This Sunday we reach a key moment in Israel’s history where idolatry and true worship collide. 950 prophets of Baal and Asherah (the most prominent Canaanite deities) face off against the one remaining prophet of the LORD, Elijah.
“Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it. 2And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.”
1 Kings 18:23-24
Pastor Colin Smith provides a helpful summary of the slippery slope down which Israel slid from King Solomon’s compromises into King Ahab’s violent idolatry.
“At the start of Solomon’s reign, Jerusalem was the place where the living God had put His name, but by the end, Jerusalem was filled with shrines to other gods. Any visitor to Jerusalem would draw the conclusion that the God of Israel was one among many… In just fifty years after the death of Solomon, Israel had changed beyond recognition. At the beginning of Solomon’s reign, the king said, ‘There is one God.’ By the time of Jeroboam, the official position was that ‘there are many gods,’ and by the time of Ahab, it was unacceptable to say that there is one God, and those who did so were subject to violent persecution. So God sent the prophet Elijah to restore true worship among His people.”
Colin Smith, OpentheBible.org
Here is a helpful definition of idolatry:
“What is an idol? It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give… An idol is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, ‘If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I ‘ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.’ There are many ways to describe that kind of relationship to something, but perhaps the best one is worship.”
Tim Keller, Counterfeit Gods
Check out this powerful 10 minute story film from Life Explored (an inspiring evangelistic study). Consider what this man is devoting himself to – heart, mind and body – and what it costs him to do so. Then reflect personally on the things besides God you are tempted to pursue in this way.
If you have seven more minutes, watch this visual presentation of Jeremiah 17 as a tool to expose the idolatry of your heart and the process by which you can replace it with true worship. Read more here.