Having Idols in Your Heart

"...these men have set up idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them: (Ezekiel 14:3).

Many people, even people who claim to be Christians and often attend church, have set up idols in their hearts. They would never call them idols, but that's exactly what they've become. Anything that we give more allegiance to than we do to the things of God are our idols. We should keep a log of our discretionary time. How do we use it? What occupies most of our thoughts and desires? What excites us, pulls us, and even makes us sacrifice other things to be involved with it? Is it God or something else?

To some today, it's a political party they support, or it may be a sports team they follow. It might be a quest for some sort of worldly success, money, prestige, position, or power. Hobbies aren't bad in themselves because we all need to relax on occasion, but if taken too far, they, too, can become idols. Food can become an idol and so can any addictions: tobacco, alcohol, or drugs. Television or video games have become idols to some. Examine your life carefully. Do you have an idol? Even someone you care about can become an idol if you put them above God. Selfish people can become their own idols.

"Thou shalt have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3). It begins the Ten Commandments. We need to honor God in all that we think and do and with our whole lives. He should be first in our lives, far above everything else. Nothing else is as crucial. At the end of our lives, only what we've done with our Lord will matter. Everything else will be left behind. If you have any idols in your life, dethrone them right now and put God where He belongs, to reign supreme forevermore.

Read Ezekiel 14

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