The Samaritian's Heresy

God's Creative Word
The Word Is Here and Now
Woman of Samaria

2 Kings 17:26-34

The Message

 ²⁶ This message was then sent back to the king of Assyria: "The people you brought in to occupy the towns of Samaria don't know what's expected of them from the god of the land, and now he's sent lions and they're killing people right and left because nobody knows what the god of the land expects of them."
 ²⁷ The king of Assyria ordered, "Send back some priests who were taken into exile from there. They can go back and live there and instruct the people in what the god of the land expects of them."
 ²⁸ One of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came back and moved into Bethel. He taught them how to honor and worship God.
 ^29-31 But each people that Assyria had settled went ahead anyway making its own gods and setting them up in the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that the citizens of Samaria had left behind—a local custom-made god for each people:
   for Babylon, Succoth Benoth; for Cuthah, Nergal; for Hamath, Ashima; for Avva, Nibhaz and Tartak; for Sepharvaim, Adrammelech and Anammelech (people burned their children in sacrificial offerings to these gods!).
 ^32-33 They honored and worshiped God, but not exclusively—they also appointed all sorts of priests, regardless of qualification, to conduct a variety of rites at the local fertility shrines. They honored and worshiped God, but they also kept up their devotions to the old gods of the places they had come from.
 ^34-39 And they're still doing it, still worshiping any old god that has nostalgic appeal to them. They don't really worship God—they don't take seriously what he says regarding how to behave and what to believe, what he revealed to the children of Jacob whom he named Israel. God made a covenant with his people and ordered them, "Don't honor other gods: Don't worship them, don't serve them, don't offer sacrifices to them. Worship God, the God who delivered you from Egypt in great and personal power. Reverence and fear him. Worship him. Sacrifice to him. And only him! All the things he had written down for you, directing you in what to believe and how to behave—well, do them for as long as you live. And whatever you do, don't worship other gods! And the covenant he made with you, don't forget your part in that. And don't worship other gods! Worship God, and God only—he's the one who will save you from enemy oppression.

For Reflection 

Quite a number of years ago, I was watching a TV magazine report on weddings in Japan.  Many Japanese would plan and execute a Christian wedding ceremony (Probably in American style.)  I wasn't  that they were Christian.  They just admired the wedding style.  

How often do we don the cloak of Christianity without fulling realizing what God expects from us?  Are we worshiping the God of our parents just because it has a nostalgic appeal?  How seriously do we take the robe of Christ?  To what extend are our actions consistent with God's intentions for our lives?


After  the Christ event, truth became knowable

 

Pray

that you will wear the robes of Christianity with the full understanding of what your choice means.  Pray that all you do will reflects God's intention for your life.