beyond ourselves. Specifically, He enables us to live beyond our fleshly abilities to be empowered by His divine nature. When our feeble flesh cries, “I can’t do this,” we can reach for His supply of grace and recognize that we do not have to face any issue in life with our meager capabilities.

“Then call on me when you are in trouble,
      and I will rescue you,
      and you will give me glory” (Ps. 50:15 NLT).

God anticipates every challenge, while enabling us through His grace to have the power to live Jesus’ life on earth. All His spiritual, psychological, and interpersonal power that is beyond our comprehension and aptitude is made user-friendly through God’s truth in our lives. We are not required to have a thorough understanding of the inner workings of God’s abilities, nor a profound knowledge of the intricacies of our problems. It is sufficient to know, “I am hurting”; “I am afraid”; or “I am sinking”; and that God is able to rescue me from this present evil world as I desperately depend upon Jesus Christ. A desperate dependency on Jesus reveals God’s abundant power:

“The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
      he rescues those whose spirits are crushed” (Ps. 34:18 NLT).

Jesus addresses the needs of our heart through enlightenment, drawing directly from His principles, precepts, and promises concerning Himself, thereby aiding His children to experience Him as relevant to the needs of their human condition. God works without ceasing to provide us with His grace.

What do you need from God to get through your day?

Christ Is Relevant to Meaninglessness

Warren Wiersbe gives us a perspective on life and living in his discussion on Ecclesiastes taken from the Be Transformed Study Bible.

It’s as if Solomon were telling us, “Life is filled with difficulties and perplexities, and there’s much that nobody can understand, let alone control. From the human point of view, it’s all meaningless and folly. But life is God’s gift to us, and he wants us to enjoy it and use it for his glory. So, instead of complaining about what you don’t have, start giving thinks for what you do have—and be satisfied!”

Ecclesiastes contains a message for the faithful believer who wants to serve the Lord and have a fulfilled life in Jesus Christ. Solomon wrote, in effect, “Don’t bury your head in the sand and pretend that problems don’t exist. They do! Face life honestly, but look at life from God’s perspective. Human philosophies will fail you. Use your God-given wisdom, but don’t expect to solve every problem or answer every question. What is important is to obey God’s will and enjoy all that he gives you. Remember, death is coming—so be prepared!”

Life without Jesus Christ is indeed “meaningless—like chasing the wind” (Eccl 1:14). But when you know Christ personally, and live for him faithfully, you experience "the joy of [God’s] presence and the pleasures of living with [him] forever" (Ps 16:11).

Ecclesiastes and its writer, Solomon, can best be understood by remembering the final written lines: “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad” (Eccl. 12:13-14). This is one story to read with the ending in mind.

The last phrase in 12:13, “for this is everyone’s duty,” can be translated “this is the end of a person” (that is, a person’s purpose in life), or “this is for all people.” When Solomon looked at life “under the sun,” everything was fragmented and he could see no pattern. But when he looked at life from God’s point of view “under heaven,” everything came together into one whole. If a person wants to have wholeness, he or she must begin with God.

Life is tough, but it is the gift of God. Life doesn’t get easier if you try to run away from it. All the works that are done “under the sun” never truly satisfy the heart. They are “meaningless.” Both the workaholic and the alcoholic are running away from reality and living on substitutes, and one day the bubble of illusion will burst. We only make life harder when we try to escape. Instead of running away from life, we should run to God and let him make life worth living.

“While still seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in the world” (Eccl. 2:3). “Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure…. But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere” (Eccl. 2:10-11). If we rejoice in the gifts, but forget the Giver then we are ungrateful idolaters. If we cooperate with God’s timing, life will not be meaningless. Everything will be “beautiful for its own time” (Eccl. 3:11), even the most difficult experiences of life. God is sovereign and has a time and a purpose for everything (Rom. 8:28).

“He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end” (Eccl. 3:11). “God’s purpose is that people should fear him” (Eccl. 3:14). Life is not in vain if it is lived according to the will of God. So when we live for him and let him have his way, life is meaningful and manageable. Instead of complaining about what we don’t have, let’s enjoy what we do have and thank God for it.

Jesus Christ says, “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10). Paul declares, “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless” (1 Cor. 15:58).

Is life worth living? Yes, if you are truly alive through faith in Jesus Christ. Then you can be satisfied, no matter what God may permit to come to your life. “Whoever has the Son has life, whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life” (1 John 5:12). You can receive life in Christ and–be satisfied!

