An idol here, an idol there…

It's a fact of life. Idols are much more prominent than we could ever expect. Its something I have found out the hard way throughout life, and especially being back, dealing with money and security and fear. And while in church a few weeks ago, I got a whole new perspective on what an idol might be.

It was the week of Thanksgiving and the pastor was preaching on greed and how ironic it is that the day after we celebrate how thankful we are for what we have, the next day we go out and sometimes literally kill each other for things we don't have. The pastor said that we make idols out of so many small things in life. He defined an idol as something that does not fulfill the Gospel of Christ. Its anything opposite the Gospel.

And from there, my mind took off with that concept. It makes sense. Anything you put in your way of fulfilling the Gospel is an idol. So what does fulfilling the Gospel look like? 

1. We must choose the high cost of becoming a disciple. 

Luke 14

“If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.



28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? 29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. 30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

Being a disciple is no small deal! People ran away from Jesus when Jesus told people what it takes to be His follower. Ran away crying. Its a high cost!

2. Believe what Christ says about us.

Romans 8:17 "Now if we are children, then we are heirs–heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

We are His heirs. We are worthy to do amazing things. No more doubt about who we are, our worth, or our sin. He saved us from it. But there will be suffering. 

3. Love

Luke 10:27 "He answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

That word for neighbor actually refers to everyone. Not just the people next to you. You friends, your enemies and everyone else. 

So those fulfill the Gospel. So an idol is anything we choose to believe in instead of believing in what Christ says. Things like

Fear of being unsafe