Idolatry Is Anything in Your Life that You put ahead of Jesus:
1st Corinthians 10:14 Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.
Idolatry: Having Idols in our Lives. This Makes God Jealous.
Idolatry is more than bowing down to and worshiping graven images: Idols.
Anything you put before God is Idolatry, an Idol.
What may be an Idol for you, may not be for others. You are the one who gives an Idol its status.
The Vast Majority of people put a Woman, a Man, Children, Family, Friends, Their Career’s Before Jesus. I am talking about “Christians.”
Many Men and Women spend their entire lives Worshiping Sex, each other. A Woman or a Man is their #1 Priority.
A Good Popular Statement / Creed is: In my Life I put God 1st. My Country 2nd. My family 3rd. Myself Last. Or just: God, Country, Family All Before Myself.
A Tragic Reality About Idolatry:
Many Spouses of Men and Women in the Military, or Police, Fire Department, Health Care etc… People in Very Demanding jobs that are on the Front Lines… These Spouse’s start Fights and are Constantly Mad / Angry because they feel they are Not Getting Enough Attention…
I know this is True from My Own Personal Experiences: From knowing My Life and the Lives of Many of my Friends.
It is Extremely Evil when people have a Wife or a Husband that Are Impossible to Be Around. These Selfish Self-Centered People: Rather than being Happy and Proud to have a Spouse that is Daily Risking Their Lives in the Service of Other’s for the Betterment of Our Society they are Jealous and Upset because Their Job is Demanding and takes time away from them.
People Like this their #1 Idolatry is Themselves. They Put Themselves on a Pedestal and Their Anger of Not Getting the “Attention that They Deserve” is Idolatry. This is Actually the Most Common Form of Idolatry. Worshiping Yourself.
Yes, Self-Worship is the Most Common Form of Idolatry, for Both Men and Women.
The Proof of this is Everywhere, in these Common Sayings:
“Stop Looking in the Mirror. You Really Do Worship Yourself.” “Get Over Yourself Already. Everyone is Tried of Your I Love Myself Attitude.” “You Really Are Conceited.” “I am so Beautiful, I would Marry Myself if I could.” “No Man is Good Enough for Me.” “I am the Best.” “No One Can Even Compare to Me.”
I have Personally Heard people say All of these Sayings Many times, or some Variation of them. I have heard them said on TV and in the Movies too.
Lousy, Toxic, Spouses Like I have Described. They are Especially Heinous Because in Almost Every Case their Spouse was already in the Career They Despised before they Were Even Married.
The Highest Suicide Rates are for Men and Women in these Occupations:
The United States Military, The Police Department, The Fire Department, and Health Care Workers.
These Careers are All Dangerous, Hard, Demanding Jobs Both Physically and Mentally. This type of Work Life makes These People Misunderstood, Isolated, Alone. With Husbands, Wives, Their Personal Relationships Abandoning them while they are Actively in these Relationships.
There is Nothing More Alone than being in a Relationship with Someone who Hates You and Makes Sure 24/7 that You Know They Hate You.
These People are Public Frauds, Hypocrites because in Public they Pretend to Love You, to Care about You, to Be Proud of You.
After You are Gone:
By Divorce. By Breaking Up for Good. By Death. By Suicide. They then Attack You Publicly Everywhere They Go on social media to Attack You. They are Narcissist’s They want the Sympathy They can get by Lying about You. By Making You Out to Be a Monster.
Most People Demand that They are the Center of Attention before God, Before Anyone or Anything Else.
People make themselves Idol’s:
Think about the show: America Idol / Shows like it. And Popular Reality Shows / YouTubbers. Wow!!! I have Always Hated the Title “American Idol”.
American Idol Attracts People’s Attention because they want to be an Idol. And they love to Idolize Celebrities. This is Biblical Idolatry.
