Daily Devotional
But If Not
Today's readings press one command upon us: do not bow. Jeroboam set up a convenient worship that looked religious yet led Israel away from the Lord. Babylon raised a splendid image and summoned the great of the earth to honor it. Paul uncovers the same evil within the heart, where covetousness becomes idolatry and the old man asks again for service. Idols may be made of gold, but also of appetite, status, anger, and ease.
The three young men teach the church how faith stands upright in such an hour. Cyprian says, "But if not, be it known unto you, O king, that we will not serve your gods, nor worship the golden image which you have set up. Daniel 3:16-18 Although they believed, and, in accordance with their faith, knew that they might even be delivered from their present punishment, they still would not boast of this, nor claim it for themselves, saying, But if not." This is the courage of those whose life is hidden with Christ: they obey whether deliverance comes now or not.
Job also stands, not before an image but in affliction, mocked by men and stripped of earthly help. Yet he does not make peace with falsehood. He waits for the living Redeemer. So the Christian must endure both pressure and pain without choosing a lie for relief.
Therefore put to death what belongs to earth. Clement warns, "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, and concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: for which things' sake comes the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience, Colossians 3:5-6 cries the apostle." The man who seeks the things above will not kneel below.
“But if not, be it known unto you, O king, that we will not serve your gods, nor worship the golden image which you have set up. Daniel 3:16-18 Although they believed, and, in accordance with their faith, knew that they might even be delivered from their present punishment, they still would not boast of this, nor claim it for themselves, saying, But if not.”
— Cyprian, Epistles
“Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, and concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: for which things' sake comes the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience, Colossians 3:5-6 cries the apostle.”
— Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor (Paedagogus)
For Reflection & Discussion
What possession, pleasure, or ambition has begun to rule your choices, and what concrete act of renunciation will you make today to refuse that idol?
Where are you being pressed to honor a false standard for the sake of safety or approval, and what faithful refusal must you speak plainly this week?
Which work of the old man named in Colossians must you put to death at once, and what act of confession, restitution, fasting, or guarded speech will you practice today?
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