There are no other gods

Soon after I was saved, I heard God’s voice for the first time. It was a phrase: “There is no other god.” I just said, okay Jesus. A few weeks later I stumbled upon this verse in the Bible: 

Isaiah 45:5 “I am the Lord, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God.

                     I will gird you, though you have not known Me.” 

Very interesting, it’s the same phrase again! For the next 10 months, the Lord started pointing out my idols: 

“Ayaka, is your study more important than Me?” 

“You love your family very much. Is your father still your god?” 

“Can you say no to friends for Me? Do you care about their opinions more than Mine?” (Fear of men vs. God) 

“Do you feel more secure with money than with Me?” 

“What’s your Option B if you don’t think I come through?” 

“Does your self-worth come from boys?” 

“Do you need fame & achievement for identity?” 

“What do you depend on when you’re anxious?” 

“Do you still practice superstitions from Japan?” 

“Where does your hope come from?” 

My relationship with God was dynamic. I was learning theology through experiencing God AND finding explanations in the Scriptures. I began to fall madly in love with Jesus. There was always music in my heart for Him. My first worship CD was a Vineyard music “Intimacy” album and I played it on repeat, especially "First Love" by Brent Helming. Jesus has shown me what real love is. Whenever I felt alone, I sang and remembered Jesus was with me. My heart swelled with gratitude and joy. I spoke to Jesus constantly throughout my day. I walked outside looking at the birds of the air and being filled with awe of the Creator God. I invited my party friends to come to the ministry events. I laid on the grass outside my dorm and told Jesus that I didn’t need human boys anymore. I sat in the computer lab and created a moving typography animation to express my love for the Lord (which was cutting edge back then, haha.)

As I grew older in faith, Isaiah 45:5 became less of a rule (“I must have only 1 God”) and more of a delightful reality (“There really is no one like You, Jesus!”). If I were to surrender my life to a god, I wanted a God who is too big for a little human brain to comprehend. Idols have crushed my hopes, broken my heart over and over, and failed to be strong enough in a time of need. But now, Christ’s presence was everything. 

Psalm 73:28 “But as for me, the nearness of God is my good.”

No one else can save souls. 

No one else can love us in a unique and special way that each of us needs to be loved.  

No one else can heal ALL diseases.  

No one else can rescue marriages. 

No one else can reconcile broken relationships. 

No one else can make all things new and right.

……………..

There are other Bible verses that declare that there is only one God. 

Isaiah 43:10 “Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me.”

Isaiah 44:6, 8b “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me.’ ….. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.” 

Isaiah 45:6,18,21,22 “That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun that there is no one besides Me. I am the Lord, and there is no other,...... For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), I am the Lord, and there is none else…… Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me…… Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.” 

Isaiah 46:9 “Remember the former things long past, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me” 

Isaiah 64:4 “For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear, nor has the eye seen a God besides You, who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him.” 

Joel 2:27 “Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am the Lord your God, and there is no other; and My people will never be put to shame.” 

Hosea 13:4b “you were not to know any god except Me, for there is no savior besides Me.”

Deuteronomy 32:39 ‘See now that I, I am He, and there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.” 

Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

Exodus 34:14 “for you shall not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God”

Nehemiah 9:6 “You alone are the Lord. You have made the heavens, the heaven of heavens with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them and the heavenly host bows down before You.” 

Psalm 18:31 “For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God” 

2 Samuel 22:32 “For who is God, besides the Lord? And who is a rock, besides our God?”

Deuteronomy 4:35,39; 2Samuel 7:22; 1Kings 8:60; 2Kings 5:15, 19:15,19; Psalm 83:18, Psalm 86:10; Isaiah 37:16,20, Mark 12:32; John 5:44; 1Corinthians 8:4; 1Timothy 1:17;