Images of Idols (Part 1)
Good day to each of you reading this column on the word of images of idols and how it relates to both God and man.
Before we begin, let’s turn to some humor from South County Churches
Q. What do they call pastors in Germany?
A. German Shepherds.
Q. Who was the greatest financier in the Bible?
A. Noah. He was floating his stock while everyone else was in liquidation.
The Pilot
A Sunday School teacher asked her class to draw a picture of their favorite Bible story. One little boy drew a picture of a big airplane with four people looking out the windows. “Which story is this?” the teacher asked. “It’s the flight to Egypt,” the boy replied. “I see Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus,” the teacher said, “but who is the fourth person?” “Oh,” the boy said, “that’s Pontius the pilot!”
24. Church Football Phrases
In a never-ending effort to attract the unchurched, some churches have considered translating their unfamiliar terminology into familiar football phrases.
BLITZ: The strategic play that takes place two seconds after closing prayer as everyone rushes for their favorite restaurant.
BLOCKING: Talking endlessly to the pastor at the church door and keeping everyone else from exiting.
COACH: The children’s Christmas program director.
ASSISTANT COACH: Every mother who has a kid in the children’s Christmas program.
COMMERCIAL: Announcements.
DRAFT CHOICE: The decision to sit close to an air-conditioning vent.
DRAW PLAY: What many children, and not a few adults, do with their bulletins during the service.
END ZONE: The pews.
EXTRA POINT: What you receive when you tell the preacher his sermon was too short.
FIRST QUARTER: What most people put into the Sunday school offering so it looks like they are giving.
FOURTH QUARTER: The amount that makes up the dollar most people put into the Sunday school offering when under peer pressure to give more.
HAIL MARY: A desperate move made by ushers in a last-ditch attempt to get people to put something in the plate.
HALFTIME: The period between Sunday school and worship when many choose to leave.
HOLDING: Passing on the offering plate without putting in a cent.
ILLEGAL CONTACT: What gets some church leaders into trouble and out of the ministry.
ILLEGAL MOTION: Leaving before the benediction.
INTERFERENCE: Talking during the organ prelude.
OFFSIDES: When an orchestra member accidentally walks into the choir room.
PASS INTERFERENCE: A parent moving between two teens in the pew to halt the flow of notes back and forth during the sermon.
QUARTERBACK SNEAK: How the pastor gets from the pulpit to the rear door during the benediction.
RAIN DELAY: Baptism.
RED DOG: Common strategy performed each Sunday by those who own their own private pew.
SUDDEN DEATH: The penalty to the pastor who preaches more than twenty minutes.
TACKLE: What takes place to the only eligible bachelor at the thirty-five-and-over singles enrichment retreat.
TIMEOUT: Refreshment time in the Fellowship Hall.
TWO-MINUTE WARNING: The point at which you realize the sermon is almost over and begin to gather up your children and belongings.
UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT: Usually takes place at a committee meeting to decide on the color of carpet or some other thing.
BENCHWARMER: Those who do not sing, pray, work, or do anything but sit.
BACKFIELD IN MOTION: Making a trip to the back, restroom, or water fountain during the service.
STAYING IN THE POCKET: What happens to a lot of money that should be given to the Lord’s work.
INSTANT REPLAY: The preacher loses his notes and falls back on last week’s illustrations.
TRAP: You’re called on to pray and are asleep.
END RUN: Getting out of church quickly without speaking to any guest or fellow member.
FLEX DEFENSE: The ability to allow absolutely nothing said during the sermon to affect your life.
HALFBACK OPTION: The decision of 50% of the congregation not to return for the evening service.
And, 25. God Bless the Children
A little child in church watched as the ushers passed the offering plate. When they neared the pew where he sat, the youngster piped up so that everyone could hear, “Don’t pay for me, Daddy. I’m under five.”
After a church service on Sunday morning, a young boy suddenly announced to his mother, “I’ve decided to become a minister when I grow up.”
“That’s okay with us, but what made you decide that?”
“Well,” said the little boy, “I have to go to church on Sunday anyway, and I figure it will be more fun to stand up and yell than to sit and listen.”
A six-year-old was overheard reciting the Lord’s Prayer at a church service: “And forgive us our trash passes, as we forgive those who passed trash against us.”
Brain cells die, skin cells die, even hair cells die.
But FAT CELLS, they must have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior because seem to have eternal life!
Good stuff from the south county churches as we love to laugh, especially in this day and age.
