Common Forms of Idolatry

God warned us from the start about idols. Often when the Israelites fell to sin, it began with some form of idolatry. Even though most of us don't necessarily make gods and worship them as our ancestors did, we still fall to idolatry in other ways. These ways are more subtle and therefore more dangerous.

God provided the Israelites with a clear definition of idolatry. After rescuing them from the hands of the Egyptians, He told them,

Exodus 20:3-6  “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Because of people like the Pharisees, the definition of idolatry had to be expanded. Even though they didn't carve any images, they created idols out of money, power, and a false sense of righteous based strictly on the law. Through Paul, God expanded the definition of idolatry. He told us,

Colossians 3:5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

The dictionary definition of covetousness is "inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions; greedy." (Dictionary.com). So when we began to place the possessions and desires of this world over God, that is idolatry.

The point of today's post isn't to call you out or make you feel bad. It's more of a guide so we can make sure we're not making these mistakes. We have to check ourselves everyday, because now with the growing presence of technology, it's easy to form an idol intentionally or unintentionally. I'm going to start off with more obvious forms of idolatry, and then work my way to the more subtle forms.

1.) Celebrities

1.) Whenever someone compliments a post on this blog, I make sure I say "glory to God." This is because I know He is working through me. The most I will do to prepare for a post is pray and ask God to reveal a topic He wants me to write about. Then He takes care of the rest. I begin typing and let Him feed me the words. God uses us as His vessels. He is making deals through you on Wall Street, teaching His kids through you, and singing to the ears of His sheep through you. In this same way Satan can use people as his vessels. When God works through you it's by His beautiful Holy Spirit. When Satan works through a person it's through demons. Unfortunately, most celebrities are vessels for Satan. They open themselves up to demons and in exchange receive fame and fortune.

I used to be a HUGE Beyoncé fan. I owned every song she breathed on, even all of her live performances. I would listen to her live vocals for hours, and I began to memorize every run and other vocal techniques she used in her songs. I learned her dances, and I even began to act like her (that part was unintentional). God began to open my eyes and He showed me how she, like her counterparts, is a vessel for Satan. In the same way I say glory to God because I know it is Him working through me, every time I idolized and dwelled on how I loved her voice, I was glorifying the demons who worked through her.

The demonic presence in celebrities is a whole other post in itself, so I don't want to stray. Whether or not you believe celebrities are a part of that practice, the point is the same. If a singer, rapper, video game, sports team, T.V. show, movie, or any other form of entertainment is consuming so much of your time to the point that you are not sowing in God, then it's a idol. Ask God to get rid of it.

2.) Money

Of course you know money had to be on this list. It never fails--every time I'm on Facebook I see statuses like, "I'm chasing this paper." Not to mention the infamous "money over b**ches" phrase. Chase Jesus Christ instead of money. He is the giver of all you desire and then some. Satan tries to trick us into thinking money is the answer to all of your problems. He does this as a means to control you. The singers, actors, athletes and rappers who portray a life of luxury are the same ones who felt it was necessary to give their very soul for money. They idolize money and they want you to do the same. The sad part is many of them have already came to the realization that money isn't everything. They gave their souls for cash and are still unhappy. Let the many celebrity suicides speak to the unhappiness they face. Many of them take medicine just to go to sleep because they are constantly taunted by demons. God warns us that money is the root of all evil, and as soon as you put a dollar first in your life, you open yourself up to these demons. Unfortunately instead of telling you the truth, many celebrities would rather hold onto a lie.

So we get it. Money isn't everything. I don't think many of you reading this would disagree with that statement. So why is it as soon as we face some financial troubles, our whole day is ruined? Come on, I know I'm not the only one! Sometimes when my wallet suffers a blow my whole positive outlook goes down the drain. If we truly believe money isn't everything and God is everything, even when we face financial difficulties, we will stay afloat knowing God is enough.

Here are the more subtle and more dangerous forms of idolatry....

3.) Boyfriend/Girlfriend

The media constantly tells us that a relationship is the best thing that could ever happen to us. "He/she is my world, my everything." It's the basic formula for Hollywood. Many movies you see are the same format: Life is miserable until that person steps into your life. Now it's fun and lively. Now there's a reason to live. Ditch these lies! A boyfriend/girlfriend doesn't complete you. You should already have an identity. The bible tells us that our identity should be in Christ.

