The Descent into Idolatry

Jim Butler · 2013-07-28 · Romans 1:18–32 · 6,737 words · 48 min

Turn with me in your Bibles to
Romans, Chapter 1. Romans, Chapter 1. We're going
to look at the descent into idolatry. Last Sunday morning, we considered
the people of Israel dancing before the calf, worshipping
that particular idol. Well, idolatry is not confined
to the Old Covenant. It's certainly part of the New
Testament as well. And here in chapter 1 of the
Book of Romans, beginning in verse 18, all the way to chapter
3, verse 20, the apostle outlines or highlights the universal condemnation
of all mankind. All mankind is in sin. And his
primary target here in chapter 1 are the heathen or the Gentile,
or those who are outside of the covenant community, those who
had not received the oracles of God. He will turn his attention
to those persons in chapter 2, But for this particular instance,
he is dealing with those outside of that realm of receiving special
revelation. And I wanted to look at this
this evening under five considerations, specifically the guilt of mankind.
We'll look first at the revelation of God's wrath in verse 18. Secondly,
the reason for its manifestation, verses 19 to 21. The descent
into idolatry, verses 22 and 23. The unrighteous practices of
idolaters, number four, in verses 24 to 32. And then the judgment
of God upon idolaters, that's in verses 24, 26, and 28. There's a bit of a sketch on
what we'll do, God willing, this evening, and then draw out some
practical application. This is not a study that is simply
for those outside the church. It's not only for those out there. It's always intrigued me the
way the Apostle John ends his first epistle. After writing
about truth and about righteousness, about obedience, about walking
in the light, the last thing John cautions his readers is,
little children, keep yourselves from idols. So idolatry is certainly
something we need to be on guard against. And so to that end,
we will engage in this study this evening. I'll just pick
up reading in Romans chapter 1 at verse 16. Romans chapter 1 at verse 16. For I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation. For everyone
who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in
it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith.
As it is written, the just shall live by faith. For the wrath
of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Because what
may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it
to them. For since the creation of the
world, His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood
by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead,
so that they are without excuse. Because although they knew God,
they did not glorify him as God, nor were thankful, but became
futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory
of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible
man, and birds, and four-footed animals, and creeping things.
Therefore, God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts
of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,
who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and
served the creature, rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason, God gave
them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged
the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men,
leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for
one another, men with men committing what is shameful. and receiving
in themselves the penalty of their error, which was due. And
even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge,
God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which
are not fitting, being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual
immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy,
murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness. They are whisperers, backbiters,
haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things,
disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving,
unmerciful, who knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who
practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same,
but also approve of those who practice them. Amen. Well, let
us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank
you for your word. We thank you that you have given
it to us. We know and acknowledge that it's profitable for doctrine,
for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.
And our desire is that you would thoroughly furnish us unto every
good work. Cause us to see the wickedness
of idolatry. Cause us to be on guard against
it in our own lives. Cause idolaters in our generation
to come to the Lord Jesus Christ. to believe the gospel and to
be saved. And even now, Father, we ask
that you would wash us and purify us and forgive us for all of
our sins and send forth your Holy Spirit that he would illumine
our minds and our hearts and that genuine good would be done
to our souls in a study of your Holy Word. And we pray through
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. Well, this is the mighty
Apostle Paul's great letter concerning the gospel. of Jesus Christ. Just prior to getting into the
particulars of our sermon this evening, the guilt of mankind,
it's intriguing or important to understand verses 16 and 17.
This is the thesis, this is the topic, this is what the Apostle
will develop in and throughout this entire letter. Notice the
conviction of the Apostle declared. He said, I am not ashamed of
the gospel of Christ. He is not ashamed of this wonderful
message. He is not ashamed to declare
the saving power of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He was
a man saved by grace, a man employed by God, a man specially called
to minister unto the Gentiles. And his conviction is sound.
His conviction is solid. He is not ashamed of this word.
