God is guiding us out of the land of slavery into a place of freedom and love. This is what the 10 Commandments are for: They lead us to freedom.
Second Word
You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. (Ex. 20:4).
Some say…
Some say this word is just another command about worshipping God. Because God is invisible, without form, that God cannot be faithfully worship through an image. It is impossible to represent God through a tangible image so any creation of visible image is idolatry.
But what if…
But what if this second word is not primarily about banning unfaithful worship (though it is certainly about that)? What if this word is pointing us toward a dynamic and interactive relationship with God?
Interactive with God is an open-ended relationship. In this relationship we must pursue God as much as God is pursuing us. An image or idol of God—and of the other gods—is static and mute. But God reveals himself as dynamic and vocal, continually acting with and speaking to his people.
Ever wonder “I know God loves me, but does God even LIKE me?” If so I’d love to give you something the good news of God with us.?
Word of Life: PURSUING
We must resist boxing God in to some preset conceptions or replacing God with a static (but easy to approach) idol. God is jealous for a relationship with us, and God knows we can be lazy and complacent. And an image or idol of any kind would just make it that much more difficult for us to pursue God.
Loving God exclusively—the first word—means loving God intentionally—second word.
Will we pursue God as much as God is pursuing us?