Christ Is Relevant to Relationships

relevant: having significant and demonstrable bearing on the matter at hand; affording evidence tending to prove or disprove the matter at issue or under discussion. (Webster's dictionary)

When we live independently from God we search for a substitute as our validating source. Without a desperate dependency on Him we establish a counterfeit connection with people, positions, and possessions in our pursuit for validation. We extract love from illicit relationships to prove that we are lovable, to establish our significance, and to enable us to feel secure. But in actuality we suffer loss because people, positions, and possessions are incapable of fulfilling us. Ultimately we are left unfulfilled, dissatisfied, and incomplete as the result of pursuing God substitutes. The delusional sense of satisfaction that stimulates and sedates eventually fades and we are left wanting more. In our vain attempts we explore other counterfeits that may promise temporary contentment but only provide mutually satisfying exploitation and manipulation to empower our identity.

This is how Joel tells his story.
“I have been a Christian since the age of five. I had been very active in church my whole life. But there were two things I wanted out of life. Since kindergarten I wanted to be married and I wanted to be a soldier. I was actually listed in the city newspaper on Valentine’s Day for having the most girlfriends in my school, in kindergarten, because that’s what I’ve always wanted—a relationship with a special woman. I believed there was a person out there who would complete me and that I could complete her.

“I was introduced to a beautiful, wonderful woman and within a year asked her to marry me. I found the full realm of everything that interdependence had to offer. She was drop-dead gorgeous and made me feel loveable, significant, and secure. I attained my goal.

“I also believed my job could give me identity. So I signed up to be a soldier at the age of seventeen (actually, my parents had to sign me in through the Delayed Entry Program). I can’t even describe how I felt when I graduated basic training. I had made it. This was my purpose in life. The military. Strong. Proud. Full of honor. I had a place to belong. Kids looked up to me. People thanked me. I was honored. I had love, significance, and security. I had it all.

“Because my title of soldier was in my God place, I sacrificed myself for my god. Physically I was pushed by my unit and pushed myself to the point that I sustained many permanent injuries, and for a short time I couldn’t even walk. After cycling through recovery and re-injury, I continued to drive myself even with my limitations. Following many visits to doctor’s offices, emergency rooms, and twelve surgeries, the military said I was no longer fit for service. At twenty-six years of age I was medically retired from the only career I ever wanted. I was filled with anger, frustration, and pain.

“But no matter how bad life got, I was convinced I would be okay because I still had what really completed me, my wife. People were awestruck by our marriage. Friends admired us and were jealous of our relationship. I’d like to say I forgot about God because I figured that since I was a Christian He would just bless off on what I wanted. The truth is, He just wasn’t my priority.

“Then one of us was no longer interested in “till death do us part.” To say I was crushed would be like saying the ocean is a drop of water on a small pile of dirt. Emptiness resulted.

“But that didn’t mean God took His rightful place. That wasn’t what I really wanted. What does it matter if God loves me? My wife doesn’t love me. I can’t serve in my beloved military anymore. I was empty. There was no human love that mattered, no value, no worth, no purpose, no security, no fulfillment. Nothing mattered, nothing was safe, and nothing was secure. There was nothing to keep me going, no reason for living.

“Although God had been God all my life, there was little to no evidence of that in my life. I had dedicated my existence to the idolatry of God substitutes, depending on something that’s not God. Because God is who He is, He can bring good out of evil. But that doesn’t mean He will give back our God substitutes. In His proper place God can foster love, value, worth, security, and significance.

“God will meet us in our pain if we allow Him to. To be honest, I’m not so sure God doesn’t welcome pain in our lives. Not because He’s sadistic or cruel, but because He knows He’s big enough to handle it, and He is enough to bring us through it. The pain just happens to give God a very tangible opportunity to prove it.

"God’s love will do what you can’t fathom. God values me. My life has worth. His love fosters security. God’s got me. I fully expect to go through more hard times in my life, but God will be there before them, after them, and most importantly through them, and He will provide what is necessary for my life. I must evaluate my life and my responses to what happens in life. I should be concerned and afraid if He is not filling the God place in my life. I must continuously beg Him to protect me from what I am and weed out the nonessentials that desire to be idols in my life."

Joel looked to people, positions, and possessions to empower love, significance, and security in his life. His gods enabled him to feel complete and contented for a time. But it is the compulsion of any of us to become reliant on whomever we reverence. And when what we reverence becomes the defining entity in our lives, our god, we live in service to what will ultimately disappoint.

Jesus said, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26 NLT). The God place of our souls is designed for Jesus. Boundaries should be built around this sacred place to assure that none other but Christ resides there. It should be guarded by our fear of God with our appropriate view of God serving as the sentinel. The highest of all that is lofty should be ascribed to Jesus so that He attracts in full our hearts, minds, and souls, capturing our strength with the truth of His glory and virtue. Then Jesus becomes central because He is preeminent. We come to see Him in truth, as He actually is—Lord, Savior, lover of our souls, champion of our hearts.