I have been reading and following Paul in the Bible who was previously known as Saul. Paul really had it in for Christians for a long time and then Christ stepped in before Paul could persecute any more Christians.
You could say that Paul saw the light and was blinded for three days and thus came the transformation of Paul from persecuting to becoming persecuted for the cause of Christ.
As you read about Paul in the book of Acts, you see how the gospel was being distributed throughout the world. The book of Acts first introduced the word “Christian” for this word is used three times in the Bible:
Acts 11:26 (NIV) 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So, for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
Acts 26:28 (NIV) 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”
1 Peter 4:16 (NIV) 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.
It is interesting to note that Barnabas and Paul taught in the city of Antioch which is now modern-day Turkey for a year and were given the name “Christians.” This name was given by the outside world as mocking and persecuting those who were named as Christians. Do you feel as though the same is happening in today’s society?
Being a Christian in the Roman empire meant persecution, jailed, tortured and even martyred for this small band of “Christians” would be seen as those not bowing down to the emperor but to Christ. The disciple’s mission was to “feed my sheep” and send the word of salvation to all the world as a free gift to all including the Jew, Israelite, Greek and Gentile.
Paul, an accomplished writer and debater knew the Old Testament law so very well and could debate with the Pharisees, Sadducees and Sanhedrin on Old Testament law.
Luke followed Paul in his writings as author of the book of Acts and then Paul wrote the book of Romans, 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1st and 2nd Thessalonians, 1st and 2nd Timothy, Titus, Philemon.
Paul was the author of 13 books in the New Testament and provided each of us of the establishment and growth of the body of Christ.
Let’s pick up in Romans 1 as Paul is led by the Holy Spirit to be called to Rome to plead his case before Caesar. As you read Romans 1, you see that Paul is longing to preach to both Greeks and non-Greeks in Rome. Here Paul re-establishes that he brings the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. But Paul goes much further by saying in verse 17, 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, [a] just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.
Knowing there was an immense Jewish population in Rome, Paul quotes directly from the Old Testament in Habakuk 2:4 thus teaching that people are saved by grace through faith and should live by faith. These words in the Old Testament would appeal greatly to the Jewish population in Rome.
Habakkuk 2:4 says (NIV) “See, the enemy is puffed up;
his desires are not upright—
but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness[a]—
As the Bible commentary says is that Paul is quoting Habakkuk 2:4 as Habakkuk may have understood “will live” to mean the present life only. But Paul extends this statement to include eternal life. As we trust God, we are saved, we find life both now and forever.
Romans 1:18-19 (NIV) 18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.
Yes, we hear that God is love but Paul says the wrath of God who hates sin has been revealed since the beginning of time against all godlessness and wickedness of men. We look no further than Adam & Eve where sin came forth, then the murder Abel by Cain, then the tower of Babylon and then the flooding of the earth for God was so upset because the society of man suppressed the truth by their wickedness.
These above examples show us that man substituted the truth about him and inserted their own imaginative fantasies. In fact, they stifled the truth God naturally reveals to all people in order to believe anything that supports their own self-centered life-styles.
As we look in verse 20 (NIV) 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
When reading the creation, do you not see that God demonstrates his eternal power and divine creation through the creation of this universe. Each step was perfectly created from the creation of the heavens and the earth to the creation of man and woman. How can man think this perfect creation was concocted when each piece of the puzzle was by God’s divine creation. Why does man make excuses, judgments or silly theories for the divine creation?
Don’t go away for we will begin with Romans 1:21-23 on part 2 on Images of Idols.
Please read the following: Romans 1:21-23 (NIV) 1 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
Idolatry began in Genesis 6 when man increased in numbers and the Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. So, God destroyed man with the exception of Noah & his family. They re-populated the world and in Genesis 11 we are introduced to the tower of Babel where men began building a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens. Here the Lord comes down to see the city & tower and says nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. The idol of the city and tower were stopped when the Lord scattered them from there over the earth and confused the language of the whole world from one language to multiple languages. A third example is found in Exodus 20:22-23 (NIV) 22 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites this: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven: 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. Moses brought down the Ten Commandments to be presented to the Israelites and what did they do? Look at Exodus 32 where they gathered and said, “Come make us gods who will go before us and they made an idol cast in the shape of a calf. Aaron saw this and built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow will be a festival to the Lord.”
Three Biblical examples of how man claimed to be wise and became fools. Man’s thinking was futile and their foolish hearts were darkened to sin and vanity.
