What Is an Idol According to the Bible
| JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud.com
Idolatry. This ancient yet modern sin fuels endless heartaches and frustrations. Information technology destroys jobs and relationships and distances us from God, the merely One worthy of worship. The only One able to fulfill our deepest needs and grant the states the joy and peace we seek.
When life feels uncertain or our longings go unmet, information technology's like shooting fish in a barrel and comforting, momentarily, to grasp on to temporary fillers. If only we had more money, more friends, more experiences, or achievements, then nosotros'd exist happy and content. But this type of mentality leads to idolatry by shifting our focus off of Jesus and placing it instead on the temporary and insufficient pleasures of today.
Whatever we treasure more than than God, whatsoever drives our thoughts and actions, becomes an idol, and these idols boring our spiritual hearing and harden our hearts to things of God.
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What is an Idol?
The Bible understands that idolatry extends beyond the worship of images and fake gods. Information technology is a thing of the middle, associated with pride, cocky-centeredness, greed, gluttony ( Php 3:19 ), and love for possessions ( Matt six:24 ).
Idolatry is a major theme of the Bible. It challenges God's sovereignty and attempts to offering an alternate caption to the issues of life. But Scripture non only records people's failures; it as well records the hope of repentance. In his mercy, God raised upwardly men and women who challenged the faulty theology of the community.
As Tim Keller states in his bookApocryphal Gods, an idol is "anything more than important to you lot than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more God, and annihilation that y'all seek to give you what merely God can give."
Essentially, an idol can exist annihilation that takes the identify of God every bit the most important focus and priority in our life. This article will get through ten examples of idols and idolatry in the modern era. Discover what makes these examples prevalent and unsafe substitutes for God as the primary essence of our lives.
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What Does the Bible Say About Idolatry?
According to Baker's Biblical Dictionary, the most prevalent class of idolatry in biblical times was the worship of images or idols that represented or were thought to embody various pagan deities.
In the Old Testament, from the kickoff, the threat of idolatry was in the midst of State of israel. The forefathers were idolaters and, while Abraham was called out of a polytheistic groundwork ( Joshua24:ii ), some persons brought their gods with them ( Gen 35:2-4). Israel's sojourn in Egypt placed them under the influence of the Egyptian organized religion, but God's sovereignty was manifest by his judgment upon the gods of Egypt ( Exod 12:12 ; Num 33:four ). Israel, however, rapidly succumbed to idolatry by worshiping a golden dogie at Mount Sinai ( Exod 32 ).
The start commandment is to have no gods before God ( Exod 20:3 ; Deut 5:7 ). In addition, the construction of any images ( Exod twenty:23 ) or even the mention of the names of gods ( Exod 23:xiii ) was forbidden. Invoking the proper name of a god was an acknowledgment of its existence and gave acceptance to its power. Past swearing in the name of some other god ( 1 Kings 19:ii ; 20:10 ), the people would be binding themselves to an allegiance other than God ( Joshua 23:7 ).
Since idolatry substituted another for God it violated the people'south holiness and was parallel to adultery; hence the frequent utilise of negative sexual imagery for idolatry, especially by the prophets. Both intermarriage and formal treaties were prohibited because of necessary affiliation with pagan gods ( Exod 23:32-33 ), leading to eventual fellowship ( Exod 34:15 ) and worship of idols ( Num 25:2-3 ).
Bible Verses about Idolatry
Exodus xx:3
"Y'all shall have no other gods earlier me."
Exodus twenty:4
"Y'all shall not brand for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven in a higher place, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the h2o nether the earth."
Psalm 135:15-17
The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human being hands. They accept mouths, only do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, merely do not hear, nor is at that place any breath in their mouths.
Habakkuk 2:18
"What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metallic image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation when he makes speechless idols!
Isaiah 37:19
And take cast their gods into the fire. For they were no gods, but the work of men's easily, wood and rock. Therefore they were destroyed.
Leviticus 26:1
"You shall non make idols for yourselves or erect an paradigm or pillar, and you shall non prepare a figured stone in your country to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your God.
Hebrews 13:5
Proceed your life free from honey of money, and be content with what yous have, for he has said, "I volition never leave you nor forsake you."
Jonah 2:8
Those who pay regard to vain idols abdicate their promise of steadfast love.
Now let's look at ten specific things that can quickly sneak into our lives and get idols.
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1. Self
Nosotros are a self-obsessed people, or at least, I am. Throughout the twenty-four hours, I filter everything through the lens of how it affects me, and in social settings my focus usually lands squarely on myself. Though I know I be to glorify Christ and reveal His love to a pain world, so often, I easily slip into self-tiptop fashion.
