I wandered around at the annual Scarecrow Festival in a neighboring town, the smell of fried dough, popcorn, and hot dogs filled the air. Multitudes of scarecrows masquerading as different characters—athletes, pirates, farmers, cheerleaders—were arranged on platforms for everyone to admire. I thought of Jeremiah as he commanded the Israelites not to admire the gods of the surrounding nations. He said, “Their gods [were] like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field” (Jeremiah 10:5). He went on to build a case against idol worship, and here are a few of his main points:
Idols are helpless. They can’t harm us or do us any good (Jeremiah 10:5). We should worship God because “the Lord is the only true God” (Jeremiah 10:10).
Idols are not alive. “They cannot speak” and they “have no breath or power” (Jeremiah 10:5,14). We should worship God because He is “the living God” (Jeremiah 10:10) who “is the Creator of everything that exists” (Jeremiah 10:16).
Idols are destructible. They “will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens” (Jeremiah 10:11). “They will all be destroyed” (Jeremiah 10:15). We should worship God because He is “the everlasting King” (Jeremiah 10:10).
Nothing should compete with our devotion to God. Still, just like the people who outfitted their idols in “royal blue and purple robes made by expert tailors” (Jeremiah 10:9), we decorate our houses, follow celebrities, and polish our vehicles with enough dedication to make them into “so-called gods” (Jeremiah 10:11).
The remedy for our struggle with “sacred scarecrows” is to remember that God is the only One worthy of our devotion and praise. Meditating on His power, eternal nature, and desire to know us personally will help us follow the first of the Ten Commandments: “You must not have any other god but Me” (Exodus 20:3).
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Luke 14:1-14
More:
Read Colossians 3:1-3 to see how to get victory over idolatrous urges. Read Job 31:26-28 to understand how idolatry affects our relationship with God.
Next:
Why is idolatry harder to spot in our modern world than it was in Jeremiah’s day? How can we ensure that God has His rightful place in our lives?
daisymarygoldr on August 12, 2011 at 4:09 am
Good post Jennifer! It is easy to mock at the idolatry of Jeremiah’s day. What we don’t realize is that we are equally guilty of worshipping idols in the church today. How do you think the first Jewish Christians would react to the idolatry in the 21st century Church?
Would Peter, James or Paul, approve of the pagan practices introduced into the church by Gentile converts—and justified in the name of Christ? It is no exaggeration to say that idol worship among Christians is one of the biggest stumbling blocks to Jews (and even non Jews) who might consider believing on the Lord Jesus.
And the reason we find it harder to spot idolatry in our modern world is because unlike physical idols it is so subtle and cleverly disguised. Sadly, many do not trust God but trust and depend on the dollar bill to bring them happiness and security. The greed for money has subtly led to the destruction of homes, the downfall of nations, the collapse of civilizations, and the damnation of false apostles of the Gospel.
Believers need to carefully examine everything and everyone that sets itself up in God’s temple, proclaiming to be God—and not worship the things of this world. Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. (Colossians 3: 5-6). We can either look to scarecrows—the free market, the government, science and technology, military might, human reason—or trust God for His protection and provision.
jennifer benson schuldt on August 12, 2011 at 12:55 pm
daisymarygold, thanks for sharing your thoughts with us. I liked the examples you listed of modern-day idols: money, government, technology, military might and human reasoning.
Another one I see is the god of “self”. Self improvement, self soothing, self entertainment, self grooming–the word “self-serving” comes to mind. While any one of these things might not be a problem individually, living only for our personal benefit opens the door for self worship. I think this is one of the hardest forms of idolatry to spot. We can’t see it in a literal mirror, but it may show up when we experience friction on our relationships.
lindagma on August 12, 2011 at 5:34 am
And isn’t the state of the US economy a testimony to that. We want a balanced budget…yet scream like a wounded ban chi if there is mention of taking away our government benefits. We’ve turned to the government to meet our needs instead of God.
You don’t have to be rich to worship modern day idols and credit has allowed us to accumulate, not what we need…but what we want. There are so many things that feed that hunger…computers and phones are out of date within months after we purchase the latest and greatest. We “needed” a bigger home and ballooned the market into thousands of foreclosures…we hocked ourselves into 6 years of mortgage on a vehicle that gives status, when a 2nd hand, not so glamorous would accomplish the same thing…get us where we need to go.
There is a movement started to turn this country back to God…all those who wish to participate…stop what you are doing at 9:00pm eastern time and take a minute, everyday, to pray for our country to return to God and His principles.
jennifer benson schuldt on August 12, 2011 at 1:05 pm
Good insights. We do need to pray for our country, and for the entire world. When God is first in our hearts, I think He changes our priorities. It becomes easier to see the “extras” for what they are, instead of believing them to be the “essentials”.
GChoo on August 12, 2011 at 10:33 am
Jennifer, thanks for the reminder. And, also to all who have contributed. Yes, we do really need to keep ourselves in check and to pray for our country wherever we are living.
jennifer benson schuldt on August 12, 2011 at 2:41 pm
In one instance, the women of the tribe of Judah were kneading dough to make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven. The men and children were creating sacrificial fires and the people were pouring out liquid offerings to their other idol gods.
God had this to say about their idolatry–it’s a message for us too. “Am I the one they are hurting? …Most of all, they hurt themselves, to their own shame” (Jeremiah 7:17-18). Fortunately, God’s grace makes it possible for us to get back on track and redirect our worship to Him!