The first commandment says, “You shall have no other gods before me.” It means there is one true God who created everything, and he deserves our first and full allegiance. God isn’t one option among many, and he doesn’t share his place with anything else. But the Ten Commandments were never meant to be a ladder we climb to earn God’s approval. They point us to the God who rescues us.
One God for Everyone
God gave the Ten Commandments to Israel right after rescuing them from slavery in Egypt. Before he gave a single rule, he reminded them who he was and what he had done.
Exodus 20:2-3 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me.
Obedience flows from rescue, not the other way around. And this God isn’t just the God of one nation or of Christians. He is the Creator of everyone. Through Isaiah, God declared, “I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6).
God Wants All of You
The first commandment calls for exclusive loyalty. God isn’t interested in being one priority on a long list. Jesus put it bluntly.
Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Trying to serve God and something else always ends badly. We end up divided, anxious, and unsatisfied. Jesus didn’t say we shouldn’t serve two masters. He said we can’t.
Our Modern Rivals
Most of us don’t bow down to statues, but we all have rivals for God’s place in our lives. Money, career, relationships, approval, comfort, and even good things like family can quietly take first place. A simple test is to ask: what do I think about most, worry about most, and spend the most on? God invites something better.
Deuteronomy 6:5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Loving God with everything doesn’t mean we stop loving other things. It means everything else finds its proper place when God is first.
The Commandments Point to Jesus
If we’re honest, none of us keeps the first commandment perfectly. That’s the point. Paul said the law was like a guardian to lead us to Christ (Galatians 3:24). The commandments show us our need for a Savior, and God provided one.
Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.
Jesus kept the law perfectly in our place, and he offers us forgiveness and a new heart that wants to put God first. If you want to know more, check out How can I become a Christian?
The Takeaway
What is the first commandment all about? There is one true God who deserves our first and full allegiance. When we try to serve God and something else, it ends in disaster. The commandments don’t save us. They point us to Jesus, the only one who can.
