Idol Worship
Someone once said, "The worst thing about idols, as the Hebrew
scriptures so tirelessly point out, is that they are utterly useless when you need them most."
In his book Gravity of
Greed, Jim Nicodem shares the
following story:
In ancient days when the king of Siam had an enemy he wanted to torment and destroy, he would send that enemy
a unique gift, a white elephant, a live, albino elephant. These animals were considered sacred in the culture of that day.
So the recipient of that elephant had no choice but to intentionally care for the gift. This elephant would take an inordinate
amount of the enemy's time, resources, energy, emotions, and finances. Over time the enemy would destroy himself because
of the extremely burdensome process of caring for the gift.
Our spiritual enemy
uses the same strategy on us …. Let's say you buy season tickets to [your favorite sports team], but because you
still have a lot of games to go to, you no longer have time to serve in some area of ministry. Or let's say you buy a
summer cottage, but now you miss most weekend worship services between the beginning of May and the end of September. Or let's
say you buy a health club membership to get in shape. You used to get up early in the morning to read your Bible and pray,
but now you don't have time because you're working out before you go to work. Or let's say you buy a spot for
one of your kids on a traveling sports team, and now you're too busy to join our community impact ministry as we serve
the poor.
Are there white elephants in your life? Are you spending money on things that take your time away from God?
The money isn't the problem; the activities aren't necessarily the problem; the problem is a white elephant "gift"
that has pulled you away from God-honoring pursuits.
Beginning Sunday, May 19th and continuing through
the end of June, we'll be looking at what the Bible says to us about out idols - the stuff that gets in the way of our
relationship with Jesus Christ. Don't miss God's message to us.
In Him,
Pastor Mark