Wherever the apostle went, He preached this word. If he was
with the Stoic and Epicurean philosophers at the Areopagus,
what did he preach? He preached the gospel of Jesus
Christ. If he went into the synagogues
of the Jews, what did he preach? He preached the gospel of Jesus
Christ. He himself understood what it
was to have been a man under God's wrath. He had been saved. He had been redeemed. He had
been delivered by the grace and power of God and employed or
put into special service As an apostle, he is not ashamed of
this grand message. Notice he highlights it's a demonstration
of God's power. The gospel demonstrates God's
power. He says, for it, the gospel,
is the power of God to salvation. for everyone who believes, for
the Jew first and also for the Greek. Certainly we ought not
to be ashamed of this gospel. Certainly we ought to stand behind
this gospel. We ought to promote it. We ought
to propagate it. We ought to stand fast with reference
to it, because in this gospel the power of God is revealed.
His power to save sinners, His power to deliver men, His power
to deliver women and boys and girls from their idols. from
their waywardness, from their sinfulness. God, in His saving
gospel, exercises and demonstrates His great power. And then He
highlights that in this gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed. Notice in verse 17. For in it,
in the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith
to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith. And in this instance, it's not
necessarily the rightness of God or the righteousness of God
in terms of the attribute of his character, but rather it
is that righteousness which God demands and which God supplies. This is the text that Luther
said, when he understood it, it was as if paradise opened
up to him. When he met that statement, the
righteousness of God, it terrified him. It scared him. It put fear
into him. When we consider God's righteousness
and our own waywardness and our own unrighteousness, certainly
there is a great chasm between us. But as Luther meditated,
as he considered, as he compared Scripture with Scripture, rather
this was God's righteousness that He demands, and God's righteousness
that He supplies. And we know that because after
detailing the universe of condemnation of all men everywhere, in chapter
3, verse 21, Paul then writes, But now the righteousness of
God is revealed from faith to faith. Philippians 3 verse 9,
Paul says, I have a righteousness which is not my own, but the
righteousness which is from God through faith in Jesus Christ. And so the gospel is the great
revelation of God's righteousness. the righteousness that he demands
and the righteousness that he supplies by the power of his
Holy Son. So that's his thesis. And as
I said, in order to get to the good news, he must first start
with the bad news. And that brings us to consider
the guilt of mankind. Verses 18 to 32. Notice first
the revelation of God's wrath. Verse 18. Now, I know you've
heard me say this many times, and it bears repeating. Paul
does not start his gospel presentation with, God loves you and has a
wonderful plan for your life. Paul does not start his gospel
presentation with, God just wants to make you happy. He doesn't
start his gospel presentation with, God just wants you to have
purpose. God just wants you to realize
your potential. God just wants to unleash you. to be the biggest blessing to
others around you. That's not where Paul begins
his presentation. Before the Apostle gets to the
good news, he starts with the bad news. Before he gets to a
declaration concerning the righteousness of God, he starts with the wrath
of God. And he says that that wrath of
God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men. Murray explains wrath this way. He says, wrath is the holy revulsion
of God's being against that which is the contradiction of His holiness. In other words, when God looks
down upon man and sin, Wrath is the inevitable response. When
God sees apostasy, and when He sees idolatry, and when He sees
sexual immorality, and when He sees the waywardness of sinners,
it is right that He reveals His wrath. Remember, after He dispatches
Moses to go down and deal with Israel, God is angry. God expresses
His anger. God says, I am going to destroy
them, and I will start a new nation from you, Moses. And of
course, Moses intercedes with Him to be sure, and then God
relents, as the text says, and He continues His plan with Israel. It is right, it is just, it is
good with God as the Holy One of Israel to express wrath against
sin and against demerit. Notice the conspicuous order
that is given to us in the passage. The wrath of God is revealed
from heaven. against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men."
Now some commentators say, the order really doesn't matter.
