Golden Calves

Recently, I have heard several sermons that referenced idols. Usually this word only reminds me of an image of a golden calf in the Old Testament. However, the repeated hearing of this word in a short period of time seemed like a sign for me to give idols more serious thought. Looking again at the scriptures, one finds that the people just don’t get it about idols. They keep making and worshiping idols again and again. This is a hot topic in the Bible.

Idols are still a hot topic. Our culture is as full of idols as Athens was in Paul’s day. We still have the idols of wealth, power, and success. Others may be objects of worship that are unique to our culture. In fact, this is probably not a good topic to explore during the collegiate football season. We can also acknowledge the idols of addictive substances, images of youth and beauty, status and material possessions. We believe somehow that what we can accumulate makes us who we are.

Moses discovered the uniqueness of God at the burning bush. God cannot be depicted or represented in any manner. Therefore, we constantly need to identify those things that have become idols in our lives and recommit ourselves to returning to the worship of God who said to Moses, "I am who I am." (Exodus 3:14). What is almost as amazing as our repeated idolatry is the fact that God always makes a way for us to return to God and accepts us when we come back.