- Thou shalt not…
At least 15 people on their way to a religious festival were killed when a private charter bus crashed north of Dallas, police reported on Friday.
Local media reported that most of the passengers were from the Vietnamese Martyrs Church of Houston and were on their way to Carthage, Missouri, for the Marian Days festival, an annual celebration of the Virgin Mary.
2 Kings 17:15
They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the LORD had commanded them that they should not do like them.
Leviticus 26:30
And I will destroy your high places and cut down your incense altars and cast your dead bodies upon the dead bodies of your idols, and my soul will abhor you.
Leviticus 26:1
“You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the LORD your God.
I hope that we haven’t too quickly forgotten that God still feels the same today as He did thousands of years ago when these scriptures were penned. Even if the idols are great people of faith, who themselves walked in right standing with God, we should not erect them above Jehovah, and especially dedicate a celebratory festival to them. What happened in Texas is a tragedy, no doubt, please don’t let me take away from that. But God is trying to get the attention of these people. How sad is it that you can go to Vietnam and find true believers in the underground church who are dying for Christ, but come to America, and the Vietnamese immigrants are dying for Mary worship. I hope that some would open their eyes to this tragedy and why God would allow it. He hates idol worship. He’s a jealous God, and rightly so.
Believers, I pray you would examine yourself and see if you haven’t, in your heart, erected some sort of idol above Jehovah, our God. If so, let us crush them immediately, and turn to God in repentance lest He bring some sort of judgement upon us also. Read the text, all throughout the scripture God is dealing with people for turning to false gods and detestable idols. I pray you find yourself of a single heart, who’s passion and treasure is Christ alone.
God have mercy on those who still turn to false idols, yea, even Mary worship, which you hate with a righteous hatred. Have mercy on those who still celebrate in this festival of demons and refuse to give you their whole heart. Reveal to them their hearts and their ways, God, bring them into a right relationship with you as you have done for countless others, even myself who am not above any of these mentioned, but am just as detestable. Thank you for grace that causes us to turn from unrighteousness to righteousness.