Murray insists that it does, and I agree with Murray. Ungodliness
precedes unrighteousness. In other words, when we reject
God, when we defect from God, when we apostatize, from God,
then what ensues is all manner of unrighteousness. The remaining
context demonstrates that very thing. The apostle deals with
their ungodliness. He deals with the fact that they
reject him, and then he begins to highlight the specific vices
that follow from that theological commitment. When we abandon God
in our thoughts, when we reject Him from our hearts, when we
despise Him in our minds, then the logical expression of that
is ungodliness, unrighteousness rather. So the ungodliness and
the unrighteousness here are targeted by God's wrath. And then a specific offense is
highlighted here in the text. He says in verse 18, who suppress
the truth in unrighteousness. Man knows God exists. Man knows God exists. There is no such thing as a genuine
atheist. God has made man in His image,
God has stamped that image upon them, He has hardwired them to
know certain things, and that is what Paul will detail in just
a moment. The idea is clear. God has made
Himself known, but sinners do all they can to try and escape
that knowledge. They try to suppress, they try
to hold down, they try to bury that information. Psalm 10 tells
us, the wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God. God is in
none of his thoughts. He's ejected him. He has removed
him. He has sent him away. Psalm 14.1,
the fool has said in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt. They have done abominable works.
There is none who does good. You see that same progression
of thought. The fool has said in his heart,
there is no God. As a result of that particular
theological confession, they are corrupt, they have done abominable
works, there is none who does good. Edward says that Psalm
14.1 is better to be understood this way. The fool has said in
his heart, no God. Not that there isn't no God,
but he is ejecting him, he is staying him away, he is keeping
him from him. I don't want you, God, is what
Edwards says Psalm 14 is about. So we have here the revelation
of God's wrath. Notice, secondly, the reason
for its manifestation. Verses 19 to 21. Because what
may be known of God is manifest in them. Remember, they're suppressing
the truth in unrighteousness. They are trying to eject God
from their thoughts. They are trying to conduct themselves
as if they live in an atheist world. But they cannot. They
cannot escape it because what may be known of God is manifest
in them for, notice, God has shown it to them. That's why
I generally don't try to prove to people that God exists. You
ever been in that encounter? You ever met an atheist or an
agnostic who said, well, I don't think God exists? Well, let me
give you 15 reasons why God exists. No, they know God exists. You've
already won the debate according to Romans 1. All men know God
exists. Their problem is that they're
suppressing the truth in unrighteousness. Their problem is that they're
rejecting the general revelation of God. They're rejecting the
reality that they are created in the image of God and that
when they look out upon this world and they see the handiwork
of God, instead of acknowledging God and glorifying Him as God
and being thankful to Him, they're saying, no, God! Why spend hours
trying to prove something that somebody already knows is the
case? The Apostle Paul says it under
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Verse 19 is clear, "...because
what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it
to them." And there are specific things that sinners learn based
on being created in the image of God and seeing general revelation
around them. Paul says in verse 20, For since
the creation of the world is invisible, attributes are clearly
seen, being understood by the things that are made. You see,
man realizes, if he's at least somewhat honest, that there's
something outside of this created order. Something fashioned this. Something put it into place.
That's why man adopts evolution. He adopts anything that tries
to remove God from the equation. Paul the Apostle says, being
understood by the things that are made. Notice, even his eternal
power. Man knows that by virtue of general
revelation. He suppresses that truth in unrighteousness. He knows something of God's Godhead,
the deity, the fact that He is the One who is altogether glorious. And then notice in verse 32,
sinners know that it's righteous with God to judge them. Again,
we are image bearers. When you see some horrific deed
that takes place, it ought not to surprise you that people want
justice. Why is that? Because we bear
God's image. There's something still in man
as distorted, as twisted, as warped as it may be, and as hard
as we try to hold down or suppress that truth in unrighteousness,
when a man violates a child, most thinking people believe
he ought to be punished. Well, sinners know that to be
the case with reference to God. Notice in verse 32, "...who,
knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice
such things are deserving of death, they not only do the same,
but also approve of those who practice them." You see, it's
in man. He understands. It is right with
God to judge sinners. This renders man inexcusable. Notice in verse 20 again. The
end of the verse, so that they are without excuse. You've heard
the word apologetics. This is the word here. negation
of the word. They are without an apologetic.
