Where are your ‘gods’?

Before I begin, let me just remind anyone reading this of something my mother always taught me: “Whenever you point a finger at someone, remember, three are pointing back at you [me]!”😌

Very few religions in the world still believe in idols of gold, stone or wood. Hinduism has thousands of “gods” that inhabit temples throughout the subcontinent, but Hindus to whom I have spoken disavow worshiping the statues. They claim the statues only represent the “god” who lives with Shiva, Vishnu or as some adjunct to Brahman, the ultimate reality. Their prayers to the statues are just wishes for fulfillment of whatever that particular “god” is in charge.

Buddhists disdain “gods” altogether and simply strive for “enlightenment” as Gautama Buddha is thought to have attained. They simply revere him with statues to remind them of the path they are traveling. Intelligent Buddhists claim they are simply paying respect to him when they prostrate themselves before a statue, although some do really worship the statue itself, believing that the Bodhisattvas present in the icon will help them reach a higher plain of existence.

These practices in our times are similar to what Roman Catholics say to protestants about praying to statues in cathedrals. They claim to not be praying to the statue as though “it” could help them, but they are praying to the person the statue represents, though I have some Biblical concerns with praying to anyone except The God Who Is. As a Bible student, I wonder, “Why bother with a subordinate when Biblically, we have access directly to Father God?” (Matthew 6:5-7)

We can conclude not very many worship idols like the Philistines or the Canaanites. These societies in the land God promised to Jacob actually worshiped their graven images… like the Israelites worshiped the golden calf, waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain (Exodus 32). Idol worshiping societies actually imbued their false god’s representation with the expectation that the statue heard their appeals. But we don’t do that anymore. Even Hindus, Buddhists and Roman Catholics have wised up to the silliness that a statue could be alive.  

And we evangelicals never had any problem with idols anyway, right?!

Think again as you read Ezekiel 14! YHWH tells the prophet: “Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces.” Wow! And they didn’t even have the internet yet! Jesus taught that it was not what a man ate that polluted him, but rather what came out of his mouth (Matthew 15:10-20). And Ezekiel heard it straight from the Creator centuries earlier.

Thus we conclude idolatry does not require a statue, icon, or physical representation to be present in our hearts. Anger, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, pride and sloth are the Seven Deadly Sins, any one of which can become our “god.” Do you really have a “right” to be angry at a stupid driver? Are you harboring an idol of jealousy for someone’s spouse, another’s success or ability? How is your internet viewing? Have you put off that unpleasant task too long, hoping it will just go away? Obviously, these are “idols” whose worship will destroy us; ergo the name, the Seven Deadly Sins.

However, some idols in our hearts may be “good things,” in and of themselves. After all, every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father of Lights with whom there is no shadow of change. When we begin to value the gift more than the Giver, though, we are in trouble. We have taken idols into our hearts. A good job, a nice house, a comfortable life, pleasant travels, a peaceful place to live, good neighbors? Any of these may become false gods if we do not keep them in their proper perspective.

Of course,  there is always the possibility that any gift Father has provided could be removed. After all, HE is God and we are not. There are mysteries in His view that we will not understand in this life; possibly not even the next, but many of the things that confuse us now will be clarified when we “know even as we are known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

It is easy enough to get rid of an idol of gold, stone or wood. A furnace can melt gold, a sledge can crush stone and a saw and fire can destroy wood. But how do we get rid of idols that have no physical manifestation? Ezekiel says, “Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away your faces from all your abominations.” Easier said than done. 

To repent means to express godly sorrow and turn away from previous behavior. However, many of us find ourselves continuously struggling with clinging sins (Hebrews 12:1). How many times must we pray, “It’s me again, Lord.  I repent of this sin of…” How many times can we expect Father to answer with a loving, “Yes, I forgive you for Jesus’ sake.”

The best news is that He promises as long as we present with sincere hearts, and do not become discouraged or complacent about sin, HE WILL forgive! Every time! 70 times 7 (Matthew 18:22) or ad infinitum! He will not despise a broken and contrite heart, no matter how many times we come to Him. This is not an excuse to say, “Well, I’ll go on sinning because God will keep forgiving me.” That is an attitude ripe for destruction; a new idol of complacency erected in our hearts. But if we continually scorn the sin, we will eventually find His strength made perfect in our weakness and overcome it (2 Corinthians 12:9).

So rest in Him. Trust Him and His revelation that He has provided in Jesus, the Messiah. Be faithful in reading and studying Scripture. Pray continually (you know, that constant monologue you have about things around you – direct that to Him). Thus, whether we live or die, we are His (Romans 14:8) and His “love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Romans 5:5).