The water glistened with the kiss of sunshine. It rippled from the breeze and the trees swayed back and forth. As I bounced up and down in the old travel bus I peered out the window at this vast landscape and thought in amazement, What did I do to deserve to be here, to see this. I felt the warm sun beaming down on my arm and sat in awe of the hundreds of fields stretched out for miles. I love the sight of the cotton clouds kissing the mountain peaks on the distant horizon. This view reminded me of the flyover states back home. Rows and rows of crops, flowers, and varieties of vegetation. God ceases to amaze me with the majesty of his creation. So beautiful and mysterious. I see the locals lining the road in their rice hats selling their fruit. I can’t help but wonder if that’s all they’ve ever done. If that’s all they’ll ever do. Sell fruit for a living. But they smile in contentment, because they have Enough. Their needs are met. They exude joy even in the worst of circumstances. But is that the worst of circumstances? That’s all they’ve ever known. I wonder what their passions are? What drives them and makes them feel alive? I wonder if they know about Jesus? That he exists? I wonder if they they know he has more for them, in this life and the next. Do they know about the savior of world who died to know them?
Last week we visited a Vietnamese temple. We saw massive shrines made of wood, stone, wax and other man made resources. We saw alters cluttered with offerings and sacrifices. Fruit, flowers, beverages, cigarettes, and incents . People bowed down at the foot of these 100 foot high statues praising and worshiping these man made gods. People of the Buddhist religion sit for hours a day in a temple, barefoot, in modest clothing as a sign of respect to their gods.They burn incents and give offerings to their deceased loved ones and pay their respects to Buddah . Yet they have no idea that the one true God sent his only son to save their souls. They have no idea they don’t have to make sacrifices to an alter and pay respects to their dead by offering incents and fruit.
1 Corinthians 10:14 ESV -Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry
I sighed to my friend In sadness. “My heart breaks seeing them worship these idols.”She paused and smiled. “We do the same thing.” It just looks differently.” I stood corrected. “You’re right I said.” We idolize many things.” We are like the Israelites of the present age.We idolize our phones, social media, our children, boyfriends, girlfriends, sports, and hobbies. The Israelites were brought out of slavery into the promise land yet they refuse to serve God, and continued to bow down to other gods. The bible tells us not to put any other God before him, it doesn’t matter what it is. He tells us in his word to not have idol hands, and not to love anything more than God himself. Yet we do it all the time.
Psalm 135:15-18 ESV – The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear, nor is there any breath in their mouths. Those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them!
Idolatry is alive and well in present day America. We worship at the temple of Self. We bow down to the Gods of money, drugs, sex, and alcohol. We worship our relationships. We idolize our selfies, our security, and our status more than Jesus. We make sacrifices to elusive dreams of perfection- the perfect husband the perfect family, the perfect body, the perfect life. Perfection becomes a substitute for the gold and jewels the Israelites used to create idols. As humans we often find it easier to worship temporal dreams of earthly perfection, than the eternal God.
When the Israelites fled Egypt they left a land steeped in idolatry. They worshiped thousands of deities ascribing God like qualities to animals, birds, and trees. They created temples and statues adorned with gold and jewels to elevate these false gods. They quickly exchanged worshiping God for worshiping a dream they could control, a deity they could manipulate.
Isaiah 45:20 ESV -Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save.
You may not think you’re guilty of idol worship. You wouldn’t bow down to an animal figurine or a human size statue. You go to Church every Sunday. You have a bible on your bedside table. You pray before your meals. But do you long for a golden dream that seems just fingertips away? Our golden dreams of earthly perfection encapsulate only what we allow; they stay as safe as we like them to. They shimmer, and they’re desirable. When we stay so fixated on things of this world we lose our focus on the one thing that matters. God.
What do you adore? What is your hearts treasure? His word tells us “Where our treasure is our heart will be also.” Perhaps you spend your time dreaming of ascending into greatness as an artist or breaking new ground in your carreer, maybe you idolize your children, your relationship, maybe you idolize your phone and the many apps that keep you entertained? Personally I have lived much of my life idolizing things of this world. My boyfriends, my social status, football, my success, money, social media, material possessions, even myself at times.
Galatians 4:8 ESV -Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods.
The truth is when something catches your attention, or your thoughts, it usually captures your heart. Idol worship is alive and well but things of this world will not soothe your soul. What lies on the throne of your heart? God will dethrone anything that is taking his place in your heart. I want to encourage you to take a look at your priorities, the things and people in your life. What types of idols have you noticed in your life? In what subtle ways have you been putting things, people, or ideas before God? How can you show God you love HIM more than any person, place, or thing? This whole realization makes me feel more buddhist than I thought. It reminded me I don’t want to live a life idolizing and worshiping the things created, I want to spend my time, my money, my gifts, and my life worshiping the Creator of the Universe.
