They feared the LORD, but they also worshiped their own gods according to the custom of the nations where they had been deported from. They are still practicing the former customs to this day. None of them fear the LORD or observe their statutes and ordinances, the law and commandments the LORD commanded the descendants of Jacob. He had renamed him Israel. 2 Kings 17:33-34 HCSB
The Israelites were God’s chosen people and God loved them dearly, but many of them just couldn’t seem to get it right. When God brought them out of Egypt, they grumbled, and they complained, and they turned to idolatry. God would punish them. They would repent and do well, then they would mess up again. They would follow this pattern for many years, but eventually God grew tired of their disobedience. He still wanted them to repent and enjoy fellowship with Him again, so He sent prophets to warn them of coming judgment. They just wouldn’t listen.
Prophets warned that they would be taken captive by another country and scattered throughout the land, but they still refused to obey. After 250 years of God sending prophets to try to get the Israelites to repent and serve Him and Him alone, He allowed them to be taken captive by the Assyrians. The Assyrians scattered the Israelites and brought foreigners to live in Samaria which was the capital city of Northern Israel.
God punished them for their idolatry by sending lions among them which killed them (2 Kings 17:25). God did this because they did not fear Him. God wants us to fear Him. This doesn’t mean that we shake in our boots at the mention of His name. This means that we have a reverential awe of Him. This means that we trust in Him, and we understand He is a God of righteousness who punishes sin. This means we love Him with all our heart, and we want to do the things that please Him. Most importantly, it means we understand there will come a time when we will be judged for our sins, and we don’t want to get caught up in God’s judgment.
The Assyrian king had a priest come back to the land to tell the people what to do to stop God’s judgment against them. The priest told them they must fear the Lord. So, they feared the Lord, or so they said. They also continued, however, to worship their idols and serve their false gods.
Our Scripture passage tells us they tried to do both, but unfortunately this doesn’t work. God wants our wholehearted love and devotion. He doesn’t want us serving any other God. This is why this is the first commandment. God told us back in Exodus 20:3, “Do not have any other gods besides Me.” He promised to show faithful love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands in verse 6 of Exodus 20.
You can’t have your cake and eat it too. You can’t have your sin and a good, solid relationship with the Lord. You have to pick one.
Now, I would think that if lions were chasing people around and killing them, that would be good incentive for them to repent of their sin and get right with the Lord. But apparently it wasn’t. We know what we should do, but we don’t always do it. We know what the Ten Commandments tells us, but we don’t always obey them.
They claimed to fear the Lord, but they were disobedient. They continued on in their sin. God is not going to honor our sin. He is not going to reward us for our sinful behavior. He is going to judge us and punish us for our sin.
If you are claiming to love the Lord, but holding on to your sin, know this never works. I’ve been there, done that and got the t-shirt.
Trust in God today, have a reverential awe and fear of Him. Submit your life to Him and allow Him to guide you in all you do. I promise it is a decision you will never regret.
Have a great day!