Wisdom For Destiny Daily Devotional (12th February 2024)

by Sunday Akanni

TOPIC: He Doesn't Entertain Rivalry (Part 2)

"That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other;" Isaiah‬ 45:6 NKJV
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*Message*

When God informed His children that He is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5), the expression here is different from the sin of jealousy. In Galatians 5, from verse 19 when the Holy Spirit through Paul was highlighting the sinful works of the flesh, one of the things mentioned in verse 20 was "jealousies".

The sin of jealousy is when you are envious of another person who has something you do not have. But when it comes to God, He has everything and can never be deficient in anything good. He owns all things, and everything anyone has came from Him. So, He can't be jealous or envious because someone has something He wants or needs.

When you check the context of His proclamation, from verse four of Exodus chapter 20 to the fifth verse, He says:

*“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God...”*

*So, the issue here is when you give to another something that rightly belongs to Him. Whilst you might not have a graven image you bow to today like in those former times, if you worship or serve anything other than God (you place anything before Him, and you are always ready to satisfy anything or anyone else contrary to God's Will), you are still practicing idolatry and it is a sin.*

*God is possessive of the worship and service that belong to Him, and He is jealous when He sees you give what belongs to Him to another. This can be explained from the lenses of love because God can do without you.*

It is normal for a married person to be jealous seeing their spouse give the attention and affection that belongs to them to someone else outside their matrimonial home. Hence, God won't condone rivalry also, He wants you all to Himself. After all, He bought you with a price and redeemed you from eternal death. "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s." (I Corinthians‬ ‭6:20).‬ ‭

*Prayers*
LORD, take away any idol that is taking what belongs to You from me.

*Further Reading*
II Corinthians‬ ‭11:2‬‬‬
For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

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