Psalms 81:8 “Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me; 9 There shall no strange god be in thee; neither shalt thou worship any strange god.”
A “strange god” is any physical thing, any belief, any practice, any allegiance, and any affection that has more weight and value to us than “God” or the Word of God. God says of Himself, “I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me” (Isaiah 46:9). God makes it clear in His first Commandment: “Thou shalt have none other gods before me.” (Deuteronomy 5:7). It is amazing how these “strange” “gods” slither into our lives. The devil, “the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field” (Genesis 3:1); that is, he’s evil, but he’s not stupid. He knows our weaknesses and it is through these weaknesses that he so slyly enters our lives to introduce us to “strange” “gods” that lead us away and distract us from faithful allegiance and service to our God. It is true that physical idols; such as, statues and figurines and such are employed in the worship of “strange” “gods”, some people even embrace some renown person as a “god”. But, we can make our own selves our “god”, relying upon self rather than “god” and seeking to please and satisfy self more than “god”. Wealth becomes a “god”, as we begin to think that we’ve accumulated enough wealth that we can solve any problem that may arise. Clubs, organizations, sports, hobbies, occupation, etc. tend to rise up in our lives and assume the position of God. Anything that supplants God in our lives is a “strange god” and is to be rejected. In our modern day, the more comforts and benefits we receive, the easier it is for the devil to slip in a “strange god”. We can tell when these “strange” “gods” are taking root in our lives; for, we begin to make decisions and judgments based upon what we ‘feel’, what we ‘think’, and what we ‘like’; rather than the Word of God. The “strange” “gods” in our lives are defeated as we more and more “hearken unto” the Lord through reading His Holy Word, hearing His Word Preached, and striving to live according to His Word. Over and over, through out the Word of God, we are Commanded to “put away the strange gods from among” us and only worship the true and living God (Judges 10:16). God said that “There shall no strange god be in thee”, and He means it!