The God of all gods (The god of this world)

On a Sunday morning, I ordered an Uber to church because I was running very late. As I got into the car, the Uber driver began chatting with me. We talked for a while, and about four minutes before reaching the church, the driver asked me an intriguing question: “What’s your outing for today? Are you going to work?” I replied “no, I’m heading to church.”

We had continued our conversation after that question, but as I got to church, I wondered, why work? Why did he think of that on a Sunday morning?

1 Corinthians 4:4 talks about the god of this world. The Apostle Paul explains that this god has blinded the minds of unbelievers, preventing them from seeing the light of Christ, who is the image of God.

Satan, as the god of this world, has introduced various other gods unknown to us, to create distractions that divert people from the light and truth of Christ. Among these gods is what the Bible refers to as "mammon."

The Aramaic term "mammon" refers to money or material wealth. The Bible mentions this in Matthew 6,

Matthew 6:24: “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord].” AMP

The concept of serving two masters might seem foreign to some, including Christians. Yet, it is a reality we are experiencing today. We find ourselves in a world full of blends, combining God with other gods, often without realizing it. The aim of this piece is to urge us to make a singular choice: Worshipping God or mammon.

Reflecting on the Uber driver's question, I realized that the question itself wasn't the core issue. The real problem lay in the assumption that a person's life, even on a Sunday morning, revolves around work. We've devoted so much of our time and energy to worldly pursuits, making our lives seem focused solely on things that eventually disappear.

Beyond the spiritual discussions, the Sabbath in the scriptures was intended as a day to abstain from work. Although there's debate about whether the Sabbath falls on Saturday or Sunday, the purpose of observing the Sabbath in the scriptural days was to allocate time for rest away from work. And to devote ourselves to other things that bring us rest.

Have we considered how the dedication we invest in our jobs could have a significant eternal impact if we applied that same dedication to our spiritual pursuits? Ecclesiastes 9:10 advises us to do well, in whatever we find our hands doing. Yet, God also wishes for us to prioritize Him, put Him first above all else, even as we work and go about our daily lives.

Regarding the various other gods we have

replaced God with, the Israelites were familiar with the idea of serving or switching between two masters. A story that aligns well with this discussion is found in Exodus 32. In this chapter, Moses ascended the mountain to seek God's presence. The Israelites were uncertain about what had happened to him since he had been away for a long time. As a result, they decided to turn to another master. This time, with Aaron's help, they created a god they could worship, a god made of gold. Verse 4 states, “And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

The people were not devoted to one master. Their gaze had shifted, that they were willing to replace the God who brought them out of Egypt. A lot of us like the Isrealites have found different things to replace God with. Just like they replaced God with a golden image, is the same way we replace God with mammon.

We have become accustomed to substituting God with sex, worldly entertainments, friends, gluttony, and the pursuit of worldly desires. God has been sidelined, and our dedication to Him has been deprioritized. We have turned the one who ought to be the God and Master of our lives into a secondary figure, an alternative, an afterthought.

Some of us seek the true God, but our longing for God has been tainted by falsehood. The Israelites asked for a golden image to worship. They wanted to worship the true God, but their desire was marred by idolatry. This is akin to serving two masters.

I’ve then come to realize that when we set our gaze on many things, we lose focus on that which is important. By setting our gaze on worldly possessions such as wealth, fame, status, and fleeting pleasures, we ignore true treasures that remain unblemished. Yet, when we direct our gaze to eternal treasures, we lose out on nothing.

Matthew 6:19-“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

There is a far more greater treasure that surpasses the fleeting pleasures of this world and mammon. By dedicating so much of our lives and focusing our time on material possessions and temporary pursuits, we overlook the real riches.

Real riches and true treasures are found in our dedication to the things of God. This God is the ultimate God, greater than the god of mammon and the gods made by human hands. He alone is worthy of our worship and devotion. When we worship Him, everything else will be given to us.

To some, this is a call to find rest in God, take a breather, take a break from the gods of this world, and go back to that which brought you face to face with God. Go back to church, and to his word. Go back to the faith which you once held on to. Go back to those who once drew you closer to Christ. Go back to your secret place.

To others, this is a call for realignment. To reprioritize our focus and redirect it back to the author and finisher of our faith. The god of this world might have found ways to shift our gaze away from the one true God, but the real treasure we yearn for, the peace, the fulfillment, and every other thing, lies in our undivided devotion to Him.

I pray that as we read this, our hearts long and desire the things of God above all else.