Jump Start # 1428
Jeremiah 18:15 “For My people have forgotten Me, they burn incense to worthless gods and they have stumbled from their ways, from the ancient paths, to walk in bypaths, not on a highway.”
This week we are looking at things God considers worthless. In stark contrast, what God views as worthless, man often values. Yesterday, we saw that there are people who are wicked and void of God in their lives that Heaven deems “worthless.” They seem bent on doing the very things that God condemns.
Today, our passage takes us to the worthless idols and gods that seemed to attract the heart of God’s people. Multiple times in the O.T. God would point out the emptiness and worthlessness of idols. They can’t speak. They cannot hear. They must be carried about because they cannot move. They are weak. Elijah proved that the god Baal could not bring rain, stop rain or bring fire to a sacrifice. Baal was worthless.
It is hard to understand why and how the people of God, who had witnessed God’s power over the Egyptians, or God’s providence in sending manna each day, or the thundering voice of God from the mountain top, could turn from that to an empty idol that did nothing. Some idolatry involved sensual practices and that may have been an appeal to carnal and empty hearts. The idol represented something to see and visualize. God was invisible. They had not seen God. Shallow hearts do not have much time nor room for faith. Many of the kings of Judah tried to remove the idols from the land. That seemed to work for a while, but then a generation or two later, they were back with more people worshipping them. Some simply mixed idolatry with the worship of God. Others completely abandoned God for the idols. Idolatry became the major reason that both Israel and Judah were invaded and taken away in captivity.
Modern man limits idolatry to eastern religions and third-world countries. Modern man does not dance around Stonehenge, bow to the sun, nor sacrifice children to appease the gods. We are too smart for that. We don’t have idols today, we have convinced ourselves. But we do. Our idols do not look like golden calves nor images of man but they are just as real and powerful and worshipped as what we read about in the O.T.
My preacher, Zack, has been exploring some of these modern idols in a powerful series on Sundays. I’d encourage you to go to our website and listen to these lessons. His series, “Smashing modern idols,” includes the worship of money, success, lust and the god of now. Just think about those topics for a moment. What people will do for money and success. They will lie, cheat, steal and kill for those. They will put those above all things. They will allow a marriage to fall apart, become alienated from their children to worship work and money. When they have reached the pinnacle, it’s flaunting the expensive brands that gives them a sense of worth. They feel better than others because of what they possess. Much too often, in the pursuit of finer things, they have failed to see that the price that they had to pay was their own value and worth. It’s not that they have so much stuff, it’s that the stuff now has them.
American sports has become the new priesthood of modern idolatry. Some start off because they love the game. But parents, coaches and others push them, even among God’s people, to the point that the price to achieve is often their soul. They sacrifice worship of God for the chance to play in the game. It’s justified. It’s done all the time. From the small level it advances to high school and starting varsity. From there to the college level and scholarships. Less is thought about the college degree. It’s playing sports on the college level. From there is that final step to the pros. At that moment, the love of the game is lost to the love of the contract. A twenty year old, quits college to sign a multi-million dollar professional sports contract. The new superstar. He immediately goes out and buys a sports car that costs more than the house he grew up in. New clothes. New house. New friends who feed off of his lifestyle and money. In a few short years, the career is over. Now, in his 30’s, without a college degree, having spent millions, far too many of these superstars file bankruptcy. They lose everything. ESPN has a documentary about this very concept. This is happening everyday in America. The god of money and success failed. It always will. It’s a worthless god. So many of these bright young athletes are ruined in character because of the leeches that hang around them and the trouble that massive amounts of money lead to. It was fun for a moment, however, the rest of their lives are a struggle. The athlete becomes a has-been. No one opens doors for him anymore. He is soon forgotten. The fickle fans have moved on to the latest superstar.
Young people growing up “idolize” these athletes. They want to be like them. They want to be famous, rich and have everything. Modern man doesn’t have idols? Really? Talk to a group of high school students. Ask them what they want to do after high school. What drives many of their answers is “making a lot of money.” Where does some of this come from? From their very parents. This is the talk around the kitchen table. You don’t want to be a school teacher, parents say. They don’t make any money. Without realizing it, we push an idol right before our children’s eyes. Do what makes money. Do what makes the most money. You’ll be the happiest when you have the most money. Idols.
Worthless gods, is how God viewed idols. They promise much, but never deliver. They leave you empty, used and lost. Now, lest anyone misunderstands me, it’s not wrong playing sports. It’s not wrong playing college sports or even that rare chance to play professionally. One of my dear friends played professional baseball. He retired before the big money. His stories about how his feet hurt, what he went through, wasn’t about money, but the love of the game. He has a life after he retired. He serves God in many ways. He did not sell his soul to become a star. In that way, sports are no different than any other pursuit in life. But, it can and does present itself as an avenue to the god of money and success in which many are willing to sacrifice character, heart and soul to get to the top. In that, it is an idol.
Who you are is much more important than what you have. Wearing a $5,000 watch that does the same thing as a $40 watch doesn’t make you a better person. It means you spent more. It may catch the attention of people who value such things, but it doesn’t impress God. The Lord marvels at faith. The simple guy who lives in a simple neighborhood, and does nothing noteworthy his entire life, yet loves the Lord, walks in His ways and values the kingdom, will impress the Lord much more than the other guy. Remember the rich man and Lazarus? Poor Lazarus was dumped by the gates of the rich man. He had nothing and no one to take care of him. God noticed. God brought him to His home. The rich man, with all his stuff, died and was tormented eternally because he was worthless in the eyes of God. He wasted opportunity. He was selfish and indifferent toward others. The local papers, if they had them back then, would report about the rich man’s death on the front page. Lazarus’ name would not be found anywhere. Who was really rich and who was really a success?
There is a place for sports, arts, music and all those wonderful things. They are a great part of life. But they should never be pursued by sacrificing our faith to achieve them. When we do this, we are not much different than ancient Israel. We have our idols in this land, it’s harder for us to recognize them.
Worthless idols or the living God? Which are you after? Your choices speak louder than your words.
Roger