The Problem With Idol Worship

In his discourse before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7), Stephen reviews the history of his people. He speaks of the day when, at the foot of Mount Sinai, they bowed before a golden calf, made with the help of weak-willed Aaron (Exodus 32). “They offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the work of their own hands,” he says (Acts 7:41). As Romans puts it, Idolaters have “exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25). There are many things wrong with the worship of idols. Let’s note a few.

1. To worship an idol is to reject the revealed Word of God about Himself (Exod. 20:2-6), and reject the general revelation about Him in nature (Rom. 1:19-20).
2. To worship an idol is to exchange the truth of God about His Person for Satan’s lie (Rom. 1:25). (The lie is that God is not uniquely transcendent, that other beings or things can be His equal or replace Him. The devil himself craved this place (Isa. 14:12-15), and he tempted man with the same deceit (Gen. 3:5).)
3. To worship an idol is to give what is created that which only the Creator deserves.
4. To worship an idol is to celebrate the artistic accomplishments of men as though they were creators on a level with God (Acts 7:41).
5. To worship an idol is folly, given its utter impotence (Ps. 115:3-8; Jer. 10:3-5). (They are called “vanities” in the Bible, I Kgs. 16:13, KJV–empty nothings, but are treated with superstitious reverence by the misguided, cf. II Kgs 18:4.)
6. To worship an idol opens one to greater temptation, and the influence of demon powers which are at work behind the idols. (This often shows itself in sexual immorality related to idol worship.)
7. To worship an idol invites the certain judgment of God. He calls Himself a “jealous” God who will brook no rival (Exod. 34:14).
8. To worship an idol is not something only naked savages or primitive tribes do. God calls covetousness idolatry (Col. 3:5). Any person, thing, or activity (etc.) that begins to consume our time and control our lives can be an idol.