I've been meeting with some of the men from church on Saturdays, and we've been studying the issue of idolatry. It seems like every book in the Bible talks about idolatry in one form or another. When idolatry is the very first of the commandments given to Moses ("thou shalt have no other gods before me"), I guess that's a pretty good sign of two things: idolatry is a significant problem in God's eyes, and He knew it was something we were going to have a problem with.
God is a jealous god. In fact, scripture says that one of his names is "Jealous." I think that might bother some people because we have a fairly negative impression of the word. On the other hand, if I was flirting with another woman and my wife wasn't jealous, I'm thinking that might be a cause for concern. Still, sometimes we as human beings twist jealousy into something that really is more than a bit negative. But not God. His jealousy is entirely holy and pure, and it stems from his great love and passion for us, his creation.
One time Jesus was teaching and he said, "if anyone comes to me and doesn't hate his father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters - yes, even their own life - then they are not fit to be my disciple." Talk about harsh. But he wasn't really telling me that I had to hate my family members in order to follow him. He was telling me that I had to love him more. He was telling me that I had to love him most.
In our men's study we are talking about the many things that can become idols in our lives. As soon as we love something most, and that something is not God, then we have begun chasing after an idol. Idols can be perfectly good and healthy things in our lives, things like family, a career, even getting physically fit. But when that perfectly good and healthy thing begins to consume our time, our thoughts, our resources, our focus - especially to the exclusion of relationship with our God - we are perilously close to a serious problem.
What I'm discovering is that, out of all the things that can become idols in my life, there is one that is tougher than all the rest to deal with. It's harder to recognize. It's harder to unseat. It's harder to keep from slipping back in to.
It's the idol of me.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the idol of "me" is not just a problem for me. It might even be the case that the idol of "me" is kind of like the boss idol that all the other ones like career, family, success, and others work for.
The only thing you can do with idols is destroy them. You can't put them on a shelf or pack them away in a box because, if you do that, they'll find a way back in. And as you destroy these idols, you must also "set apart Christ as Lord," the only position that God is willing to take in our lives.
The apostle Paul told the church in Colossae, "Put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature...and put on the new self which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of it's Creator." When Jesus said we had to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily, I think he was urging us to put these idols to death. And the toughest idol to put to death is the idol of me.
Idolatry keeps us from seeing the world as God sees it. It keeps us from being in the world what God planned for us to be. And it keeps us from accomplishing in the world the very purpose that God chose for us - to be salt and light, the pleasing aroma of Christ among both those who are being saved and those who are perishing.
God is a jealous god. In fact, scripture says that one of his names is "Jealous." I think that might bother some people because we have a fairly negative impression of the word. On the other hand, if I was flirting with another woman and my wife wasn't jealous, I'm thinking that might be a cause for concern. Still, sometimes we as human beings twist jealousy into something that really is more than a bit negative. But not God. His jealousy is entirely holy and pure, and it stems from his great love and passion for us, his creation.
One time Jesus was teaching and he said, "if anyone comes to me and doesn't hate his father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters - yes, even their own life - then they are not fit to be my disciple." Talk about harsh. But he wasn't really telling me that I had to hate my family members in order to follow him. He was telling me that I had to love him more. He was telling me that I had to love him most.
In our men's study we are talking about the many things that can become idols in our lives. As soon as we love something most, and that something is not God, then we have begun chasing after an idol. Idols can be perfectly good and healthy things in our lives, things like family, a career, even getting physically fit. But when that perfectly good and healthy thing begins to consume our time, our thoughts, our resources, our focus - especially to the exclusion of relationship with our God - we are perilously close to a serious problem.
What I'm discovering is that, out of all the things that can become idols in my life, there is one that is tougher than all the rest to deal with. It's harder to recognize. It's harder to unseat. It's harder to keep from slipping back in to.
It's the idol of me.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the idol of "me" is not just a problem for me. It might even be the case that the idol of "me" is kind of like the boss idol that all the other ones like career, family, success, and others work for.
- When I get mad at the driving of other people on the roads I'm traveling, I get upset because they are inconveniencing ME.
- When unexpected things happen in my life that produce anxiety and frustration and irritation, it's because they aren't fitting into MY plans.
- When I decide I need a collection of weapons at my ready disposal, it's because I've decided that my safety and security is all up to ME.
- When I ignore the pain and rejection that a personal symbol like a flag I wave brings to millions of my brothers and sisters, it's because what matters most is ME.
- When I ignore or refuse to help a person in great need because they are unworthy, it's because that money is MY money, earned through MY works.
The only thing you can do with idols is destroy them. You can't put them on a shelf or pack them away in a box because, if you do that, they'll find a way back in. And as you destroy these idols, you must also "set apart Christ as Lord," the only position that God is willing to take in our lives.
The apostle Paul told the church in Colossae, "Put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature...and put on the new self which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of it's Creator." When Jesus said we had to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily, I think he was urging us to put these idols to death. And the toughest idol to put to death is the idol of me.
Idolatry keeps us from seeing the world as God sees it. It keeps us from being in the world what God planned for us to be. And it keeps us from accomplishing in the world the very purpose that God chose for us - to be salt and light, the pleasing aroma of Christ among both those who are being saved and those who are perishing.
