by: Nate O’Brien
John Piper, during his fight against cancer, wrote a book entitled “Don’t Waste Your Cancer.” In it, he prayed that he would not waste the pain of his cancer by missing God’s good plan for him and hope-filled path for making much of Christ. To (possibly) a much lesser extent, I don’t want us to waste our quarantine. I want us to see God’s good plan for us and how we can make much of our Savior through times such as this. During the last several weeks, I have been helped by hearing from other brothers and sisters in Christ about lessons learned during quarantine. One of the themes of the responses I have heard again and again is that they have become more aware of their idols. I have heard the word “idol” defined several ways. I think my favorite so far is the description that God Himself gave in Jeremiah 2. Although written immediately to Israel (as they had quite literally begun to worship false gods instead of Him), His words hold true today for all believers even in Jacksonville Florida during a quarantine. In these verses, we read:
“Has a nation changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
Jeremiah 2:11-13 (ESV)
Let’s work through this passage together and discover the full description given to us by God, the various idols we might be wrestling with, and what to do about them.
Idols “are no gods”
There is only one God in all of existence. That one God is the God of the Bible (Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 43:11, 44:6; Mark 12:29; James 2:19, etc.). He is the source of every good thing (James 1:17). He alone can satisfy us - mind, body, and soul. Idols are not Him by definition. They are substitutes for Him. They are anything that we elevate in importance up and over our God. We are commanded to love our Lord with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27, etc.). We are commanded to love Him with our whole self. We love Him, cherish Him, think about Him, and exhaust ourselves pursuing Him. Instead, we love, cherish, ponder, and work hard for many other objects of our affection and focus (i.e., people, places, things, hobbies, peace and quiet, food, etc.). Anything we turn to for satisfaction rather than Him, is an idol. Since He alone is the source of everything we need, the idols (which we perceive as little sources of those same things) are nothing. They are paper tigers, so to speak. They have the appearance of something but none of its substance.
Idols “(do) not profit”
In Christ, we receive a glory that should belong only to God (John 17:5). We have an inheritance fit for the King of Kings (Ephesians 1:12), yet we turn away from that glory and act as if we are not children of the One God when we begin to go after idols. Idols are nothing. They ultimately cannot satisfy us. They are bloated with the false and empty promises with which we have stuffed them. God uses the picture of a comparison of a fountain and a cistern to demonstrate the deceiving nature of idols. A cistern was a massive pool carved out of rock and lined with masonry and cement. They could be as large as an acre of land in the time of Jeremiah. Given that machinery did not exist then as it does now, they involved great amounts of labor to construct. Their purpose was to collect and house clean water from the rains that fell. God would be, in this illustration, not a cistern but an ever gushing fountain of the purest spring water. A thousand weary travelers could always depend on such a fountain to have an unending amount of satisfying and refreshing water. By comparison, idols are not even good cisterns. They are “broken cisterns that can hold no water.” Instead of going to the source of living water, we can often insist on heading over to the broken cistern to look for a drink. Broken cisterns have no water. They are bone dry and yet we go again and again to them instead of Him.
Idol Worshipers Commit “two evils”
God informed us in Jeremiah that, in our worshiping of idols, we have committed two evils. We have (1) “forsaken (God)” and (2) “hewed out cisterns for (ourselves).” We have abandoned the Fountain of Living Water and, in that moment that we set ourselves on that idol, renounced the God who loves us. What a horrible thought. God calls out to the heavens and commands them to do three things. He tells them to “be appalled…, be shocked, and be utterly desolate…” He commands all of creation to mirror His revulsion at such sin. Worshiping other “gods” is appalling. We don’t often think of our sin as disgusting and revolting, but it is to a perfectly Holy God. The fact that we would turn away from such a God should shock the rational mind. Those looking on such folly should be unconsolable in their horror and sadness. As if that were not enough, we commit another evil by trying to be God ourselves. Although not immediately apparent, this text is stating that we are attempting to be gods. We are trying to create for ourselves what God alone is (the source of Living Water – of all things good, satisfying, wonderful, etc.). We are trying to be the little gods who create and control God.