They are without a defense. They cannot stand before God
on the day of judgment and say, but I didn't know. Of course
you knew because God made it manifest to you. You were made
in His image. You saw the created order. It
spoke of His eternal power. It spoke of His Godhead. You
understood the righteousness of God in bringing judgment to
bear upon those who violate His law. and His Word. You are without
excuse. There is no defense to be given
on that day. There's no crack defense attorney. There's no legal team that you
can consult with. You don't pay a fee and then
get your verdict. No, you will stand before God
Almighty and stand there without excuse. Man knows God exists. Notice verse 21, because although
they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful,
but became futile in their thoughts. Here is the descent, thirdly,
into idolatry. They know God is there, but they
don't glorify Him as God, they don't honor Him as God, nor are
their hearts thankful. What do atheists do on Thanksgiving
Day? They eat turkey. They celebrate
the land. They thank Mother Nature. The
Earth has been good. That's not what they're supposed
to do. We're supposed to honor and glorify God as God and be
thankful to Him. Now notice the descent into idolatry
in verse 22. They profess to be wise, they
become fools. And they change the glory of
the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man
and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Terrible
situation. It is absolutely abominable for
the Gentiles to do such misdeeds. It is terrible when they exchange
the glory of the incorruptible one and they fashion idols of
animals and they bow before that. It is absolutely terrible exponentially
to consider Israel as the covenant community bowing down and dancing
before and rising up to play in the presence of this calf
that they have now termed Yahweh, who brought them out of the land
of Egypt. You see, it ought not to puzzle
you that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against
all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Someone wrote a book
once and called or asked about the problem of pain. The problem
of pain. Why is there pain in a world
like this? Another man, John Gershner, wrote
a little pamphlet in response called The Problem of Pleasure.
Why is there any pleasure in a world like this? Why is there
any joy in a world like this? Why is there any happiness in
a world like this? Why do we get to feast? Why do
we get to drink? Why do we get to have marital
bliss? Why do we get to have the joys associated with bearing
children and all those things when we're rebels against the
living and true God? It ought to be a no-brainer that
the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness. and unrighteousness of men who
suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Professing to be wise, they become
fools. They change the glory of the
incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man, and
birds, and four-footed animals, and creeping things." Now, the
apostle has some doctrine or has some information in his mind,
I suspect, as he's writing this. The psalmist, in Psalm 106, meditating
upon the situation at Horeb, meditating upon the situation
concerning the golden calf. Psalm 106, verses 19 to 21. They made a calf in Horeb and
worshiped the molded image. Thus, they exchanged their glory
into the image of an ox that eats grass. They forgot God,
their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt. They exchange
the glory of the incorruptible God for a little statue of a
golden calf. Well, the Gentiles are not immune
to this idolatry. We in the 21st century are not
immune to this sort of idolatry. We live in a generation filled
with idolatry. When we get to the vice list
in Romans chapter 1, remember the spring from which it flows. It is this pre-commitment, it
is the theological abandonment, or the abandonment rather of
theology, that leads to this sort of thing. When you look
at a society that is sex crazed, when you look at a society that
is violence crazed, when you look at a society that calls
good evil and evil good, you can trace it back to a particular
That spring is idolatry. Man has abandoned God. Man has
rejected the Holy One of Israel. And as a result, that God has
gave them over into all manner of ungodly behavior. Jeremiah
the prophet. Chapter 2, verse 11, has a nation
changed its gods, which are not gods, but my people have changed
their glory for what does not profit. My people have changed
their glory for what does not profit. Douglas Moos says this
tragic process of human God-making continues apace in our own day. And Paul's words have as much
relevance for people who have made money, or sex, or fame their
gods as for those who carved idols out of wood and stone.
