Idolatry In Worship
What Is It?
As discussed last week, our worship as Christ followers is limited to the triune God that scripture supports. No one else and nothing else is deserving of our utmost praise and worship. However, when we do offer more praise and honor and glory to one particular being over another, this is called ‘idolatry’. Back when the 10 commandments were written in Exodus, we see how seriously God is against idolatry. Exodus 20:4 says, “4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,” Ever since our Lord has commanded us to worship His name, we have seen that idolatry is prohibited. Jared Wilson from Ligonier Ministries points out, “Many of us file in each week to enjoy the conspicuous spiritual exercises of our brethren. We worship the worship experience; we tithe with expectation of return from heaven’s slot machine; we dress to impress; and we serve and lead to compensate for the inadequacies in our hearts that only Christ can fill. A church will become idolatrous in a heartbeat because it’s already there. So, we cannot set our worship on autopilot.” So if God is clearly against idol worship, why are so many churches guilty of its practice? The answer is simple. Becasue so many churches are unknowingly doing it. The word ‘idol’ in its original Greek and Hebrew translation means, ‘an image of worship’ or ‘false god’. Therefore, as stated earlier, anything that we give more glory and reverence to other than God is an idol. You may be thinking that this is common sense to the believer at this point but I want to point out a passage to you that may show otherwise.
Does It Still Happen?
Look at what Colossians 3:5 says, “5 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.” All of these sins amount to idolatry, and any of these wrongdoings that we commit are guilty of idolatry. Just think about how many times you’ve walked into a worship service with an impure heart, a wrong motive or desire, or even greed. God counts this all as idolatry. Now before I go further, I am not saying that if you are struggling with sin, then you shouldn’t go to church or attend a worship service. What I am saying, however, is that if these sins have become a common practice in your life and have gone unaddressed, then you may struggle with idol worship and not even realize it. This is why church discipline and discipleship are so important. We can’t just assume that every single one of our members is in a great spot in their walk with the Lord and that we don’t need to disciple them anymore. This kind of treatment is beyond dangerous for the Church. Not only must we hold ourselves accountable to this Word of God, but we must also watch out for our brothers and sisters in Christ who we may be discipling as well. We must hold the church accountable for its actions and stop assuming that everyone’s heart is in the right place when it comes to worship.
There are people all throughout the Church in America today who offer more glory and reverence to objects, entertainment, and even sins. And unfortunately, all of these go unaddressed because if we aren’t physically bowing down to a carved, wooden image, then we don’t ever think we could be guilty of idolatry. Is there anything that you glorify with your life more than Christ? If I gathered your closest friends and family together, what would they claim you are the most passionate about? Are you more passionate about football than you are about the Lord? Do you show more reverence to your own family than you do the God of the universe? What about inside the church? Do you only worship your best when a certain song is playing or when a particular light show is happening? What about outside the church? Is there a particular sin that you indulge in that you are too consumed by that you don’t want to repent of? All of these instances happen every week inside the Christian community and what a shame it is.
Which Do You Serve?
Whether it’s a sin, an object, or a certain setting at our church, all we need to worship the Lord is the Lord Himself. While this is a humbling thought to realize, it is also a warning from God. God tells us in His word that we cannot serve two masters (Matt. 6:24), which means that if we struggle with idolatry in our lives, we aren’t serving God and our idol, we serve our idol alone. This is why the Bible makes such a big deal of idolatry. Not only do we overlook idolatry often in our lives, but when we partake in its wickedness, we cannot serve the Lord as He intended. There’s a reason the word ‘idol’ means ‘false god’. That’s because we are taking something and putting it in God’s place. If we claim that we are worshiping God and partaking in idolatry at the same time, we are only fooling ourselves. Idolatry is a momentous deal and it’s time it is treated as such. Look at what God tells His people in Judges 10:14 “14 Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress.” If we continue to let our sins, our hobbies, or even our own church services take the place of God in our lives, God will leave us to our own devices and let our idols save us instead. We must be extremely alert as God’s children to not let idols take the place of the Lord in our lives, or we too will be left to our own devices. I hope and pray that as you spend time with the Lord this week, you will ask Him to convict you by His Spirit about any idol that you may have placed in His spot. Furthermore, if we as the Church see our brothers and sisters partaking in idolatry, may we pray for them and lovingly confront them so that the Lord may regain His rightful place in all of our lives.
Sources
[1] “Access Your Bible from Anywhere.” BibleGateway.Com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages., www.biblegateway.com/. Accessed 2023.
[2] The Church and Idolatry by Jared Wilson. (n.d.). Ligonier Ministries. https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/the-church-and-idolatry
[3] The Strongest NASB Exhaustive Concordance. Zondervan, 2004.
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