Beyond the Weekend

June 13 | Idolatry

June 13, 2017

Hosea 1

“An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, “If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.”  ~Tim Keller Counterfeit Gods

At Mt. Sinai, God makes a marriage-like vow with Israel to be their God and they his people. In this relationship, he promises a myriad of blessings if they follow him and him alone (Deuteronomy 28.1-68).  It seems so simple yet is so hard to do. Israel disobeys the most basic of his commands, “Have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20.3). Like Hosea’s wife, they turn their back on their partner and run off to place their faith in false gods.

The heart of their betrayal is the desire for security—getting what they want when they want it.  So they turn to images carved from wood and stone. Since “graven images” aren’t prevalent in our culture, we’re easily fooled into thinking we don’t have idols. But we also turn to things other than God to bring us security such as education, the lottery, body building, savings, ministry, or children.  As Senior Pastor Jeff Manion says, “The heart is an idol factory.”

Today in your Chair Time answer the question, “If I lost _______, can I still be fully alive to God and others?” Ask God to help you see where you may have wandered to an idol and need to turn back to him.

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