The Lord challenged me recently about my idolatry with regard to money. A word about Martin Luther (see The Melbourne Anglican) about money and how we so easily make it an idol was the stimulus for this challenge. What stabbed me in the heart was a reference in the article to the issue of trust.
If you ever want to know what God thinks about idols read the devastating attack on God's people found in the first 35 chapters of the prophet Ezekiel. No one can come from that book with anything but a clear picture of why God was angry and ashamed of his people who had forsaken him for idols and detestable practices that went with idol worship.
We have been given so many good things by God but our hearts are evil enough to make them into things in which we come to put our ultimate trust. That's idolatry.
Money is one such thing and Paul the apostle is able to say, 'the love of money is the root of all evil' (1Tim 6.3-11).
Isn't it significant that the first two commandments of the 10 commandments deal with idolatry?
One well-known bible-teacher, Phil Keller says that the theme of the Bible could be understood as the conflict between the true faith in the living God and idolatry. Keller cites Luther who viewed justification by faith alone in Christ alone as the essential link between the Old and New Testaments.
Moreover and most damming, we now put our trust in the god for security, significance, status, life, and adventure.
Next time we will examine the question of how our idolatries can be uprooted.
Why do we find it hard to trust our Lord Jesus?
The answer to that question is easy but the remedy is not. The answer is that our hearts are conflicted by the competition among good things that have become our IDOLS.If you ever want to know what God thinks about idols read the devastating attack on God's people found in the first 35 chapters of the prophet Ezekiel. No one can come from that book with anything but a clear picture of why God was angry and ashamed of his people who had forsaken him for idols and detestable practices that went with idol worship.
We have been given so many good things by God but our hearts are evil enough to make them into things in which we come to put our ultimate trust. That's idolatry.
Money is one such thing and Paul the apostle is able to say, 'the love of money is the root of all evil' (1Tim 6.3-11).
Isn't it significant that the first two commandments of the 10 commandments deal with idolatry?
One well-known bible-teacher, Phil Keller says that the theme of the Bible could be understood as the conflict between the true faith in the living God and idolatry. Keller cites Luther who viewed justification by faith alone in Christ alone as the essential link between the Old and New Testaments.
Luther says [in Treatise on Good Works] that failure to believe that God accepts us fully in Christ—and to look to something else for our salvation—is a failure to keep the first commandment; namely, having no other gods before him. To try to earn your own salvation through works-righteousness is breaking the first commandment. Then he says that we cannot truly keep any of the other laws unless we keep the first law—against idolatry and works-righteousness. Thus beneath any particular sin is this sin of rejecting Christ-salvation and indulging in self-salvation (http://www.monergism.com/postmodernidols.html).Keller says that all of us commit various sins but behind the sins is the deeper sin of idolatry wherein we are in thrall to some-thing that we have elevated to the status of a god.
Moreover and most damming, we now put our trust in the god for security, significance, status, life, and adventure.
Next time we will examine the question of how our idolatries can be uprooted.
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