Small Idols

On a trip to Israel in 2004, one of the sites we were taken to see in Jerusalem was The Burnt House.  It was a museum with the remains of a house that had been destroyed and burned when the Romans invaded in 70 A.D. 

I wondered about this place–‘a burned house’?  That’s all?  Why should we see this when there were so many other historical and biblical riches to see in Jerusalem? 

But it was interesting.  It showed the devastation that Jerusalem went through.  The owner of the house back then was wealthy and probably a priest.  The home even had a ritual bath built right into it–that was a lot of religion (or at least the appearance of it).

But our Jewish tour guide told us that small idols were found in many of these houses.  “Everyone had them,” she said.  Despite all the appearance of religion, idolatry had made inroads.  This was shocking since by that time, long after the punishment of the Babylonian exile, we thought Israel was over and done with idolatry.  It was supposed to be cured of it. 

God had made his will very clear on the matter: idols were prohibited.  The first and second commands of The Ten Commandments are: “You shall have no other gods before me.  You shall not make for yourself an idol.”  (Exodus 20:3-4).  You’d think that would get their attention, especially from people so proud of being well-versed in the law.  They knew the law but just didn’t want to obey it.  Why did idolatry have such a strange attraction for Israel?

Idols didn’t have to big statues set up that you could literally bow down to.  They could be small figurines. 

This helps to understand the story of Laban’s idols in Genesis 31.  His daughter, Rachel, stole them and hid them in a camel’s saddle.  They were portable little things.  It also helps to explain Jacob’s surprising command to his clan: “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you…” (Genesis 35:2).  They must have been small and easily hidden. 

Maybe the small idols were viewed as not so bad; maybe they thought them of as good-luck charms. 

Sometimes Israel did the ‘big’ idolatry, like making a golden calf or embracing foreign idols like Baal and Molech.  Despite God’s commands, idolatry kept seeping in like water under the door. 

Their failure to rid themselves of idols is not just something we should point a finger at and say, ‘tsk tsk’.  There are temptations to keep idols today.    

In some cultures it is more overt.  Like in Vietnam.  They have the common, if not almost universal, practice of ancestor worship which is an offshoot of folk Buddhism.  They burn incense in small shrines.  These shrines are found in stores, restaurants, mini-marts and homes.  I once saw the burn mark on the ceiling of an apartment where the previous tenants had their shrine and burned their incense.  Small things might be placed in there next to the sticks of incense–paper houses, fake money, literal food–I’ve even seen cigarettes–for deceased relatives to use in the afterlife. 

If someone converted to Christianity in Vietnam, they would not burn the incense to the ancestors anymore.  This would likely make the parents unhappy.  They might view their child’s conversion to Christianity as a disaster–the parents would lose the benefits of the incense-burning for their own souls after they died!  We can imagine the painful family discussions.  There was a price to be paid for giving up idolatrous practices. 

But what about here, in Christian America?  We don’t have any paganism or idolatry here, do we? 

It’s not so obvious, but maybe there is more than we think.  For example: the horoscope is printed in many newspapers.  This is Babylonian paganism.  Looking to the stars for guidance instead of God, who made the stars, is idolatry. 

Or the concept of “luck.”  Luck implies an unseen guiding force, independent of God.  We should get rid of luck and replace it with providence, which speaks of God’s guidance. 

Idols are not confined to statues of wood and stone.  Idolatry can be broadened to mean anything that doesn’t leave room for God to be truly Lord.  The New Testament, like the Old Testament, warns against idolatry: “Dear children, keep yourselves from idols,” (1 John 5:21).  And there are the tougher words of Paul: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry,” (Colossians 3:5). 

Idols are to be treated harshly.  We need to take decisive action against them.  We need to get rid of them and yes, if necessary, pay the price for doing it. 

The danger for us, in western societies, is to have idols of attitude and belief.  These are easy to hide.  We might be tempted to make peace with them in some kind of reasonable compromise–after all, it’s not like we are bowing down to a literal statue.  But idolatry is anything that distracts from allowing God to be Lord in our lives. 

Though we are saved by grace and have all the benefits that come from God, we must not forget that He has also given us commands.  We need to think about and obey these commands.  There is a place for asking, “In the light of what God did for me, what can I do for Him?”  This is not to pay Him back (we can’t do that anyway) but is only a fitting response to His grace.  It means getting rid of idols of whatever kind they may be, physical or maybe in our minds.  It includes getting rid of literal good luck charms, sinful habits, or attitudes that challenge God’s Lordship.    

We don’t like to talk about owing God things. But we owe Him our loyalty and allegiance.  It’s easy to keep those small, portable idols tucked away but we owe it to God to clean out the hidden corners.