1 Corinthians 7:34 An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit.

The more you define yourself through and by God, the more you will cherish yourself. The more you cherish yourself, the less likely you will let some man or woman come and strip you of all God has given you.

Jacob's older brother Esau didn't know his worth and that's why he sold his birthright to Jacob for some stew. He didn't know the mistake he made until Jacob took his blessing as well. After his father blessed Jacob instead of him, he begged his father saying,

Genesis 27:36 For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

 If you don't value the anointing God has given you, you are jeopardizing it. Anyone who wants you to compromise your anointing is not the right man or woman. The bible says a man is supposed to protect a woman's virtue, not defile it.

Ephesians 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,  and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

Everything you have and will get is from and by God. So remember this when Mr. Right or either Ms. Right steps into your life. The only way a relationship will work is if God is FIRST. The moment you begin to let your thoughts consume you by daydreaming about that person, drowning in love songs thinking about him/her, etc., you push God from the top position. This leaves room for the enemy to come in. Instead try praising God for giving you that person. Leave Him in the equation because He is and always will be the solution.

4.) Race or culture

One time I was hanging out with a friend and she introduced me to a girl she knew. I said hi and asked her how she was doing. She didn't respond. Instead she looked with a sour face at my friend and asked, "Is she even Jamaican?" This is one of many cases of how we can let our race/culture get in front of God. Racism alone is an example because racism is an antonym of love, and God is love. I knew I had an issue in this department when I felt uncomfortable visiting churches with a majority of members who were a different race. When race becomes an idol in your life, it can allow you to see everyone in your race as your friend and have you more likely to see those outside your race as your enemy.

Minorities in particular are taught to support their race. Especially when it comes to matters of the media. If we allow race to cloud the wisdom and discernment God gave us, then we are in danger. Satan won't jump out and attack you with horns and a pitchfork like it's portrayed in cartoons. Instead he's going to come as someone who looks just like you. It took discernment for Jesus to know Judas was going to betray Him. He didn't say, "oh no he couldn't do that. He's my brother, my disciple." He kept His Father first and therefore was in-tune with Him. We must remain sharp and in-tune with God, because someone from our own race/culture could harm us just as much as anyone else will. In that same format someone from another race/culture can love us just as much as someone in our own race/culture could.

 We were taught by Jesus to love everyone--no borders or restrictions. The moment we let our background compromise that responsibility, then we are compromising our relationship with God.

5.) Technology

We are all guilty of this one. We spend so much time on our phones, laptops, iPads, etc. It's okay to enjoy yourselves and relax after a long day. But is it interfering with your relationship with God? That's when it becomes a problem. Are you talking to Him, worshipping Him and doing what it takes to elevate yourselves spiritually? Technology is great, but it can also be dangerous. It can consume us and handicap us spiritually. Let's take a moment to think about how many hours we spend on our devices vs. the time we spend with God. I challenge us (meaning myself as well) to spend more time with God than we do on our phones. We can't truly say with our lips we put God first, but in our actions drown ourselves on the internet.

To sum things up, we need to detoxify ourselves spiritually and get rid of all the things in our lives that are trying to take the place of God. We are in a battle everyday and there are demons trying to push God out of our lives. These demons seek to defile us and get us to rebel against God. In Robin Thicke's hit "Blurred Lines," he says,
                  " OK now he was close, tried to domesticate you
                     But you're an animal, baby it's in your nature
                     Just let me liberate you
                     Hey, hey, hey
                     You don't need no papers
                     Hey, hey, hey
                     That man is not your maker"
That Man is your maker and He loves you more than any man on earth ever will. Satan constantly tries to take the place of God. Since he couldn't in Heaven, he was cast down to earth. Now he's going for your heart. Put Jesus Christ first with your words and your actions. Push aside these distractions and go after He who can quench our thirst forever. He is waiting for us!

John 14:2 "Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. "In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also."
 

Come back to check out more posts! Remember to share it so others can be encouraged!  

SHARE: