Read the Catechism in a Year
Day 252 - The First Commandment
The First Commandment: I am the Lord, your God. You shall not have strange Gods before me.
What is the meaning of the commandment, “I am the Lord, your God” (Ex 20:2)?
Because the Almighty has revealed himself to us as our God and Lord, we must not place anything above him or consider anything more important or give any other thing or person priority over him. To know God and to serve and worship him has absolute priority in our life.
God expects us to give him our full faith; we should place all our hope in him and direct all the strength of our love toward him. The commandment to love God is the most important of all commandments and the key to all the others. That is why it stands at the beginning of the Ten Commandments.
Why do we worship God?
We worship God because he exists and because reverence and worship are the appropriate response to his revelation and his presence. “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve” (Mt 4:10).
Worshipping God, however, is also beneficial to men, for it frees them from servitude to the powers of this world. When God is no longer worshipped and when he is no longer thought to be Lord over life and death, others assume that position and put human dignity at risk. (YOUCAT questions 352-353)
Dig Deeper: Corresponding CCC section (2083-2103) and other references here.
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