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Presented by Jenn Miller
Idolatry is when we turn to anything besides God for our fulfilment, security, hope, or comfort.
John Calvin once gave a great image of the human heart. He called it an idol making factory. Just picture that. In other words, idolatry comes so naturally to us because of our sin nature. And we are blind to idols of our heart. How can you and I identify areas of idolatry so we can turn away from them?
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength (Deuteronomy 6:5).
Anything that prevents my heart from loving God completely is an idol.
I have found the following questions helpful when seeking to identify idols in my life. First, is there anything you love so much, if you were to lose it, life would just be over for you or you don’t think you could go on? If your answer is yes, that thing has probably become an idol for you.
Is there something you want so much you are willing to sin to get it? Or do you respond sinfully when you don’t get something you want? Those are marks of idolatry. These questions can be hard to ask, but they are helpful in revealing things that have crept into my heart to take the Lord’s rightful place.
When you love God with all your heart, soul, and strength, you can face any loss because your hope is found only in the Lord. You long to please him above anything else. Sinful behaviors or desires can be idols, but even good things can become idols.
