“You shall not make for yourself an idol”
SERMON Title: You shall not make for yourself an idol
SCRIPTURE: Exodus 20:4-6 (ESV)
Introduction:
We look at the second commandment today - “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.” (Exodus 20:4-6) We question in our daily lives in what ways we have chosen to make idols in the form of something — choosing to worship them — other than God alone.
Overview:
How the Israelites received the Ten Commandments
The Israelites were newly delivered out of the bondage of being slaves to the Egyptians.
The Commandments were not given as a condition by the Lord before He may love His people; they were given after the Lord established His covenantal kindness and unconditional love for them.
However, even though they knew of the Lord’s love, they did not live like they received this blessing.
In contrast to the First Commandment which teaches us about who we are to worship, the Second Commandment speaks on how we are to worship.
God is a jealous God
God is jealous for His people for He has an all-consuming passion to protect His people from the self-destructive behaviours enclosing on them from all sides; those lifestyle choices and patterns of the surrounding tribes and nations.
Idol-making
Idols were created because they were tangible, accessible, and knowable.
At the core of idol-making is the drive to reduce a deity to an object that is easy to control and manipulate.
However, God cannot be tamed like a mere idol. Though God has no form, He is a Voice. Idols are merely a form for us to visualize, yet hold no voice. The power of God is seen throughout the Scriptures where the Word of Truth is constantly speaking to His People.
Problems with idolatry
The big problem with idolatry is that God is replaced with the object. The object becomes the God the people worship.
Though it is fine to utilize an icon or an object to help us worship, these things should and cannot be treated with the same significance in how we treat or view God. They remain forms to contemplate the invisible God through.
We also attempt to reduce God to an object we create, and then also end up replacing God with the object. We end up reducing God to fit our own values and our own concerns. We limit God to only what we see and are concerned by.
Application:
We believe God is too big or distant to care about certain things - we distance God.
We believe God is too small, too weak, too powerless - we domesticate God.
We diminish what God can speak to in our own lives and in our world.
Sermon reflection questions:
What area of your life are you not allowing God to address? To reveal and spur you to confront head-on with Him? He is yearning to set you free.
Where have you tried to create the image of God to fit your own values, concerns, and perspectives?
How can you ask Jesus Christ to make known to you His form and His voice so that you may be liberated from the influence and power of the idols present in your life? So that you may be set free and live as free people?