Our civilization might convince me this is beneficial. Afterwards all, if we don't wait out for ourselves, who volition? According to Scripture, Christ. We vest to an all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful Savior who gave His everything so that nosotros might alive. In render, He asks that we willingly give ourselves to Him.
Through surrender, nosotros break complimentary from the idol of cocky and in and so doing, find the freedom to be all that God created u.s.a. to be—men and women of purpose designed to glorify our Creator God.
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2. Security
The challenge with modern day idols is they often arise from really good things, even necessary things. These are needs and pleasures our loving heavenly Father longs to provide. The problem comes when we endeavor to fill our needs, be it for significance or security, in our own force, apart from God. Because our efforts volition ever be insufficient, our hearts will remain empty, which means we'll continue grasping.
This is precisely how the idol of security rises up. Nosotros know inherently, everything we rely on apart from Christ is shaky at best. Careers end, relationships neglect, stock markets crash, and unexpected medical bills can wipe out, in a moment, every bereft foundation we've amassed below us.
But Christ never fails. When we identify our security in Him, nosotros remain strong, unshakable, no thing the anarchy we run into. To detect liberty from the idol of security, we simply demand to lean deeper into Christ. As we do, nosotros discover He is stiff and present plenty to behave the states through any we'll face.
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3. Approval
We were created equally social beings, to live in interdependent community with i another. Therefore, it'southward normal to want to belong. God placed this longing inside the human heart in order to draw us closer to Him and 1 some other—to assist us experience the same oneness God the Begetter, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit enjoy with one another.
The problem arises when nosotros place our want to exist liked above our relationship with God. Whenever we fail to obey when prompted, whether that means speaking truth or reaching out to the marginalized, for fear of what others might think, we've fallen into the trap of idolatry. In valuing homo'due south blessing more than God'southward, we demonstrate where our true loyalties prevarication. But "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" (Matt. 6:24, NIV).
Therefore, when we feel the idol of approval tug on our hearts, we need to ask God to help usa residual deeper in Him.
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4. Relationships
When my daughter was young, I was obsessed. She was the eye of my every idea and activeness. But no homo can fill up the empty places in our hearts. In fact, when we seek fulfillment from others, exist it our children, spouses, or friends, and specially if nosotros elevate those relationships above God, nosotros cease upward feeling depleted.
Only Jesus Christ can meet our deepest needs to love and be loved. When we're centered in Him first and fully, we're freed to bask our relationships with others in a salubrious manner. Therefore, when we recognize the idol of relationships invading our hearts, we must draw closer to Jesus. As we surrender everything, including those we hold most dearest, to our Savior, He saturates our souls and brings low-cal and wholeness to our interactions.
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5. Success
What do you practise? Often, upon meeting someone, that's the outset questions nosotros enquire. And when we're enslaved by the idol of success, this uncomplicated inquisition tin trigger i of ii reactions: insecurity or pride. We soon notice ourselves listing all our accomplishments in an effort to prove our worth or gain respect. Just God measures success based on obedience, not results. In all things, our role is to obey; He's responsible for and sovereign over the outcome.
Our identity is and must be establish in Christ solitary. He wants u.s.a. to know who and whose we are, and Scripture says, in Christ, nosotros're cherished, chosen, and empowered men and women of God handcrafted for an eternal purpose. Our value doesn't increase when we reach our goals or get promoted. Nor does information technology decrease when nosotros're laid off or run into rejections. Knowing this, and anchoring our hearts in grace, frees the states from the idol of success and enables us to become all nosotros were meant to be.
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6. Wealth
Whatever we feed grows. Similarly, what we starve begins to die.
Our culture bombards us with enticing advertisements convincing us to buy, acquire, and accumulate. With 1 click and a swipe of a card, we can amass a plethora of gadgets and toys that marketers promise will entertain and fulfill us. But eventually, those things lose their allure and leave us grasping for that next best thing.
Scripture tells a story of a rich ruler who had everything ane might want yet felt incomplete. Upon seeing Jesus, the ache inside drew him to the Savior with such urgency, he broke out into a run and brutal to his knees before Him. "Practiced Teacher," he said, "what must I exercise to inherit eternal life?" (Mark 10:17, NASB).
In love, Jesus replied, "Sell all you have and requite information technology to the poor, then follow Me" (Marking 10:21, paraphrased). Not because Jesus needed the man'south money only rather considering He wanted his centre. He saw clearly this ruler'due south need and the idol that enslaved him. Generosity would exist the human's cardinal to liberty.
The same holds true for each of united states who find ourselves entrapped by materialistic idolatry.
