Exploring the First Commandment: Why God Must Come First

Over one of the doors leading into the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame is the inscription “God, country, Notre Dame.” It was carved there to honor the ND students who died in World War I, and it serves as a reminder that God must always come first.

Indeed, that is the first commandment:

1. I am the Lord thy God: Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me.
2. Thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
3. Remember thou keep holy the Lord’s day.
4. Honor thy father and thy mother.
5. Thou shall not kill.
6. Thou shall not commit adultery.
7. Thou shall not steal.
8. Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
9. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s wife.
10. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s goods.

When I was a student at Notre Dame, they told us that family could and should be inserted right after God because, after Him, nothing is more important than family. This becomes preeminently more understandable when we have children of our own, as we see that the love we have for our children flows straight from God’s love for us. And if we truly love our children—with an authentic and agape, or self-giving love—we want what’s best for them and their souls. Everything we do, as spouses and parents, should be directed toward helping them get to heaven.

As we look at the list of commandments and ponder that first one, we may think that’s it’s a pretty easy one to follow. After all, we don’t worship false or strange gods like Zeus, Ra, or others. We aren’t like the Israelites, who created a golden calf and worshipped it. But when we actually stop to think about it, we are hit with the stark and scary realization that we do sometimes “worship” strange gods.

No, we may not worship an actual idol, but we do put other things or people before God, even some that may seem or actually be good. We may put our spouses and children before God. We may put our jobs before God. We do those things with the justification that we have to care for the people around us and make money, so those things are important. And that part is true. But when we put them before God, we create a disorder that will eventually lead to sorrow, despair, and emptiness.

Then there are the things that we use to occupy our time and minds that aren’t necessarily good—TV shows, social media, video games, and more. Yes, those things can be good, or they can fill our minds with hatred, with contempt for others, and with lies. When they do, they lead us away from God.

Anything that leads us away from God and heaven is a strange god and one we must remove from our lives.

Some people may ask why God commands that we put Him first. It’s not because He is conceited or proud or because He only cares about Himself. On the contrary, He is our father. He created us in His image and likeness with a love we can never fully imagine, and He wants an intimacy, a closeness, with us. Out of this love, He covenanted Himself to us. That means that He promised that He would always be there for us. God then gave us a set of commandments to follow. He gave us His Son, who died so that we could live with Him. And He gave us a foretaste of heaven on earth in the Eucharist.

These are immense gifts that we can either accept or throw away. If we accept them and live our lives conforming our hearts to God’s, then we get to spend eternity with Him in heaven. If we reject these gifts and work more toward conforming His heart to ours, we will get what we ask for—an eternity without God, otherwise known as hell.

Our God is a good dad who wants us with Him for eternity, but we must work every day for that, put Him first, and glorify Him with all that we do.

This is a crucial lesson that we must teach our children every day. We do that when we lead by example and lead with our words and wisdom.

This takes awareness and an examination of our own lives, similar to the examination of conscience that we do before confession. We must determine how we are living, what we are prioritizing, and how we can grow closer to God. And then we must take action by teaching our children the truths of the faith.

The month of February is dedicated to the Holy Family—a family who understood that God must always come first. Teach your kids these valuable lessons by downloading this booklet fromo the Culture of Life Studies Program entitled Marriage and Family. Throughout its pages, your kids will learn what a holy and authentic marriage should look like and why God ordained marriage to be between one man and one woman. They will also hear wisdom from saints and saintly couples who put God first. These valuable lessons will help them grow into courageous adults who can stand firmly in their faith.

So this month, take time to read through this booklet with your children and talk about ways they can put God first in their lives. And then together, follow this commandment, for nothing is more important than our Lord and Savior.