Exodus 18.11 says, Those are the words of Jethro, the father-in-law
of Moses, the father of Zipporah. And it brings to mind a question
sent to us from time to time when people ask, why does the
Bible say there are no other gods, but then says that the
Lord is greater than all gods? That's a good question. It's
important to think about such things, and as you find answers,
this will help you understand the Bible, it'll help you with
your reading comprehension, and it'll help you when you talk
to other people about Jesus. To begin with, the Ten Commandments
say, the first commandment, Exodus 20, verse three, thou shalt have
no other gods before me. But then in other places, like
Jeremiah 16, 20, we read, shall a man make gods unto himself,
and they are no gods? How are we to understand this,
especially when skeptics and anti-Christian antagonists will
call this a contradiction in the Bible? Well, the answer is
found in what we referred to just a moment ago, reading comprehension. Now, most of the people who accuse
the Bible of having contradictions and specifically claiming a contradiction
when it comes to the matter of gods, they don't have as much
a reading comprehension problem as they do a heart problem. They
don't want to see the truth. But even if the Bible-rejecting
skeptic decides he or she really does want to understand this
issue and what the Bible says, they still approach without the
Holy Spirit, who only indwells those of us who are believers.
So they can't fully understand the Bible as a result of their
unbelief. having never believed on Jesus
by faith in his gospel, and therefore never receiving the Holy Spirit
to indwell them. Paul explains this in 1 Corinthians
2.14, But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit
of God, for they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned. So don't be surprised
when unbelievers just will not or cannot receive the truth as
you share it with them. But when God says in Exodus 20
verse 3, thou shalt have no other gods before me, he isn't saying
they are actually gods on par with him in any sense or that
there are actual gods in any real sense. Men believe in other
so-called gods, and so the Lord says, do not worship any of these
so-called gods. And the prophet Jeremiah says,
they aren't really gods at all. But those things you believe
to be gods are not to be worshipped. It's that simple. But there's
something else that we should understand. Not only are these
gods with a small g not really gods, but they are actually a
ruse and a disguise for a devil. You may think you're praying
to Mary and the saints. You may think you're worshiping
Hindu gods. You may think you're praying
to Allah facing Mecca. But the Bible says all of the
sacrifices, whether money given, praises offered, other types
of offerings, incense, prayers, et cetera, every form of worship
directed toward these gods with a small g is actually the worship
of devils. First Corinthians 10 20 Paul
wrote these divinely inspired words, but I say that the things
which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils and
not to God. And I would not that you should
have fellowship with devils. And Jesus greater than all devils
and the devil combined. Jesus is God. Jesus defeated
the devils behind the Egyptian gods and that's why Jethro looked
at Moses and said, now I know. that the Lord is greater than
all gods. And Jesus is that Lord. And He
is our God and our Savior, as Titus 2.13 admonishes us to be
looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of
the great God and our Savior, Jesus Christ. One and the same. The Lord Jesus is greater than
all gods. Amen.