Who’s Your Idol?
January 27, 2009
The term “idol” is an interesting word. The Bible teaches very clearly in the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5) that as God’s people we souldn’t have idols that we worship. Yet the term is used very commonly in our culture: “Oh, he’s my idol” or “She’s totally my idol.” The show American Idol has been one of the most popular shows on TV for the past seven or so years.
This past Sunday in youth group, we discussed the Apostle Paul’s words to the church in Corinth on the topic of idols and we had some interesting coversation.
What part of this passage seems really important to you?
What are the most obious idols in today’s world?
How can the message of this passage be applied to the lives of people like you and me?
If you could give some thought and responses to these questions, I believe it could help to facilitate healthy growth and conversation.
[My intention is that the conversation from this post can help to inform my thinking and broaden my perspective as I work toward offering a sermon from the pulpit at Hope on Sunday, Feb. 1.]
Thanks for your help.
<><Adam
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January 29th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
I feel the most important part was that if you are supposedly making an “offering” to a deity, you don’t truly belive in that deity when you consume whatever it is you’re offering to them, you basically just defiled the God you worshipped right then and there. How can you truly believe in something that you insult or are a hypocrite about? The same can be said for Christians.
Obvious offenders for being false idols are money and any other material posessions. If you are into music then bands. I feel though that it depends though on how much you idolize people, mostly you will idolize a person because you respect them and want to seek that level of respect from others, but you also want to have the same qualities as that person that you respect them for. It only goes to far when you actually begin to worship them, that is a truly false idol.
We must not view these people who we idolize in the same circle as a messiah, but only as people who we see as a person who is a role model, not a saviour.
January 30th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
The part about food in the passage is the part that kind of struck my thinking a bit because of the way it says you consume the food and they’re eluding (alluding?) to one of the ten commandments where it says we shall not have false idols.
In today’s world, we do have quite a list of false idols. In many cases these idols can be material posessions such as money or a video game, or even people like famous people, members of a band, etc. etc. I also think that a sport or something you participate in a lot can be considered an idol as well if all of your time winds up being devoted to that and not God. We can still see these people we idolize as role models and these sports or activities we take part in as just fun things to do, though if we’re too busy for God and can’t devote enough of our lives to him and have to resort to worhipping false idols rather than our true Savior, then we’re too busy. Arty’s song ‘Be Still’ probably says it best, how we should just take the time to be still and give up some time each day for Him rather than taking on that extra activity that just pushes us over the edge in business. Without God, we can do nothing. And, as stated in my Confirmation verse, Isaiah 40:31 or 30:41 (I can never remember which), God will give us strength to keep going in what we love but to get that strength we need to set aside some time for him instead of those other false idols.
February 2nd, 2009 at 11:59 am
Just took a look at the promo for the “Here comes trouble” event. I must be missing something….I didn’t find it compelling, interesting, positive, etc. Okay, just a mom talking, but lots of sensationalism, hype, emotion, fear. Maybe that’s what it takes to get a young person’s attention these days???, but I hope not. Wow, I must be out of touch. Resisting the temptation to say “well, in MY day, youth events were…” Nope, not gonna go there. Someone clue me in, enlighten me. Seriously. Otherwise I may be missing the entire message. Thanks.