Hi everyone! We are starting on a new series called More Than Anything- Loving God Above Everything Else. We can turn anything into an idol without even realizing it. So, open your Bibles and read Exodus 20:3-6; Psalm 135:15-18; Jonah 2:8; and Romans 1:25.
When God created the world, He created us to worship only Him. God crafted us hearts to worship Him alone. He made us so He could have a deep relationship with us. We all know about the first temptation and sin. Adam and Eve were created to be in awe of our God, but they fell into the lie that God wasn’t enough- that they needed to look somewhere else for satiation. Through temptation, we are led to believe that God isn’t enough and we need to search for something greater. But that’s the thing, we will never find anything greater than our loving God. When we misdirect our worship toward anything other than God, that is called idolatry.
A good example of idolatry is in Exodus 32, after God used Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery. When Moses was on Mount Sinai, the Israelites became impatient and they decided to create an idol from the very came country that they were freed from. The irony. Their impatience with God led them to create a god for themselves. Even after all that God had done for them and recued them, they forsook Him and turned to worthless idols.
When we look closer, idolatry starts in the heart. It is placing something or someone above God. Even when we seem to have everything together and think that God is held above everything else, we need to take a closer look into our hearts. God isn’t just looking for us to go to church on Sundays, read our Bibles daily, etc. He is actively looking to see if we truly value Him as the God of our hearts. The bible shows us that idolatry comes in many forms, from worshipping others to worshipping wealth and possessions, to worshipping passions, power, and desires of our flesh. As Christians today, we are faced with a lot of temptations that we can easily turn into our idols.
God made His commandment very clear with us “Do not have other gods besides me, do not make an idol for yourself, whether in the shape of anything in the heavens or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth.” Exodus 20:3. Idolatry is a sin. It is exalting anything that is not God. It is born out of the lie that God is not enough for us. It misleads us to believe that we can make better gods for ourselves. God is the only one who can fulfill and satisfy our every longing. He is the only one who can meet our every need.
Through God’s covenant promise, bound by love and sacrifice, He promises to be with His people and to never leave nor forsake us. He is fully deserving of our worship! Where does your heart turn to find fulfillment and satisfaction? Where do you seek purpose? Where do you seek security? Does it consume your thoughts? Does it control your actions? The goal with this study is to examine our hearts. I am right here with y’all examining my heart as well. No one is perfect. God is the only one worthy of our deepest affection and devotion.
Let’s discuss what we just read. I have some questions that I want you to think about, write them down, and if you’d like to comment below we can discuss them together!
- What is your biblical understanding of idolatry?
- Preparing for this study, consider what idols vie for your worship. Where does your heart turn to find fulfillment, purpose, security, or satisfaction?
- As you begin this study, write a prayer asking for God to open your eyes to see any idolatrous why in your heart.
I struggle with idolizing others things in my life without even knowing I made it an idol. In our busy worlds, sometimes God gets the back burner when He should always be on our hearts. I don’t know about you, but this study is hitting some places in my heart hard. But, God is loving and gracious. He will show me peace and love.
I hope you enjoy this study and decide to come back. Tomorrow, we’ll learn about Approval of Man and how it can become an idol. I hope you enjoy the beautiful sunset that was made by our loving Father and y’all have a wonderful night.