It really is smug, and really is pretentious, and really heaps
evil upon evil. When we say, look at those heathen
dancing around before their sticks and their stones, Look at Israel
bowing down before that golden calf, all the while feeding whatever
idol it is that we worship. All the while bowing to sex,
or bowing to money, or bowing to faith, or bowing to condentment,
or bowing to whatever it is we have exchanged the glory of the
incorruptible God for. Mu goes on to say, thus as verses
24 to 31 show, the whole dreadful range of sins that plague humanity
has its roots in the soil of this idolatry. Again, back to
verse 21, because although they knew God, they did not glorify
Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts,
and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise,
they became fools, They change the glory of the incorruptible
God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed
animals and creeping things. Notice, fourthly, the unrighteous
practices of idolaters. In other words, when a man, when
a society rejects God the Lord. When we adopt the theological
commitment, know God, what ought we to expect? What ought we to
consider is the natural outflow of such a mindset? Well, that's
what's indicated in most of the rest of the chapter. Verses 24
to 27, sexual immorality. This is not the results of the
liberation of the 60s. This is the result of God handing
man over. This is judicial in nature. You cannot say, well, that's
unfair for God to give man up. No, that is justice. It is right. It is good for God to give man
up as an expression of his judicial punishment. He is a God who is
right. He must punish sin. Verses 24
to 27 highlight the sin of sexual immorality. Vis-a-vis specifically,
which has great bearing upon our own generation, the sin of
homosexuality. Paul does not say it's a legitimate
expression of one's love for another. What is in view here
is homosexuality, not a condemnation of polygamous homosexuality. This is not to say that if you're
in a monogamous homosexual relationship, somehow that's okay. What is
condemned is man lying with man and women lying with women. The
backdrop, of course, is the Mosaic Law, where God is expressed as
a natural implication of the seventh word, which protects
the fidelity and the chastity of the marriage relationship.
Threats to that are condemned by God. Homosexuality is wrong. Dropping down in the passage,
in the list, he deals with just the broad sense of porneia. Verse
29, sexual immorality. It's not just homosexual, it's
all manner of sexually immoral practice. Notice secondly, in
terms of the unrighteous practices of idolaters, there is a rejection
of God, practically. Okay, we've already got this
mindset, we don't honor God as God, our hearts are not thankful,
we're suppressing truth and unrighteousness. Now notice in verse 28, and even
as they did not like to retain God, in their knowledge. We just
don't want this one to rule over us. We just don't want this one
in our thoughts. We just don't want this one bearing
down upon us. I mean, the text really expresses
just how wicked we can really be. I don't want to think about
God today, thank you very much, as if the creature has the right,
as if the pot has the right As if man, the rebel, has the right
to say, you know, God, I don't want you in my mind. You know,
God, I don't want you in my thoughts. You know, God, I am going to
live as if you don't exist because that's the way I want to do it. I gotta be me. Remember when
that prodigal comes to his father, give me my share of the inheritance. What is the prodigal saying?
Better off to be dead. Let's just skip those formalities
and just give me my share of the loot right now. It's the
same sort of a thing. And the prophet Jeremiah is upbraiding
Israel for rejecting God. God, through the prophet, says,
they turn to me the back and not the face. What does that
mean? That means instead of bowing before the God of heaven and
earth, instead of giving Him the reverence that He deserves,
instead of loving Him and worshipping Him and serving Him, you turn
and you walk away. Notice thirdly, the various vices
of verses 29 to 31. Being filled with all unrighteousness,
sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness,
full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, they
are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters,
inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy,
unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful. I do not think anyone escapes
that description. The fact that the word proud
is there. I'm sure I've shared before when
I was in the Air Force, there was a uniform code of military
justice. 133 articles of how you could
get in trouble. And if none of those 133 got
you, General Article 134 got you. It basically said, anything
not covered herein, you're going to get in trouble for that. It
was the catch-all. Most of the apostles' vice lists,
if you're exercising a bit of ingenuity, you might try to wriggle
your way through it. Well, it didn't describe me.
