Modern Idolatry

Modern Idolatry Idolatry- 1 : the worship of a physical object as a god 2 : immoderate attachment or devotion to something. Taken from the Merriam-Webster dictionary online. First of all, let me take a second to introduce myself. My name is Norman L. Morrison, but most people call me by my nickname Pete. I'm an ordained Christian minister from Lexington, NC. I don't pastor a church, but I do operate an online ministry called New Disciples Ministry. I have been a youth, Sunday school teacher and travelled with a touring ministry around the southeastern United States. I befriended Michelle Meyer through Facebook and am honored that she asked me to be a part of the bible study group. So, now that the introduction is out of the way, let's get into some scripture, shall we? Exodus 20:3 (New King James Version) 3 “You shall have no other gods before Me. When our God tells us that we shall have no other God's before Him, he means more than just the false Gods that are mentioned in the bible. Like we see here in the book of Judges. It goes beyond just these 'named' gods, but lets cover them first. Judges 3:7-8 (New King James Version) 7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years. In modern times, we still see people turn to other religions and away from Christ. Bhuddism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Confucianism, Rastafari, Shinto, Taoism, Wicca, Scientology, Satanism, and a seemingly neverending list of 'religions' exist and thrive in our modern society. Some people believe in living by a mixture of several of these religions or even in blending them together to for one religion. This is called Universalism. So, here's the first question for you of the study. 1. Have you had any 'experiences' with people of these belief systems and how did you handle it? Aside from these 'recognized', false gods, there are other forms of idolatry that are less recognizable. Have you ever witnessed people, sometime friends, sometimes adversaries who are constantly competing against each other? It can be something as simple as you buying a new lawnmower or boat, then your friend or neighbor goes out and buys one with a few more bells and whistles just to best you. Or, with the ladies of the study here, have you ever had a friend who just had to go out and get a new hiardo just because you did? Or maybe it was a new handbag, shoes, or maybe even a new car that they just had to have in order to best you. Did you know that if you got caught up in all of this competition and tried to outdo them, you fell into a from of idolatry? Yes, besting your adversary with a greater status symbol just became more important to you than God. It temporarily became your God when an inanimate object turned into a status symbol and an idol. Deuteronomy 6:14 (New King James Version) 14 You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are all around you. This leads to our second question. 2. Have you ever fell into this type of competition knowingly or unknowingly and fell victim to idolatry? Another form of idolatry can come through those that we love or at least think that we love. We can sometimes become so wrapped up in a personal relationship that it becomes the only thing that we think about. We put it before our blood relatives, our jobs, and worst of all before God. These relationships can blind us to so many more important matters in life. They can make us do things that we never would of even considered doing before. We become infatuated with this person so much that they become our latest form of idolatry. Many very wise people a fallen victim to thi,s as we see in this scripture. 1 Kings 11:3-5 (New King James Version) 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. We see here that Solomon, one of the wisest men to ever walk the earth, fell into idolatry two-fold in this instance. First of all, he put the lust for these exotic women who were brought to him before God and then he even allowed them to tempt him into worshipping their false Gods from their homelands. So, we come to our third question: 3. Have you ever allowed a personal relationship come between you and God? Next we come to another all too common for of idolatry: status. All too often people put their careers at the forefront of their lives. Their always thinking of how to get that big promotion at work, get moved to a larger market in their field, attain one more degree, or simply want to edge everybody out for that employee of the month parking space. There's nothing wrong with striving to succeed in life, but many times the need for advancement can take over our hearts and minds and become our next false god. They love the attention from their peers, they love the perks that come with their status, and the feeling of being 'priviledged' more than they do God. The Pharisees of Jesus' time were a good example of this. Matthew 23:5-7 (New King James Version) 5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ So our next question: 4. Have you or someone you know gotten so caught up on status, that it escalated to idolatry? Our next form of modern idolatry is something that many of us are more guilty of falling victim to than we would ever want to admit: celebrity. Our movie stars, professional athletes, politicians, tv personalities, and even some of our ministers attain a certain amount of fame and become american royalty. How many people haven't heard of Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Aniston, Kobe Bryant, Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, Peyton Manning, Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, and so on and so on and.... We even have a television show called 'American Idol' for crying out loud. We try to dress as these people dress, go to places these people have been, buy there books, and others products that they endorse. So of these people became celebrities simply by being born into the right families. Remember Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie? They became famous just by being the children of wealthy people. This, I hate to tell you is a very blatant form of idolatry. This one was a little harder to find scripture on, but Herod came to mind. Even though the real power in Judea belonged to Rome then, the elite of Jerusalm still clung to him. Mark 6:20-22 (New King James Version) 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. 21 Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. 22 And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” So, of course, here's our next question: 5. Who have you been guilty of idolizing? I'll close up our study on idolatry with the absolute biggest idol or false God of all time; money. People will lie, cheat, steal, murder, enslave, and even prostitute themselves for money. Everyone wants to get a raise, find a better paying job, hit the lottery, win big in the poker game, and think up thousands of other ways to attain more money, and find an easier way of doing it. Many lives are ruined everyday because of the lust for money. Of course there's one scripture that we have to look at here. 1 Timothy 6:10 (New King James Version) 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. The scripture says it all. The love of money can lead you down a path of destruction and far, far, away from God and your loved ones faster than you would ever believe. Many people don't even realize it as it's happening to them. Quite simply money has become God to many, many people all around the world. Of course this leads us to out final question of the study: 6. What's one case of this form of idolatry that comes to mind? It could be a personal experience or it could be something from today's headlines. In closing, I'm not trying to take all of the fun out of life and tell you that if you enjoy something, you're idolizing it. I'm simply reminding you to use caution in life. When something is taking up more and more of your time and attention, take a minute to reflect on it. Is this activity important enough to warrant this much of my attention, or am I going too far with it? Am I letting my career rule my life? Is that expensive of a car really necessary? Am I putting all of this before God? God bless you my brothers and sisters in the Lord, Pete. Pete 6-22-10