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“You shall have no other gods before Me. “But an hour is coming, and now is, Why is God jealous for praise? Why His passion to be worshipped? Why is He vehemently opposed to idolatry — the worship of false gods? Does God have a self-image problem? Is He lacking in self-esteem? Does He simply want to be adored because He is a selfish Sovereign? Of course not. Such questions imply that God is incomplete or unholy. But the God of the Bible is completely self-sufficient and completely righteous, holy, just, loving, PERFECT. The Bible teaches that God’s love is integral
to His passion to be praised and glorified by all peoples. His
love for all peoples — and His passion for His glory among
them — are part of God's multifaceted beauty. Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; "How the faithful city has become a harlot..., Their land has also been filled with idols; The LORD enters into judgment with the elders
These verses from Isaiah are just a sampling of
the many Scriptures that show that idolatry leads to oppression
— to the plunder of the poor, and ignoring the plight of
the widow and orphan. However, I wonder how many people, including some
Christians, think that "idolatry" is somehow benign,
that it is not really a horrible disease. Idolatry implies that there is such a thing as true worship and false worship. The concept of "antithesis," of truth in opposition to falsehood, is built into the idea of idolatry. This makes the word "idolatry" politically incorrect, un-modern and unpopular, because it implies that not all worship is true, not all cultures are equal, not all stories are valid, not all religions teach the “same basic thing.” But consider this: Do you know any idolatry that is good for people? Do you know any false worship that makes people whole? What happens when people worship false gods? In Colossians 3:5, greed is idolatry. The idol of greed can lead to ruined relationships, stressed out families, destroyed lives, and the victimization of the poor by the wealthy. The idols of addiction — drugs, alcohol, and pornography — have caused loss and pain and oppression that is impossible to calculate among individuals, families, communities and nations. What about the idol of “Man”? In Nazi Germany, the Arian race was deified. I remember seeing a stature in Hannover, Germany some years ago that was built during the time of the Third Reich. The shadow of the Nazi swastika was still visible at the base. The statue was perhaps 50 feet tall, similar in shape to the George Washington monument, except there was a figure of a man at the top. There was the perfectly formed “German Man”, shown naked, running with power and poise, an icon of superiority. When I saw this, I had a flash of insight: I understood clearly for the first time the enormous tragedy of putting “man at the top.” This statue symbolized that there was no God above “Man,” no God to whom the “German Man” was accountable. Nietzsche's declaration that "God is dead" became the intellectual foundation for a public policy that legitimized the torture and extermination of millions of Jews — and led to the unspeakable misery of World War Two. Why did the German people, including the evangelical church, mostly remain quiet in the face of the Nazi Third Reich? Why did they not protest the horrors of the State? It was because of the "fear of man" — another form of idolatry. ...You shall not fear man, for the judgment is
God’s... Is not the idolization of “Man” (and making the State all-powerful) the reason why millions were tortured, imprisoned, and crushed by the Communism of Stalin's Russia, Mao's China, and Pol Pot's Cambodia? In 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor or abortion rights, and millions of unborn children have been killed as a result. Was this a result of the elevation and idolization of the so-called “privacy rights” of “Man?” In the Islamic world, men gaze in adoration, studying the Prophet Mohammed— whose mistreatment of women and girls is part of his life story. Does this not contribute mightily to the horrible oppression of women in the world of Islam? In the Hindu world, the caste system keeps millions
in oppressive poverty. The suffering of the poor is considered
the just payment for advancing to a higher level in the next life.
Therefore, helping a starving diseased little girl is keeping
her from death, and thus advancing in the next life. So in the
Hindu world, apathy toward the poor is true religion — completely
opposite of Christian view. Idolatry is, again, the reason for
oppression. Ten years ago, the Rwandan slaughter took place, when 800,000 Tutsis — men, women, and children — where massacred by Hutus as a result of simple tribal hatred. About a tenth of Rwanda's population died in 100 days. Thousands were chopped to death by machetes. Was tribalism the idol that fueled this horror? Christendom has its idolatries, too. As Christians we need to look within our own tradition. Church history, both Catholic and Protestant — has examples of oppression. The Crusades are often referred to as an example of violence against Muslims and Jews in the name of Christ. The history of Western Europe is littered with bloody wars fueled by religious power within Christendom. The Protestant Reformer John Calvin had a heretic burned at the stake, just like the Catholics. And some of Luther's writings indicate he was anti-Semitic. Does this make Christianity false? NO! We can still defend the Gospel of Christ and Christianity by calling attention to the fact that this oppression within the Church is not the result of following Jesus, but rather is the result of people who under the banner of the Church used their power to commit brutalities. Did American Christians in the South condemn slavery prior to the Civil War in 1850? There were devout Christians on both sides of this war. Slavery was obviously an enormous oppression, yet it was defended by Christians in the Southern United States. What was the corresponding idol? The Southern economy, of which slavery was a cornerstone for its wealth? In America, are there not some aspects of our big, consumer-driven evangelical culture which prizes entertainment, “the good life,” the right to a pain-free life — above obedience to God and commitment to our Lord's Great Commission? Is the “American Dream” another brand of idolatry? Consider the level of credit card debt — Christians buying things they do not need with money they do not have — and the interest paid to banks. Billions of dollars every year are wasted — kept from being invested for eternity in our Lord's Great Commission; kept from helping reach the multitudes who have yet to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ; kept from helping the oppressed, the poor and needy, the widow and orphan; kept from being used for the glory of God. “You shall have no other gods before Me. Just under the surface of God's command that He ONLY is to be worshiped — is the wonderful love of God — who knows what is best for us! Worshiping false gods leads to desolation and oppression — broken lives, broken families, broken nations. Look around in your world; it may be in your home; it may be far away in another land. Do you see oppression and its related idolatry, whatever it may be? Worshiping the true and living God leads to wholeness
and transformation. Gazing at Jesus Christ, earnestly seeking
His will, worshiping God alone, loving and enjoying and obeying
God above all else — THIS is what I need! THIS is what the
world needs. THIS is why we need a Savior. THIS is why Jesus commanded
us to Go! Where there is oppression, there is idolatry — another of the grand truths taught in Operation WorldView. |
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