Man Made

I've been reading in the Old Testament and there are numerous instances of people worshiping gods they have made themselves. They construct them out of wood, stone, and metal and then devote themselves to these objects. As hard as it may be to believe they were devotedly giving honor to something they had created and not something with any power. 

This seems foolish to us now. How could someone do something that doesn't seem to make any sense? The problem I encounter when I start throwing around my disdain is that I am forced to confront my own idol worship. 

I also worship gods of my own construction, but they just aren't as physically tangible. They are found in the measurement of my accomplishments, retweets, blog hits, Facebook likes, pats on the back, people who like me, and reputation. These man made distractions are dangerous because they reveal my own selfish nature. I have chosen to honor something that is less than deserving instead of focusing my worship where it belongs.

The physical substance may not be the same as an Old Testament idol, but the spiritual substitution is still what pulls me away from true devotion to God.

Means to an End

In Hebrew history, God worked through the taking of the Promised Land to keep His people

dedicated to Him and reliant on His power. Sadly, once they made it through their battles they became preoccupied with possessing the land and forgot to keep their focus firmly on Him. Ironic isn't it that God's people took the very thing that was supposed to center them on Him and used it as an idol?

I suppose that's not drastically different from parents that are so consumed with raising good children who experience every benefit and yet never know what it means to genuinely follow Christ with their desires and ambitions. It accurately reflects a couple so concerned with affirming their spouse that they neglect to incorporate God into their marriage as the leader and provider of all that is good. Sadly, it can also represent churches that desire bigger campuses, larger attendance, and overflowing offering while forsaking the One for whom the church exists to begin with. 

It's discouraging to see how we can take a blessing from God and start to worship it more than we do the One who gave it to us. 

Stick Figures

In the Old Testament people would often choose to worship a false god instead of honoring the only real God. Since people tend to be visual, they would shape images out of sticks and other substances and then set them in places of honor in their homes. For most of us it's a foreign thought to worship something man-made instead of the other way around.

While that form of idolatry seems abnormal, God still warns us not to fall victim to that same principle. Even though we don't carve images and put them on pedestals in our homes, we still step into the trap of putting our confidence in something that is less than God. The list will vary somewhat for each of us, but usually falls under the categories of reputation, immediate gratification, and faith in temporary status. These are dangerous idols to worship as they will most definitely fade over time and prove to be anything but reliable. 

When we struggle through the fires of life it's better to do so with a God who is authentic instead of a stick god that becomes consumed along with us. It's best to identify where these idols might be and quickly rid ourselves of them before they bring about our downfall.