Summary: A sermon on the importance of the first commandment

----- TRUTH matters

Proverbs 16:25; Matthew 7:21-23; 2 Cor. 13:5

2 + 2 = 4 12 inches = 1 foot 16 ounces = 1 pound

-----MOST DIFFICULT commandment to keep because it’s not easy to keep the MAIN THING the MAIN THING.

-----It is difficult because of the other gods who vie for our worship

gods of PLEASURE

gods of POSITION

"PEOPLE gods"

gods of PROSPERITY

The world tells us to "just be sincere." It does not matter who we worship or shat we worship; we just need to be sincere.

God speaks to us thru the 1st commandment and says I am a jealous God, you shall have no other gods before me.

God says it is not about being sincere. Its about being right. Thats why truth matters. There is truth in this world. Absolute truth.

If 2 + 2 does not equal four this world cannot function. The whole monetary system would bog down. That’s because there must be a standard. Truth matters.

If 12 inches does not equal one foot, no building could be built in this country. There must be a standard. We learned

this in the last election. Everyone was crying foul because different counties were judging by different standards.

There must be one standard. Truth matters. The scripture verses will help you expond on this.

Because truth matters we have the first commandment. It is the hardest commandment to keep because it hard to keep our priorites in line.

And God says the priority in your life has to be ME. If we keep the first commandment, we can easily keep all the rest.

It’s no accident that it is #1 because God must be #1

It’s hard to keep Him #1 because of the other gods who call our name:

gods of pleasure tell us to eat, drink and be merry. Go for the gusto!!

gods of position tell us to achieve status at all costs then we will be somebody!

people gods tell us that another person can fulfil us and make us happy

gods of prosperity tell us that with more money I will have be fulfilled.

None of these gods can deliver on the promises they make.