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seven. Health
Every bit is truthful with potentially every idol we chase, information technology's unremarkably not that "god" nosotros cling to so much as what we hope it will provide. We vehemently guard the idol of cocky out of fear of harm or unfulfillment. We grasp concur of countless false securities for fearfulness of want. We fight for other'due south approving and obsess over human relationships for fear of rejection or loneliness. Nosotros seek lasting joy, something Christ Himself wants to give us, through textile things, and nosotros strive for respect and vitality through gym memberships and fad diets.
It'southward proficient to practice what we can to better our wellness. Increased forcefulness and energy oft leads to enhanced productivity. The problem arises when wellness shifts from a tool to an object of our worship. To know when we've crossed the line into idolatry, nosotros can inquire ourselves some key questions:
Which do I remember of more — my weight or my Savior? Practice I more readily clear my schedule for a gym conditioning or Bible study meeting?
Our schedules usually reveal where our deepest love and loyalties lie. When we sense we've elevated exercise and nutrition above our Savior, nosotros have the opportunity to go deeper in our relationship with Him. As our intimacy with Him grows, all the fears and insecurities that fuel the idol of health diminish.
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8. Nutrient
Chocolate reveals the center of our adept, loving Begetter. He could've given all nourishment a single flavor or created the states with the ability to detect perhaps a handful of varieties. Instead, He blessed u.s.a. with a feast filled with the sugariness, tangy, salty, and savory and granted us tongues with x,000 taste buds that enable us to enjoy every bite.
Scripture tells us every good and perfect gift comes from God and is designed to bless usa and describe us closer to the Souvenir-giver. Unfortunately, our hearts are fickle and easily swayed then that we trade intimacy with our Savior for the momentary rush of a saccharide high. As C.Due south. Lewis then eloquently stated, "Information technology would seem that our Lord finds our desires not likewise potent, but as well weak. … similar an ignorant kid who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far also easily pleased."
The solution, so, isn't to forsake pleasure simply to gear up our hearts on the 1 who is the source of all that is good, right, fulfilling, and pleasurable.
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nine. Intellect
For years, I not only wanted to be smart but wanted others to call back I was as well. I found fulfillment in searching out answers and sharing my "wisdom". But over time, this God-given drive to learn morphed into pride and self-elevation. Shortly, fifty-fifty my Bible reading, which was supposed to draw me closer to God, turned into more than of an bookish pursuit. I cantankerous-referenced and digested numerous verses and commentaries, filling my caput with knowledge while starving my heart.
God gave us intelligence and the curiosity to make employ of it — for a grace-filled purpose. And so that, as we investigate our earth, we'll discover its Creator and hold Him in awe. When surrendered to Him, our studies become acts of worship that demark us intimately with our Creator. Intellectual pursuits apart from Him, nevertheless, are not just futile, only unsafe. Whenever nosotros seek truth more than its embodiment, Jesus, nosotros skid into idolatry. The solution? Call up our sin — where we were and where nosotros'd exist without Christ.
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10. Comfort
I like my large, almond milk, vanilla-flavored latte. I love soft pillows and ac and easy admission to the Cyberspace. I enjoy eating water ice foam while watching Netflix. Many times I choose these modern comforts over crossing the street to initiate a chat with a neighbour. I prefer an extra hour of sleep over getting upward early on to serve in the nursery on Sunday morning.
I adopt beach vacations to participating in disaster relief efforts, and sitting with my friends during church over enduring the social awkwardness to attain out to a stranger. In short, I ofttimes drag my condolement over my obedience—over the gospel, and whatsoever holds higher priority in my heart than Jesus. This then becomes an idol.
I've institute the only manner to escape the idol of comfort is to intentionally embrace something that makes me uncomfortable: Initiate conversation with someone different than me, serve in an area I experience ill-equipped, or donate my latte money to help fund international missions.
Jesus is the anecdote for every idol that infiltrates my centre. The more I lean into Him, prioritize my time with Him, and surrender to Him, the more than He fills the deepest, darkest crevices inside me until at that place'south room for nothing else.
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Jennifer Slattery is a writer and speaker who's addressed women'due south groups, church building groups, Bible studies, and writers across the nation. She'southward the author ofRestoring Her Faithand numerous other titles and maintains a devotional blog at JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud.com. Equally the founder of Wholly Loved Ministries, she and her team honey to help women detect, embrace, and live out who they are in Christ. Visit her online to discover out more about her speaking or to book her for your next women's event, and sign up for her free quarterly newsletter Hitherto learn of her future appearances, projects, and releases.
Source: https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/idols-that-sneak-into-our-lives-and-how-to-resist-them.html