We would all agree that while the Bible was written long ago in very different cultures from our own, it still is relevant to our lives. However, there are certain portions that need to be “translated” in order to make sense to us in a modern context. For example, blessings often are described as increases in our flocks, but none of us fear that if we ask for God’s blessing our home will be filled with sheep. This wording is specific to shepherds, but when we read it, we understand that it means blessings or prosperity in a general sense.
The same can be said regarding idols. During the time the Bible was written, there were many people who worshiped literal figures made out of gold, or wood, or other material. However, obviously this isn’t quite so common in the modern age, at least where we live. Yet, we know this doesn’t mean we are free from the danger of having idols. In order to guard against this, we need to understand what it means to have an idol in a modern context.
No doubt we all have heard a teaching or read a devotional on this topic. Often, the word “idol” is used to refer to things that take our time away from God, that are more important to us than God, or that have a higher priority in our lives than God. According to this definition, things such as hobbies, relationships, careers, etc. are labeled idols. It is said that we all worship something; if not God, then something else (such as the material things mentioned above).
No doubt this is a valid point. However, I believe this definition of idols is incomplete and perhaps even misleading. This would mean that I’m “worshipping” books if I spend more time reading than with God. But doesn’t worshiping God mean more than giving Him time? Defining an idol simply as something that takes our time and focus away from God seems to me to imply an inadequate definition of worship. Worshiping God is more than simply giving Him our time. It means to give Him honor, to acknowledge His goodness and sovereignty over us, and literally offer our entire lives to Him. I may waste a lot of time on an activity with little long-term value, but this does not mean I’m surrendering my entire life to it or reverencing it as being holy and perfect.
I would like to suggest that something is an idol not merely if we give it more time than God, but more specifically, if it takes the place of God in our lives in some way. Initially there may not seem to be any difference between these two, but I believe there is a significant contrast. I’m not referring to things that merely occupy our time or that are a priority to us, but rather, to things in which we place our trust or turn to for fulfillment when that trust or fulfillment ought to be in God alone. Assuming this definition, even things or activities that are central to the Christian life may qualify as idols, depending on the role they play in our lives.
For example, good works, or our efforts to improve our character, can become an idol if we believe we actually can earn our way to God. Abstaining from a sinful lifestyle can become an idol if we think it makes us better than other people. Obedience to God can become an idol if attempt to do so with our own power and become prideful as a result. Money can be an idol if we believe that we have enough to eliminate our need for God (or, alternatively, if we don’t have enough but assure ourselves that God will provide it because we “know” we can’t live without it). Ministry can be an idol if we derive our identity and sense of purpose from it. Tithing can be an idol if we do it as a way of “bribing” God into blessing us. Reading the Bible can become an idol if we do it primarily to create the illusion that our hearts are right with God (if in fact they are not).
Of course, there is nothing inherently bad about these things! But that is precisely the point. It is not about the thing or activity, but rather, our attitude towards it and the role it plays in our lives. Even the most important and valuable religious disciplines can become idols if we place our trust in them rather than in God, or if we put them before our relationship with Him.
A thing also may be an idol if we turn to it in order to receive something we feel we need but are not receiving from God. In the Old Testament, idols were often worshipped for this purpose. A familiar example is the forging of the golden calf by the Israelites while Moses was receiving the stone tablets on the mountain. The Israelites were not satisfied with God’s performance for them, so they created a substitute for God from which they hoped to receive more quickly the fulfillment of their desires.
The bottom line is that anything can be an idol, even (and perhaps especially) good things. We need to be sure we understand ourselves in relation to God and what place He ought to occupy in our lives, and not let anything else occupy that place. Of course, this does not mean we cannot enjoy anything other than God or trust anything else. But it is up to each one of us to analyze our own lives and determine from what we derive our sense of purpose, and in what we have placed our trust for salvation.
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