“NO IDOLS” Ex. 20:4-6
FBCF – 6/11/22
Jon Daniels
INTRO – When does sports as entertainment become sports as idolatry? Banner at Lambeau Field in 1996 when Packers won Super Bowl in New Orleans & Brett Favre named MVP:
“Our Favre, who art in Lambeau, hallowed by thy arm. The Bowl will come, it will be won, in New Orleans as it is in Lambeau. Give us this Sunday our weekly win. And give us many touchdown passes. But do not let others pass against us. Lead us not into frustration, but deliver us to Bourbon Street. For thine is the MVP, the best of the NFL, & the glory of the cheeseheads, now & forever. Go get ‘em!”
Let’s talk about idolatry today.
EXPLANATION – Exodus 20:4-6
I’d like to go back & revisit a statement that was made by another pastor that I quoted last Sun: “Thou shalt not obey the 10 Commandments.” Why is this a wrong statement? Why should we still obey the 10 Commandments?
The argument against obedience to the OT Law is that we are no longer under the weight & the bondage of the Law b/c we are saved by GRACE alone through faith alone in Christ alone. That statement is absolutely true! We don’t depend on our good works & our attempts at keeping the commandments for our salvation. Depending on our good works & valiant attempts at obedience is a one-way ticket to hell.
But keeping the 10 Commandments is still expected of every Christ-follower. This does not elevate law above GRACE. Jesus never said that He came to abolish & do away w/ the Law. Listen to Matthew 5:17-18 (MSG) – “Don’t suppose for a minute that I have come to demolish the Scriptures—either God’s Law or the Prophets. I’m not here to demolish but to complete. I am going to put it all together, pull it all together in a vast panorama. God’s Law is more real & lasting than the stars in the sky & the ground at your feet. Long after stars burn out & earth wears out, God’s Law will be alive and working.” He also said that all the commandments of Law & the teachings of the prophets depend on the Great Commandment of Matthew 22:37-40 – “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart & with all your soul & with all your mind. This is the first & greatest commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law & the Prophets.’”
So, no, we are not going to move back into some kind of legalistic, Pharisaical rule-keeping kind of religious expression. But we are clearly going to say that, b/c we ARE saved by GRACE alone, we have the joy & privilege of living in obedience to the commandments that God has given to us. Love what one commentator said: “Since we know that the perfect keeping of the Law is not the basis for our salvation, we can live boldly in our obedience, knowing that when we stumble over the law, or b/c of the law, or in keeping the law, our salvation is still intact b/c of GRACE.” (Maxie D. Dunnam, The Communicator’s Commentary: Exodus, p. 249).
We obey His commands b/c we love Him. John 14:15 – “If you love me, keep my commandments.” We obey b/c we are SO thankful for what He has done to save us when we deserved death & hell. When we realize that we are one of the “whosoevers” (John 3:16), we will want to live in joyful, grateful, humble obedience to Him for the rest of our lives!
One more thing: The 10 Commandments serve as spiritual checkpoints to help us evaluate our walk w/ the Lord & even determine if we are saved or not: Why do I keep stealing? Why do I keep hating? Why do I keep living in sexual immorality? Why do I keep lying? 1 John 2:5-6 – “It is only when we obey God’s laws that we can be quite sure that we really know Him. The man who claims to know God but does not obey His laws is not only a liar but lives in self-delusion. In practice, the more a man learns to obey God’s laws the more truly & fully does he express his love for Him. Obedience is the test of whether we really live ‘in God’ or not. The life of a man who professes to be living in God must bear the stamp of Christ.” (Phillips)
So, let’s talk about this 2nd Commandment about idols.
APPLICATION – There is no substitute for the one true living God.
At face value, we may think that this commandment is basically the same as the 1st one – “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” But here’s the difference:
- The 1st commandment makes it clear who we are to worship – the one true living God – PERIOD!
- The 2nd commandment tells how we worship – & that is w/out anything that we substitute for the one true living God.
This commandment is the most repeated commandment throughout the Bible. God is serious about idolatry. He hates it, & yet it was an ongoing problem for His people all throughout the OT. And it’s still a major threat today.
But it’s also the commandment that we think is the most irrelevant to us today. Our view of idolatry is so narrow that we don’t really think that we’d ever be guilty of this sin. Surely none of us have a statue on our mantle or coffee table or nightstand that we get on our knees & bow down to. We go in a Chinese restaurant & see a statue of Buddha at the cash register & think how silly it is that they have that sitting there.
