The sin of idolatry

GREETINGS beloved nation. One of the sins that provoke God’s jealousy and anger is the sin of idolatry. Idolatry is (a) the worship of idols, images or anything which is not God; the worship of false gods, (b) excessive attachment for anything, respect or love which borders on adoration. 

When we talk about idols I know many people think of something that has been made in the form of a cow or in the form of an image. Idolatry is more than that, it’s more than images.

It is something that we value more than God. So these idols can stay in our hearts such that at times when we come into a place of worship, we fail to worship God because of these things that we value more than God. Idolatry is committing treason before God because idolatry is saying, “God you are not God, but these idols I cannot live without them”.

Money, food, clothes, our houses, our cars including self can be idols. There is what we call self-idolatry and bloodline idolatry. We need to be delivered from both of them, we should bring an identificational repentance from idolatry. 

This is an act of high treason before God. Time will not permit me to write about bloodline idolatry, which is a topic for another day. As I have said idolatry is a serious sin. Apostle Paul in the book of Corinthians 10:14 says, “Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.

” We see Paul encouraging the church of Corinthians to run away from idolatry because of the consequences that it carries. Idolatry despises the sovereignty of God. In Judges 2:12-15 it says, “They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt.

They followed and worshipped various gods of the peoples around them. They aroused the LORD’s anger 13 because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 14 In his anger against Israel the LORD gave them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 15 Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the LORD was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.”

We see the children of Israel forsaking God and following other gods. There are three that God did because of idolatry; (i) He handed them over to their enemies, (ii) He delivered them into the hands of their spoilers that spoiled them so that they will be spoiled or plundered by their enemies, (iii) they could no longer stand before their enemies, the hand of God was against them for evil.

You can see how dangerous the spirit of idolatry is and what it does to an individual, to a church, to a nation or to a company. Deuteronomy 13: 6-8 says, “If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, 7 gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), 8 do not yield to them or listen to them. Show them no pity. Do not spare them or shield them.”

 You can see that God is not a respecter of persons. There are some men of God that have worshipped their church members, their church growth, their structures, their music team and that has taken the place of God. In Judges 2 when the children of Israel repented, He had to send the judges to deliver them from the enemy.

There are some men whose wives, some women whose husbands or children have taken the place of God. For some it’s their degrees, their promotion, their businesses or even the applause they get that has taken the place of God and all of this is idolatry. When we do that the Lord hands us over to our enemies. Psalms 16:4 says, “Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god” so meaning those who run after idols will suffer more and more. 

Colossians 3:5 says, “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” I have heard some Christians saying we cannot throw away our culture of worshipping ancestors. Ladies and gentlemen that is idolatry. Listen to what the Bible says in Judges 10:14, “Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in your time of distress.”

In other ways these gods will not save you like our God. Isaiah 45:20, “Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save.” I would like to invite you to receive Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour, by believing in your heart and confessing with your mouth that he is your Lord and Saviour, and you shall be saved.

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