Man invents gods to worship

9 December 

Scripture Reading

Read Isaiah 44:12-20 and reflect on the passage.

We were created to worship. Idolatry is a misplacement of our worship and therefore a distraction from our purpose. When life seems out of control, we create a God that lets us govern our next steps. When we face stressful circumstances, we turn to material or even addictive things for comfort. When we feel insecure, we turn to our social status or our insurance policy to protect us. Yet none of these idols resemble the God of the Scriptures. They are far too weak.

Idolatry is a very effective tactic of the enemy: to encourage us to place our hope in anything but God and to distract us from our purpose. In such a state, Satan need not attack us anymore—we will do the rest on our own. I believe most of our modern-day idols are not inherently bad, but they are good desires that have become ultimate things. Relationships are good, but if they are ultimate, God isn’t. Monetary blessings are good, but they cannot be greater than the One from whom all blessings flow. Wisdom and knowledge are good, but they will never surpass God’s own. Only the God of the Scriptures is sufficient to completely satisfy.

Questions

1.      Is your worship divided? Are there idols that you can identify that consume your time and distract you from your purpose?

2.      What is your personal purpose of your worship when you corporately worship God? What does God ask of you in daily/private worship?

Prayer

Father, I ask that You would put to death the idols that I have created in my life, and let Your sufficiency be my hope. Amen.

—Alex Bacon