I am the Lord; that is my name!
Isaiah 42:8 NLT
I will not give my glory to anyone else, nor share my praise with carved idols.
What is idolatry?
Simply put, idolatry is the worship of idols. An idol is a created being or thing that is the object of extreme admiration, reverence, or devotion. An idol is an object of worship. As human beings, we were made to worship. Our issue is that we often choose to worship the wrong things.
God wants our full worship and devotion. He is displeased with our propensity to serve multiple things.
What are you worshipping?
In other words, what do you love? What are you devoting all of your energy and time to? Who or what are you running to when things get hard? What is the topic of the majority of your conversations? What are you mindlessly doing to entertain or distract yourself?
Is it marriage or having children? Are you in love with your own image? Is it your job or school? Is it fame and fortune? Are you idolizing social media or even your phone itself? Or is it the little trinket you can’t seem to let go of? What is it? We have to evaluate our hearts and answer this question for ourselves.
Idolatry is subtle, but it leads to death. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what you are idolizing. It may appear as a harmless hobby or something you do as a part of your daily routine.
Idolatry Begins When We Prioritize Anything or Anyone Over God
Let’s break this down further by looking at two kings, Ahaz and Hezekiah.
Much like you and I, Ahaz suffered with idolatry.
At that time King Ahaz of Judah asked the king of Assyria for help.
So when King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria arrived, he attacked Ahaz instead of helping him.
Ahaz took valuable items from the Lord’s Temple, the royal palace, and from the homes of his officials and gave them to the king of Assyria as tribute. But this did not help him.
2 Chronicles 28: 16, 20 – 21 NLT
When Ahaz found himself in trouble, he sought help from other kingdoms and their idols. He was a man scrambling for a solution, but ignoring the only One who could help him.
Rather than repenting and turning to God, Ahaz gave all of the Lord’s treasures to a person hoping that in turn he may receive the help he needed. Instead, the people he idolized attacked him. Worshipping and depending on anything other than God will ALWAYS bite us in the butt.
When Ahaz’s initial plan failed, he adopted the gods of nations around him. We have the same mentality when we start mimicking the world because their method seems to work and trusting in God is difficult or it is taking too long.
In his time of trouble King Ahaz became EVEN MORE unfaithful to the Lord.
He offered sacrifices to the gods of Damascus, who had defeated him; for he thought, “Since the gods of the kings of Aram have helped them, I will sacrifice to them so they will help me.”
But they were his downfall and the downfall of all Israel.
2 Chronicles 28: 22 – 23 NIV
Then Ahaz collected the utensils of the house of God and he cut them in pieces; and he shut the doors of the house of the LORD and made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.
2 CHRONICLES 28:24 AMP
Ahaz destroyed the things of God and in turn created altars for himself to worship other “gods”. It’s interesting the author noted that these two actions happened concurrently.
As I read this for the umpteenth time, the Holy Spirit revealed something to me in the Spirit. Closing doors to the presence of God, opens doors to idolatry.
Have you ever noticed that when you are faithfully spending time with God you devote less attention to certain things? For instance, when I am soaking in the presence of God, all of my time is not spent mindlessly scrolling social media.
The Power of Choice: Ahaz vs. Hezekiah
One king destroyed the contents of the temple, the other king repaired it (see 2 Chronicles 29:3). We too can be repairers. We just have to make a choice. Ahaz chose to do what was wrong in the sight of the Lord (see 2 Chronicles 28:2). He chose to be unfaithful to God.
However, his son, Hezekiah understood that worshipping idols caused the destruction of his forefathers and their people. Rather than continuing in their footsteps, he chose to glorify God and he encouraged others to do the same.
Our parents were unfaithful; they did evil in the eyes of the Lord our God and forsook him. They turned their faces away from the Lord’s dwelling place and turned their backs on him.
2 Chronicles 29:6 NIV
For behold, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity because of this.
Now it is in my heart to make a covenant (solemn agreement) with the Lord God of Israel, so that His burning anger will turn away from us.
My sons, do not be negligent and careless now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand in His presence, to attend to His service, and to be His ministers and burn incense.
2 Chronicles 29:9-11 AMP
My encouragement to you today is the same. Take care to honor God above all else. Choose Him everyday through prayer, devotion to reading His Word, and practicing what He is teaching you.
God loves you and He has chosen you to stand in His presence. He has chosen you to attend to His service. He has chosen you to be His minister, but the only way you and I can rise to the occasion is by not falling prey to idolatry.
Big hugs,
Ayanna