The fact that he puts proud in here describes everybody. Notice
that he puts disobedience to parents. Oh, it's just a little
bit of childish rebellion. It's just the adolescent phase. God says that is a mark of the
rejection of the living Lord. The apostle highlights these
unrighteous practices of idolaters, sexual immorality, rejection
of God, various vices, various and sundry, we might say. And
then notice the solidarity that sinners share. Verse 32, who,
knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice
such things are deserving of death, not only do the same,
but also approve of those who practice them. This is an interesting
word the Apostle employs here. This is the word employed by
Paul's friend Luke in the book of Acts. When Stephen is being
stoned to death, when Stephen is about to meet his Lord Jesus,
when Stephen is being forced into the presence of his God,
it says that Saul of Tarsus is giving his approval. He is consenting. He is standing there in hearty
agreement. Paul knew all too well what this
particular word suggested. And the idea here is that not
only are we content in damning ourselves, we want to see others
damning themselves as well. What an expression of wickedness
in the hearts of men. Murray says, to put it bluntly,
we are not only bent on damning ourselves, but we congratulate
others in the doing of those things that we know have their
issue in damnation. It's terrible. So we've seen
the revelation of His wrath, the reason for its manifestation,
the descent into idolatry, the unrighteous practices of idolaters,
and fifthly and finally, the judgment of God upon idolaters. Verses 24, 26, and 28. The people exchanged the truth
of God for idols. God gave them up. The people
exchanged the truth for a lie. God gave them up. The people exchanged the natural
use for the unnatural. God gave them up. This is judicial,
it is punitive, it is retributive, it is God handing men over. If you think about it, this is
ultimately what hell is all about. When a man continues to reject
God, when he continues to refuse God, God ultimately gives him
up to that which he most desperately wants, his own sin and a world
without God. Van Til referred to hell as a
soundproof exclusion chamber wherein the Lord gives men over. It is a terrifying picture. Again,
the backdrop of Psalm 106, verses 40 and 41. Therefore, the wrath
of the Lord was kindled against his people, so that he abhorred
his own inheritance, and he gave them into the hand of Gentiles,
and those who hated them ruled over them. God does not take
idolatry lightly. God does not blink at such things. God expresses His wrath because
men know that He is, and instead of honoring Him and glorifying
Him as God or being thankful to Him, rather they seek out
those things which are not God and give their religious affection
and give their devotion and their worship and their reverence to
those things that are not God. Idolatry causes men to become
like that which they worship. Pastor Cam read that tonight
in Psalm 115, verse 8. Those who worship idols become
like idols. When Israel dances before the
calf, they are expressed or identified as being a stiff-necked people. They take on the characteristic
of that which they worship. When men worship idols that have
ears and don't hear, they have eyes that don't see. Then men
are described that way by the prophets. Hearing, you don't
hear. Seeing, you don't see. What has
happened? They've exchanged the glory of
Yahweh for those idols and they have become like them. Has a
nation changed its gods? Again, the prophet Jeremiah.
But my people have changed their glory for what does not profit.
They have gone far from me. They have followed idols and
have become idolaters. It is a terrible indictment upon
a man that he degrades himself through worshiping that which
is corruptible. As believers, I've already mentioned
the text in 1 John 5.21. It indicates that believers are
susceptible to idolatry as well. We must be on our guard. My little
children, John says, keep yourselves from idols. I suppose that most
of you are not going to go home and fashion a golden calf. I
suppose that most of you are not going to go out into the
woods and chop down a tree and use some of that wood to burn
so you can make your food. And then use some of that wood
to burn so that you can keep your hands warm. And then use
some of that wood to fashion into an idol and bow before it. This is the folly of idolatry
in the prophet Isaiah. That's how he describes that
man. He goes out into the woods, he
chops down a tree, he cuts up the tree, he uses it for food,
or he uses it to burn his food, he uses it to make heat, and
then he uses it to fashion an idol. I don't think you're going
to do that. There are certain idols that I think 21st century
professing Christians need to look out for. The idol of false
religion. The idol of false religion. We
need to be on guard. We need to watch our hearts.
There is something in man that gravitates toward that sort of
an approach that says, you know, God wants you to be your best. God wants you to have everything. God wants you to be purposeful.
God wants you to be a blessing to others. There's something
in the heart of man that we gravitate toward that. Be on your guard. Be on your guard. Watch out for
a denial of the Reformed faith, the biblical doctrine of justification
by faith alone. We will not enter into heaven.
We do not garner acceptance with God based on Christ's works and
ours. It is Christ alone. It is Christ only. It is His
doing, His dying, and His rising that secures a place in heaven.
Reject heresy, reject false doctrine to the law and to the testimony.