Idols Can Be Detected
Now that we know what an idol is, we can begin to detect the idols we have. When we see a red light on the dashboard of our car, we know that it is a signal from our car to us that we have an issue that needs addressing. In Galatians 5:19-21, we are given some of the red lights (or “works of the flesh”) that we can be on the lookout for indicating that we have an issue under the hood of our hearts. Even though idolatry is also mentioned in this list, the root of all “works of the flesh” is idolatry. We read that “fits of anger” is a work of the flesh. Thinking back through our recent time at home, to what have we responded with “fits of anger?” For example, let’s say that I remember when, being on an important phone call, I erupted in anger at my children for being too loud. In that moment I forsook God and went to a peaceful and quiet phone call for my source of comfort when God alone is my comfort. The unrighteousness anger was the red light and the type of call I wanted to have was my idol. While this practice can take prayer and effort to grow in, it is essential for us to undergo to grow in the image of Christ.
Idols Can Be Smashed
Let’s say that, while reading this, you have learned more about what idols are as well as how horrible your idols are. I have Good News for you. Your idols can be smashed to pieces. Back in the time of Jeremiah, God’s people build statues to worship instead of Him. When they admitted their sin and confessed it, they typically smashed the idols to dust to show both their sorrow and dedication to God. In a sense, we can do the same. Once we have identified idols in our lives, our great goal is to smash them to bits. We can do this by:
Praying to God to show you your idols. It is only through a work of God that we can see them as our still sinful hearts love them and we will be blind to them at times. God might use His word, fellow believers, a spouse, and/or a friend or even child to point them out to us.
Pay attention to your reactions. Whenever you can recognize that you have demonstrated a sinful response (check against Galatians 5, 1 Corinthians 15, etc.), seek to identify your idol. It has been helpful to me to write out the following and fill in the blanks as I go, “I forsook God in my __________ and went to ____________ for my source of ____________.”
Once idols are recognized, confess them to God. Repent from them (turn in disgust away from them). Pray that God will grant you the gift of being appalled, shocked, and made utterly desolate by your idols. Put them off. Put on God as your source of ___________ (using the example above as your source of “comfort”).
See how wonderful His Good News is for you. Although He is rightly appalled, shocked, disgusted, desolate, and greatly angered by your sins, He has saved you. He sent His Son Jesus to take your place and pay the hell you deserve for your creation and worship of all of your idols (past, present, and future) by His death and resurrection. By meditating on the Gospel, your faith will grow.
Rinse and repeat. Unfortunately, our hearts produce idols at an alarming amount, at an alarming rate, and over and over again. We will have to break the same ones over and over. Do not be disheartened. Jesus promised us that He will make us more like Him (Romans 8:28-30; Philippians 1:6). The amount will go down. The rate will decrease. The repetition will gradually cease. Although we will not be sinless in this life, we will see slow improvements.
Brothers and sisters, let us not waste precious times such as these. Even our sufferings, trials, and tribulations are good gifts from God that can be counted as JOY (James 1:2 [through verse 18]). One song that has helped me in my thinking through my own idols has been “Clear the Stage” by Jimmy Needham (referenced by Pastor Kenny in a recent sermon). I have included the link so that you can play it as you pray and begin to attack the idols of your hearts.
Father, we come before you in the name of your Son Jesus. We confess that we have often forsook you and created other gods in your place. We repent of them. We plead with you to show us our idols, to search our hearts, and especially bring to light those dark sins that we have hidden from ourselves. Grow our faith in you as we meditate on the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Help us, strengthen us, and empower us to smash the idols we have built up in our hearts that take from you our hearts, minds, soul, and strength. Help us so that we might help our brothers and sisters in Christ. Please be with our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world that have it so much worse than we do. Have mercy on us and allow us to gather together again in person to worship you. Help us to never take that for granted again. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Song for Meditation: https://youtu.be/6smGew7dGto