Colossians 3:1 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 6 For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;
10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
Verse 5 …covetousness, which is idolatry:
Idolatry is also Covetousness:
The definition of Covetousness is: Strong Desire to have that which belongs to another. It is considered to be a Very Grievous Offense in Scripture. The Tenth Commandment Forbids Coveting anything that belongs to a Neighbor, including his: House, his Wife, his Servants, his Ox or Donkey, or Anything that Belongs to Him.
Covetousness is the Root of All Kinds of Sins.
Jesus gave us this Warning:
Luke 12:15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
When people Covet, they are saying what God has Blessed me with is Not Good Enough For Me. I understand why this makes God Jealous.
Exodus 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose nameisJealous,isa jealous God:
The 2nd Commandment:
Exodus 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Exodus 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them:
Nor Serve Them??? How do you serve statues? Obviously, an Idol is much more than statues.
The Entire Passage and More Biblical Examples of Idolatry:
Exodus 20:1 And God spake all these words, saying, 2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. 7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. 8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. 12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. 13 Thou shalt not kill. 14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 15 Thou shalt not steal. 16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. 17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s. 18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. 21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. 22 And the Lord said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. 23 Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold. 24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. 25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it. 26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.
Below Jesus is Explaining About Fake Counterfeit Christians / Christianity, People who Idolize themselves. He Teaches What Idolatry is:
Matthew 6:16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. 19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! 24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Idolatry in the New Testament:
1st John 5:17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death. 18 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. 19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness. 20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.
How the Apostle Paul Dealt with Idolatry:
Acts 19:21 After these things were ended, Paul purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome. 22 So he sent into Macedonia two of them that ministered unto him, Timotheus and Erastus; but he himself stayed in Asia for a season. 23 And the same time there arose no small stir about that way. 24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, which made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto the craftsmen; 25 Whom he called together with the workmen of like occupation, and said, Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our wealth. 26 Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no gods, which are made with hands: 27 So that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth. 28 And when they heard these sayings, they were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians. 29 And the whole city was filled with confusion: and having caught Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul’s companions in travel, they rushed with one accord into the theatre. 30 And when Paul would have entered in unto the people, the disciples suffered him not. 31 And certain of the chief of Asia, which were his friends, sent unto him, desiring him that he would not adventure himself into the theatre. 32 Some therefore cried one thing, and some another: for the assembly was confused; and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together. 33 And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander beckoned with the hand, and would have made his defence unto the people. 34 But when they knew that he was a Jew, all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians. 35 And when the townclerk had appeased the people, he said, Ye men of Ephesus, what man is there that knoweth not how that the city of the Ephesians is a worshipper of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Jupiter? 36 Seeing then that these things cannot be spoken against, ye ought to be quiet, and to do nothing rashly. 37 For ye have brought hither these men, which are neither robbers of churches, nor yet blasphemers of your goddess. 38 Wherefore if Demetrius, and the craftsmen which are with him, have a matter against any man, the law is open, and there are deputies: let them implead one another. 39 But if ye enquire any thing concerning other matters, it shall be determined in a lawful assembly. 40 For we are in danger to be called in question for this day’s uproar, there being no cause whereby we may give an account of this concourse. 41 And when he had thus spoken, he dismissed the assembly.
The Bible is Clear about the Sin of Idolatry:
Remember Anything that You Put Before Your Love of Jesus: God, is Idolatry in your Life. Idolatry can be: Sports, TV, Movies, Music, Celebrities, Money, Wealth, Yourself, etc…
Beware of Idolatry: The Worshiping of Idols, Anything You Elevate in Your Life Above or Equal to Jesus.
It should be Easy, Only Natural for Christians to put Jesus’ 1st in their Lives. I mean, All Jesus Did was Suffer, Bleed, Die, Sacrifice Himself on the Cross to Pay the Penalty For All Of Our Sins.
Jesus Loves you. Please share the Gospel with everyone you know. If you are not Saved, please Ask Jesus to Save you right now.
The Gospel:
1st Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
If You Believe the Gospel Only for Salvation than You Have Believed on Jesus Only to Save You:
1st John 5:7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.
11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
