What makes an idol

It is a matter of the heart, associated with pride, self-centeredness, greed, gluttony Php , and love for possessions Matt Idolatry is a major theme of the Bible. It challenges God's sovereignty and attempts to offer an alternate explanation to the issues of life.

But Scripture not only records people's failures; it also records the hope of repentance. In his mercy, God raised up men and women who challenged the faulty theology of the community. Essentially, an idol can be anything that takes the place of God as the most important focus and priority in our life. This article will go through ten examples of idols and idolatry in the modern era.

Discover what makes these examples prevalent and dangerous substitutes for God as the primary essence of our lives. According to Baker's Biblical Dictionary , the most prevalent form of idolatry in biblical times was the worship of images or idols that represented or were thought to embody various pagan deities. In the Old Testament, from the beginning, the threat of idolatry was in the midst of Israel. The forefathers were idolaters and, while Abraham was called out of a polytheistic background Joshua , some persons brought their gods with them Gen Israel's sojourn in Egypt placed them under the influence of the Egyptian religion, but God's sovereignty was manifest by his judgment upon the gods of Egypt Exod ; Num Israel, however, quickly succumbed to idolatry by worshiping a golden calf at Mount Sinai Exod The first commandment is to have no gods before God Exod ; Deut In addition, the construction of any images Exod or even the mention of the names of gods Exod was forbidden.

Invoking the name of a god was an acknowledgment of its existence and gave credence to its power. By swearing in the name of another god 1 Kings ; , the people would be binding themselves to an allegiance other than God Joshua Since idolatry substituted another for God it violated the people's holiness and was parallel to adultery; hence the frequent use of negative sexual imagery for idolatry, especially by the prophets.

Both intermarriage and formal treaties were prohibited because of necessary affiliation with pagan gods Exod , leading to eventual fellowship Exod and worship of idols Num 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. For its maker trusts in his own creation when he makes speechless idols! And have cast their gods into the fire. For they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed. Now let's look at 10 specific things that can quickly sneak into our lives and become idols. We are a self-obsessed people, or at least, I am.

Throughout the day, I filter everything through the lens of how it affects me, and in social settings my focus usually lands squarely on myself. Though I know I exist to glorify Christ and reveal His love to a hurting world, so often, I easily slip into self-elevation mode.

The pursuit of money and the acquisition of things is an idol for many in our culture. Many people trust their money more than they trust God. Hear me on this. Money is not bad. Money is a tool. And like any tool, you have to use it correctly; otherwise, it can cause much damage.

Many have placed their hopes and dreams in money. They trust it to provide for them, care for them, and protect them. Money has become the ultimate thing for many of us. We are obsessed with being entertained. And it comes in many forms- from Netflix to vacations and video games to podcasts. We love entertainment in all forms. It can be a good thing. I would argue that entertainment is good and a gift from God, but we should worship the giver not the gift. We are obsessed with sex in our culture.

It is everywhere. It might be the only thing we think about more than money. We have taken a gift from God and made it into the god of our lives. And for many, their lives are controlled by sex.

To even question the sexual ethic in our society will bring a slew of accusations, showing how tied to our idol we actually are. Our sexual identity, sexual practices, and sex lives are sacred to us. The church has some blame for this. Rather than portraying sex as a good gift from God, in recent history, they have heaped guilt and shame. You could argue this is one of the factors that brought the over-exaggeration of sex.

But regardless of how we got here, for many today, sex is an idol. But Christ came to Earth to reveal God to man. God did not form Jesus, but took on form as Jesus. He is the Idol we can walk with and talk with. He is the Idol we can know. This Idol did not demand a sacrifice, it became the sacrifice. Idols are anything we use to replace the Idol that lived and died for us, and wants to know us.

God is not content to share His temple with anyone or anything. Those who put their trust in Christ are now His temple. What other idols are cramming His Holy space, and how can they be redeemed from self-honoring idols to God-honoring tools? God cannot use a temple occupied by other idols. He cannot use hands already full with worldly treasures.

There is not a single breath that God does not demand for His own praise. There is not a single burned calorie that God does not desire for Himself. Every bead of sweat, fleeting thought, and discarded penny, God claims as His own. It may seem ridiculous to give every minor detail of life to God.

But the more we know Him, the more silly it seems not to. Everything seems to fall on me when trying to live right. Sin is in everything. Much prayer needed. Thanks so much for your post. Check here to receive a Saturday email of the week's posts.

Grid Focus by Derek Punsalan 5thirtyone. Feeling Grief or Sorrow? Jul 27, So has Stand-Up Paddling become an idol? But idolatry is a matter of the heart. So how can I tell if Stand-up Paddling has become an idol? The Crucial Question The question is: what am I seeking as my highest, all-satisfying good? So how can we tell when this is happening?

It gives me greater joy than Christ. It gives me the most excitement about the future. It is what I daydream about the most. It is what I most enjoy talking about. I is what I fear losing the most. It is what I most enjoy reading about. It is what I most love spending money on. It is what I look to for heart-rejuvenation. It is what I most enjoy spending time on. To my shame, at times, this past week, it has. So what can I do? I am turning to Jesus for help.

So I am turning to Jesus and asking him for help. So, with no excuses or rationalizations, I am confessing my idolatry as sin. I am praying over relevant Scriptures. So I am pondering Scriptures like these — Psalm , which promises that as I wait on the Lord he will meet me.

Psalm , which promises that my greatest joy is found in God alone. Romans , which teaches that my sin of idolatry has been put to death with Christ. Jeremiah , which teaches that God alone is living water; everything else will leave me thirsty. Matthew , which promises that the pure in heart will see God. My idol had been chopped down.

So how about you? Do you have idols that need to be chopped down? Your idols will soon be falling.