Man has made the decision is that he is smarter that the Lord and that by rejecting God he can deal with the consequences on his own. By making all so many rebellious choices and irrational decisions, is this the type of freedom you desire? If we choose evil, then we must accept the consequences that come with the choice for there is no worse slavery than slavery to sin.
Let’s look at the verses 24, 26 and 28 for you will read the following: God gave them over:
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Three times Paul makes the statement; God gave them over or allowed man to do as he wishes. Here, God doesn’t stop man from making choices that are against his will. Why? He let’s us declare our supposed independence from him, and as we run the course, we become slaves to our own rebellious choices.
Verse 25 shows us that man is so vulnerable and bombarded with lies whether it be from the TV, music, movies, the internet or the media as these lies being spread reinforce their selfish personal beliefs. The media makes it look so glamorous and inviting, but when peels the layers away , we see that those attitudes and beliefs are totally opposed to the Bible.
I am sure Paul saw first hand in his travels where; idolatry and lust were being practiced in the many countries that he traveled. Surely, he is seeing this in Rome where he sees people treating the emperor as a God with idols being made and a bowing down or worshipped to the emperor.
If you wish to have a further understanding of idols, turn to Jeremiah 10:1-15, for this chapter deals with God & Idols. Please read 10:11-14 (NIV) 11 “Tell them this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’” [a]
12 But God made the earth by his power;
he founded the world by his wisdom
and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.
13 When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;
he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain
and brings out the wind from his storehouses.
14 Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;
they have no breath in them.
I must believe that Paul was thinking about the above verses when he wrote Romans 1:21-25. Do you agree?
The Wycliffe Bible Commentary says in verse 26 that uncleanness always generates more uncleanness.
Here is Romans 1:26-27 (NIV) 26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Verses 26 & 27 tackle the subject of homosexuality where we look at Leviticus 18:22 where homosexuality is strictly forbidden. As in the days of Rome and in that time around the world that these acts were performed, the same is true in today’s society that our society considers this as an acceptable practice which includes many churches, but society is not and never has been the standard or barometer for God’s law.
Verses 26 & 27 show us the depravity and degradation of men and women who are feeding their self-lusts to both the body and mind. These sensual desires lead to disgraceful passions to meet their self-centered needs thus perverting sex from the natural relationship between a man and woman in the sanctity of marriage as designed by God.
As you read verse 28, Paul says that we have those who don’t want to retain the knowledge of God and serve their interests, so God gave them over to a depraved mind so they could do what they want to do.
The AI overview for the word depraved is The Greek word often translated as “reprobate” or “depraved” is adokimos, meaning “unapproved,” “rejected,” or “worthless” bibleanalysis.org+1. This condition reflects a moral and spiritual state in which individuals persistently resist God’s truth, suppressing it through wickedness GotQuestions.org+1.
Verses 29-31 go into detail about those with a depraved mind who are at odds with both themselves and their fellow men. The result is lawlessness and disarray.
As you read verses 29-31, look closely at the types of wickedness that Paul refers to for you will see how one would be at odds with both his fellow man and himself. And remember, the root is self and pride which caused the downfall of Satan.
As we close, verse 32 tells us those described in verse 29-31 had opportunity to know the requirements of God and as Paul says that these people then knew that death is the penalty of these evil actions.
And the result, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. The Wycliffe Bible Commentary says yet they not only sinned with pleasure but applauded others who were sinning. Their sin had reached a point where they received a vicarious satisfaction in the sinful deeds of others.
We all have a voice inside of us telling us of that which is right and wrong and this thing inside called a conscience lets us know when we do wrong, but we have those that don’t care. We have those who will risk it all to meet their desires. Haven’t you heard those who say, “I know it’s wrong, but I really want it” or “I know it’s wrong, but it’s worth the risk.” To those, it’s a game, test the limits or push the envelope, but where is the sense of what was right or wrong? Was it fun going against God’s law? As for the ramifications, turn to Romans 6:23 (NIV) 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.
As we look in today’s society, do you stand with Christ or do you go along with the crowd and approve of those who practice those things in verses 29-31. Like Rome, America has sunk deeper into a sinful humanity thus pushing the envelope on our moral standards, throwing out common sense and utilizing man’s sense of right and wrong versus Biblical commandments, laws, statutes and judgments.
Each of us have been given the opportunity of the gift of God which is eternal life in Christ Jesus for we have all sinned. What are you waiting for?