If they do not accord with that, get rid of it. Secondly, the
idol of Mammon. Jesus says you cannot serve both
God and Mammon. You cannot entertain the one
in the parlor and the other in the basement. You must give God
your all. Lewis has an interesting statement
about prosperity. The Bible tells us we ought to
work hard. The Bible tells us we ought to
be diligent. The Bible produces and promotes
a very sound work ethic. In other words, Christians ought
to be the hardest workers. Christians ought to be at work
on time. They ought not to murmur. They
ought not to grumble. They ought not to complain. They
ought not to be the one gossiping behind the boss's back. Rather,
they ought to be faithful, hardworking, prosperous young men and women,
and old men and old women as well. But we need to be careful. The same proverbs that enjoin
diligence in the workplace tell us, do not overwork to be rich. Now, don't take that young man
and say, well, I can't work any overtime because I'm afraid to
get rich. Go work overtime. As young men, we've got to work
more. It's just the way it is. When you're young and you have
strength and you have vitality, you should be producing more. But that same idea Lewis makes
this statement. He says, prosperity knits a man
to the world. He feels that he is finding his
place in it, while really it is finding its place in him. You see, that's a bit of a subtle
distinction there. Again, work hard, provide well. The scripture says as men, we
need to make sure that our wives' cupboards are filled, We need
to make sure that our wives' closets are filled, not with
frivolous knick-knacks and, you know, a hundred pairs of shoes. I'm not suggesting that my dear
wife does that. She doesn't, praise God. We're
not into frivolous knick-knacks. I like to take frivolous knick-knacks
to the thrift store. Can let some other poor slob
get those frivolous knick-knacks. But a man is to fill his wife's
cupboards, he is to fill her closets. There's nothing wrong
with hard work. There's everything wrong with
laziness and slothfulness and a lack of diligence. There's
nothing wrong with being successful. Do you see a man who excels in
his work? Solomon asked. He will stand
before kings. That is a blessing. That is a
good thing. But when we cross that line,
and instead of us finding our way in the world, the world is
finding its way in our hearts, that's when there's a problem.
Beware the idol of false religion. Beware the idol of mammon. Beware
the idol of self. Probably the biggest offender
for most of us, okay? You don't love money. You don't
love you know whatever we generally love ourselves We generally want
to promote ourselves. We generally want to bow to ourselves
We like everybody else to bow to us. We need to guard our hearts
serve others get outside of your own head care about other people
and Pray for other nations, pray for the persecuted church. Do
not allow yourself that whole narcissistic mindset that is
so rampant in our generation. Guard against the idol of self. And then finally, this quote,
I think this brother nails it. He says, all idolatry, whether
ancient or modern, primitive or sophisticated, is inexcusable. whether the images are metal
or mental, material objects of worship or unworthy concepts
in the mind. For idolatry is the attempt either
to localize God, confining him within the limits which we impose,
whereas he is the creator of the universe, or to domesticate
God. making him dependent on us, taming
him, whereas he is the sustainer of human life. Or to alienate
God, blaming him for his distance and silence, whereas he is the
ruler of nations and not far from any of us. Or to dethrone
God, demoting him to some image of our own contrivance or craft,
whereas he is our father from whom we derive our being. In
brief, all idolatry tries to minimize the gulf between the
Creator and His creatures in order to bring Him under our
control. More than that, it actually reverses
the respective positions of God and us. So that instead of our
humbly acknowledging that God has created and rules us, we
presume to imagine that we can create and rule God. There is
no logic in idolatry. It is a perverse, topsy-turvy
expression of our human rebellion against God. It is terrible. The only antidote is the gospel,
for in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith
to faith. As it is written, the just shall
live by faith. But now, Paul says, the righteousness
of God, apart from the law, is revealed, being witnessed by
the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God through
faith in Jesus Christ. Paul sets forth the reality that
the gospel cuts us off the idol of self. 2 Corinthians 5.15,
and he died for all that those who live should live no longer
for themselves, but for him who died for them and rose again. Little children, keep yourselves
from idols. Stay close. to the cross of our
Lord Jesus. Let us pray. Father, how we thank
you for your word and how we thank you for its clarity and
for the way that it leaves us not wondering whatsoever about
your view of idolatry. God, we pray that you would just
grant us grace and protection and watch over us, cause us to
love you, cause us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our
Lord Jesus. Help us, Father, to understand the truth and to
put it into practice in our own lives. And God, as we live in
a generation of idolaters, we pray that your gospel would be
preached, that men would be reconciled unto you through the Lord Jesus
Christ. And it's in his name that we
pray. Amen.

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