Ten Words - Week 3: No Idols!

Scripture: Exodus 20:4-6, Psalm 115:4-8, Matthew 6:24, Exodus 18:20, Deuteronomy 24:16, Colossians 3:5

Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before me.” 
We are to worship God.

Pastor begins today’s teaching by talking about the different numbering of the commandments and how it does’t matter how we number them, what matters is whether we listen to them and apply them to our lives.

Exodus 20:4-5 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.”

So is this saying we have to take down pictures on our walls, or throw out figurines?  This is not what God is saying. Pastor shares biblical examples supporting that God is not talking about banning all artwork. What God’s talking about is idolatry - something that’s become more important to us than He is.

What does it mean  -  God is a “jealous God?”  Pastor explains that this doesn’t mean God is sinfully jealous. God means that His desire, as our Creator, is that we know Him, worship Him and do not worship other objects or things.  He wants us to worship Him alone and to place nothing else in front of our devotion to Him. 

The verse speaks of the “third and fourth generations…” and the consequences of individuals and especially parents, on how setting an example to the children ends up getting passed down to the next generation and the next. This is why it’s important to teach them about God and show them by how you live.  Exodus 18:20 says, “Teach them His decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave.” 

But if individuals and parents choose not to live in faith to God and instead live as being part of the world, with all its idols, the next generation is taught idolatry and that gets passed down. God says this in Deuteronomy 24:16 says, “Parents are not to be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.”  A child will not be condemned as an idolator if they come to know Jesus as their Savior. God’s desire is that all people turn to Him and belong to Him. Idolatry and the consequences of it are important to understand because when we worship God and follow Him, there is an amazing blessing.

Exodus 20:6 “but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” What a powerful promise from our God who is merciful and gracious and who desires to bring blessings upon individuals, families, and generation after generation.

IDOLATRY

Psalm 115:4-8 summary: Idols are lifeless and they make their worshiper as dead as they are.  

We can look at these verses and say as a believer, “I don’t have an idol set up in my household. No statues, I don’t offer incense before a statue and I don’t bow down to poles or chant incantations.”  But…

Is there more depth that needs to be understood around the meaning of idolatry? John Calvin’s quote: “The human heart is an idol factory.” As part of our fallen nature we worship things over God. There are many contemporary idols. Here’s a sampling of six:

APPEARANCE - becomes an idol when we’re more concerned about how we look, how people perceive us, and how we appear before others, than how we appear before God. There’s nothing wrong with looking nice - it’s good to take care of ourselves, but appearance can become an idol when its one of the most important things in one’s life, outstripping the concern of what God thinks of us.

EDUCATION - is a good thing but it can easily become a god in our lives where it becomes the most important thing, where we boast about our educational achievements, or put education above the what and who of God in our lives. 

ENTERTAINMENT (sports, music, TV, movies) - can become the most important thing in our lives when we worship what’s on the TV screen, worship the latest pop star, when icons are who we dream of or dream of becoming, when we try to look like, talk like, act like them….  Entertainment can become an abject of worship that crowds God out of our lives or reduces Him to an after thought.

MONEY - can become a dominant force in our lives.  Matthew 6:24 says we cannot serve both God and money. The love of money - greed - can become our motivating source for our actions, desires, our future, our work and God ends up being left behind.

POWER - is the desire for influence, to be recognized by others, to be in control, but God is the One who is in control. We are to serve and respond to Him through faith in Him, not faith in ourselves.

SEX - It’s morally neutral but can become an idol, especially in our sexually crazed environment today: wide spread pornography, sexual immorality not just winked at but encouraged. However, sex is a gift from God for procreation, intimacy and joy. 

The Scriptures say we are not to worship an idol - instead we are to worship God alone as it says in Colossians 3:5 “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” 

Martin Luther says, “We should fear, love and trust in God above all things.” God is good and because He is, let us respond in repentance and believe in Jesus whose death covers our sin and who we know is coming back so that we will live forever with Him. Therefore my desire is to fear, love and trust in Him above ALL things!

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