Romans 1.21-23
“For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”
We are all looking for something to worship and serve. We are all searching for something that will give us meaning and purpose and identity. And that makes us vulnerable to counterfeit gods.
When it comes to idolatry, the danger is not in an item or a thing … the danger is in us. John Calvin said our heart is an idol factory. In a fallen world, people constantly seek things to which they can give affection and allegiance, even though the Creator is before them in plain view.
John Calvin wrote, “Every one of us is, even from his mother’s womb, a master craftsman of idols.”
Blaise Pascal identified our predisposition to counterfeits when he said, “There is nothing so abominable in the eyes of God and of men as idolatry, whereby men render to the creature that honor which is due only to the Creator.”
A.W. Tozer wrote, “The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thoughts about God that are unworthy of Him.”
The root of all idolatry is found in a distorted understanding of God. We undervalue His worthiness, dismiss His holiness, diminish His love, dilute His truth, or forget His jealousy. We begin to erect idols as our affections drift away from the exclusive worship the Lord requires of us.
Tozer also said, “An idol of the mind is as offensive to God as an idol of the hand.” The danger of idolatry is not found simply in the things we can hold and label as idols. Idols are conceived deep in the human soul, evolving in the mind and poisoning our thinking long before they are evidenced in behavior or objects.
May we listen to these wise Christian men from history. May we learn from the error of Ahab. May we listen to the prophet Elijah. May we turn away from any form of idolatry and worship the one true God, and Him alone.
The Lord is calling. Coram Deo
