I am a Jesus pusher!!! It is marvelous to be captured by one emphasis. It settles all the issues of life; it determines every decision. It brings peace to every argument; it injects purpose to life. It is tragic when our focus is inferior. Everything in life is determined by this focus; life takes on the characteristics of the focus. Jesus is the only one great enough to demand the total attention of my life. Life becomes shaped by Him. Wow!! Jesus was confronted by the devil in the great temptation. In a final statement to the devil, Jesus quotes “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve,” (Matthew 4:10). He was actually quoting from a speech given by Moses (Deuteronomy 6:13). Notice the exclusiveness found in the statement. The Greek word (monoo) translated only is used in the sense of “being the only entity in a class, only, or alone.” It expresses the uniqueness, isolation, or exclusiveness of persons, things, or actions. Is there any doubt of its usage as intended by Jesus in this passage?
The devil constantly attempts to get us sidetracked. He is not overly concerned about our relationship with Jesus as long as it is mixed with other loyalties. In China we visited a dark and cold temple. There was a constant stream of people offering sacrifices and making prayers to their gods. The difficulty was in deciding which god to honor. In one section, there was a statue of Buddha; but adjacent to him was a statue of Confucius; but immediately by him was a statue of Jesus. It was buffet religion. Take your pick; chose your god; cover all the bases. Adopting all three might be the best policy.
All other statues are gone; there is no one left but Jesus. He is in a category by Himself. He rises far above all other thoughts or suggestions. I will exclusively belong to Him. Even the gods of self-sufficiency, materialism, athletics, education, and position will be removed. My eyesight is on Jesus. I am a Jesus pusher!!!