But we are woefully wrong if we think that this is a commandment that we can shrug off b/c it doesn’t apply to us. We better beware of that temptation! Any & all of us can very easily be guilty of idolatry.
Idolatry is when we allow anything or anyone to rise to the level of allegiance that should be reserved for God alone. When we give our mind’s attention & heart’s affection to anything or anyone other than the one true living God, we have committed idolatry. As Tony Evans states, “Idolatry is intimacy with an image. It’s not necessarily bowing down to a carved statue stuck on a pole. No, an idol is anything that usurps God’s rightful rule in your life.”
3 points to ponder on this subject of idolatry:
THE FUTILITY OF IDOLS – Heb word for “carved image” is a statue. Astounding that as soon as God gave this commandment, His people at the foot of Mt Sinai broke it.
- They were impatient – Exodus 32:1 – “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, ‘Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’” (NIV)
- They acted immorally – Exodus 32:25 – The people were “running wild” & “out of control” (NIV) – a sign of immoral behavior which usually accompanies idolatry.
- They paid the price for their sin immediately – 3000 died (Exodus 32:28) & they were struck w/ a plague (Exodus 32:35).
- All of this b/c of the futility of idol worship.
The Psalmist said this in Psalm 115:4-7 – “Their idols are silver & gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; & they do not make a sound in their throat.”
To worship anything other than the one true living God is to futilely worship something that gives the impression that it has life, but it doesn’t. And the result is that there will be some serious fallout to our sin.
THE FALLOUT OF DISOBEDIENCE – God issues a serious, life-altering threat w/ this commandment: He promises to punish the children of idolators down to the 3rd & 4th generation. If you choose to worship an idol, your great-grandchildren will pay that price. Of course, it doesn’t mean that they have no hope whatsoever. But it is abundantly clear that idolatry has HUGE consequences! That’s one of the reasons He warned His people about it so many times throughout the OT. The effects & consequences of idolatry & sin & immoral behavior will not end w/ itself, but spreads out & invades the lives of so many others, potentially for a hundred years or more. We must not think that we can just do whatever we want & it not affect anyone else. That simply is not so. God will not be mocked. He’s a jealous God, meaning He has a burning passion for our undivided attention - & rightfully so. And when you & I give our attention to anyone or anything else, He responds strongly & allows the consequences of our sin to ripple out & touch many, many people. And tragically, those who are closest to us are impacted the most severely.
Why does this happen? We’ve already seen that it is b/c of the righteous jealousy of God. But there’s another reason. Back to Psalm 115:8 – “Those who make them become like them, & so do all who trust in them.” If we become like an idol:
- We won’t speak truth anymore
- We will be blinded to the effects of our sin
- We won’t hear the truth of the Word of God or warning that are spoken, counsel that is given
- We won’t smell the stench of our sin
- We won’t reach out to those we love or those who love us
- We won’t walk in the direction of righteousness & integrity
- We won’t utter sounds of worship & praise to God
- Sum it up: We will be deadened & desensitized to the ugliness & the depravity of our sin & the wrong direction of our lives. And Satan loves that!
THE FANTASTIC PROMISE OF OBEDIENCE – BUT – that’s such a great word! Here’s the good news! This commandment ends w/ an amazing promise! If I will place my faith in God & keep my worship dedicated to Him & Him alone, He promises to show His “steadfast love to THOUSANDS” – most translations say “a thousand generations”! This means that if you & I take this commandment seriously & keep our mind’s attention & heart’s affection focused on God & God alone, His special love will be poured out upon our descendants hundreds of years after I’m gone!
Is this literally true? It’s hard to believe b/c the number is so massive – a thousand generations! Sounds like hyperbole – an exaggeration that’s not meant to be taken seriously. But if God said a thousand generations, that’s exactly what He meant, & I’m going to believe Him & stand on that truth. How awesome is that promise!
CONCLUSION/TAKEAWAYS – Let’s end with 3 sobering reminders:
1. Anything can become an idol if we cling to it too tightly. Just b/c we have something today doesn’t mean that we will have it tomorrow. God is the ONLY thing that is eternally secure & permanent.
2. Our kids are watching & learning & soaking up the things that they observe in our lives – our obedience or disobedience – our commitment or lack of commitment – our passionate love for God or our anemic love for God.
3. How we choose to live our lives will impact generations to come. Choose wisely & biblically! And choose TODAY!
