It must also be noted that God also passed these judgements onto the gods of Egypt, as @thomsaquinasftw stated before. Many people wonder why would God judge something that doesn't exist - according to the Bible, the gods of Egypt did exist - entities which the Egyptians worshipped and made images of.
God showed everyone that he is supreme and all the other gods are submissive to him. Not in the sense of a Pantheon, but rather that he reigns above them and they are gods, not God. They may rule over certain aspects of God's creation but they are in no sense an authority to be worshipped. That privilege goes only to the Creator.
At the same time, it is also wrong to disrespect the gods of the Gentiles by saying they do not exist. We must not insult or accuse, that is God's authority and we must not place ourselves above our own station either. Perhaps we dismiss the worship of idols, which some people do, and perhaps we reject any god other than the Creator, but we must also not desecrate something others see as holy. This is an act which can only be done through God's intervention and judgement. He judges men and gods, not we.
This is very important, and something I don't think I've ever heard. We have to remain respectful of the right of others to worship idols, because to attempt to change their minds thru any means other than reason is coercion. Is this what you are getting at? You can want to see someone converted, but to tear down their altar and sacrifice with your own hands won't do it. They will just end up resenting you and your message.... I think I can agree with that.... but time is short, and we have to get much more convincing!
Oh, I agree! We cannot be lax in our efforts to spread the truth. But we cannot go about spreading truth by throwing stones. That is not what Yahshuah commanded the Apostles to do and it is not what we should do as their disciples.
I believe that our approach should be Paul's - when he spoke to the Gentiles in Athens (and I might not that they asked him about his faith, he did not begin preaching wildly in their meeting places; he was an example of his faith, which provoked others to come to him, much like the animals went to Noah for their salvation, he did not need to look for them) Paul first explained who the Creator is, that he made the world and everything in it. He explained the beginning, so that they could understand the end. We cannot begin preaching about sin to people who do not know what sin is. Sin is the transgression of the law. Where there is no law, there is no sin. A person who does not have the law cannot possibly comprehend the need for salvation.
We need to be aware of the difference between us who have the spiritual truth and those who have the carnal truth.
These days our idolatrous gods have wheels or mortgages attached, we buy with plastic or work excessive hours for...
So true!
Very much true. Many people are willing to give up their Creator-given rest in order to continue slaving, while giving themselves the excuse of poverty. We decide to accept bigger and bigger burdens, compromising the Creator's holy days and his appointed times of rest and celebration, and say that we have to, or we would not be able to pay our bills. We have lost faith in our Creator's providing power, and are worthy of Yahshuah's rebuke.
We have willingly returned to Egypt and put the shackles of bondage, which Yahuah took off of us. Like the Hebrews in the desert we cry about the good old days in Egypt. But the day is coming when our Creator will no longer overlook our stiff necks and our stubbornness.
But I'm beginning to ramble again! Haha ^_^