Jealous God (Ex. 20:5; 34:14) (Part 3)

2. DEMAND OF GOD'S JEALOUSY

ILLUSTRATION – Emily Litella

• “Some will remember this elderly, hard-of-hearing character played by Gilda Radner on "Saturday Night Live" back in the 1980s. Emily was constantly ranting about one cause or another, based strictly upon her misunderstanding of a word: 'What is all this fuss I hear about the Supreme Court decision on a deaf penalty? It's terrible! Deaf people have enough problems as it is!' Similarly, she would take off on the Eagle (Equal) Rights Amendment, conserving our natural racehorses (resources), youth in Asia (euthanasia), and sax and violins (sex and violence) on TV. When corrected at the end of her tirade, Emily would smile sweetly and say, 'Never mind.'”¹
• Emily was a master of mishearing, misinformation and misinterpretation. She assigned meaning to that which she didn't understand.
• When it comes to God's jealousy, I don't want you to pull an Emily Litella by misunderstanding it.

EXPLANATION

• You must understand that God's jealousy demands entire, exclusive devotion.²
• Read Ex. 24:14; Deut. 4:24; 32:16, 21; Josh. 24:19; Psa. 78:58; 1 Cor. 10:22.

To say that God is jealous means “that he demands from those whom he has loved and redeemed utter and absolute loyalty, and He will vindicate His claim by stern action against them if they betray His love by unfaithfulness.”³

APPLICATION

• The only way you can be comfortable with God's jealousy is to inspect your heart for idols. Inspect it regularly.
• “Little children, guard yourselves from idols” (1 Jn. 5:21).
• Quote: “Oh! It is a marvel that God hath not dashed the world to pieces with thunderbolts, when we recollect that even to this day millions of men have changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds and four-footed beasts, and creeping things. With what unutterable contempt must the living God look down upon those idols which are the work of man's hands . . .”⁴

1Coppenger, Mark. “Oprah & A Jealous God.” http://www.bpnews.net/28150/oprah-and-a-jealous-god (accessed 8-23-16)

2Youngblood, Ronald F. Exodus. Everyman's Bible Commentary. Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1983. p. 96.

3Packer, J. I. Knowing God. 20^th Anniversary Edition. Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1973. p. 171.

4Spurgeon, Charles Haddon.. “A Jealous God.” This is a sermon he preached on March 29, 1863.