"'You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God." (Lev 26:1) "Little children, guard yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21) Idolatry is simply the worship of idols or cult images. An idol is an image or representation of a god used as an object of worship, while a cult image is a human-made object that is venerated or worshipped for the deity, spirit or daemon that it embodies or represents. These are very serious issues which are gradually becoming commonplace in our society and churches today. The devil has craftily made us adopt words like "idolize", "my idol" as normal and regular vocabulary. The effect of this is that we begin to lose fact of the severity that God and the scriptures attach to worship of idols and idolizing of anything. Join me on today's lesson as I unravel this satanic device of deceit. Continue reading... .
The word of God gravely warns that we should have no other gods besides the Almighty God in heaven - the Creator of all universe, the Redeemer of all mankind, the Saviour of the world, the Ultimate Master of life. We are to detach ourselves from anything that tries to take His place in our heart or our life. It might interest you to know that in all the 4,300 or so religions of the world today, there are three of them that seriously forbid the worship of idols or use of any form of symbolism or graven images as object of worship. They are Christianity, Islam and Judaism. These statement is not an attempt to endorse these other religions, but just a statement to the fact that idolatry is a universally recognised evil and enemy to man's spirituality.
But these days satan has polluted the minds of many and led them into idolatry. He has used the media, the entertainment industry and the church and clergymen at some points to perpetrate this evil - leading many into idolatry. Please be warned that any one who indulges in idolatry or worship of idol of any sort will never inherit the kingdom of God. Be careful what you do, and be on the look-out for deceptive devices of the devil. Many prayers we pray today is a form of idolatry. Some singing and dancing we do today even in the church is a form of idolatry. What about some people that boldly pray with symbols, human pictures, water, handkerchiefs and other paraphernalia in the name of point of contact! Friends, most of those practices have their root in witchcraft and idolatry and are perpetrated by occult men masquerading as men of God.
The first book of John the Beloved ends with a stern and carefully targeted warning, "Little children, guard yourselves from idols." The King James Version adds the word "Amen" right after that statement.
There is only one God and one mediator between God and man, and that is Jesus Christ. And in prayer Jesus only asked us to pray in His name, not using any symbols or idols or image. The name of Jesus is enough and above all. It is time to go back to the truth, and the real thing God asks us to do. Time to separate yourself from the corruption that is in the world. Time to tell yourself, "Enough of these deceits!"
Tomorrow, I shall be giving the last lesson in this series, after which I will pray with you that God shall deliver you from every deception plan of the evil one, and open your eyes to see through all his schemes and deceits. God bless you.