Jeremiah 10 compares the greatness of God to the inability of idols
Idolatry was one of the great sins of God’s people
Through Jeremiah, God reminded them of what the idols could not do – not even speak or talk
“They are upright, like a palm tree,
And they cannot speak;
They must be carried,
Because they cannot go by themselves.
Do not be afraid of them,
For they cannot do evil,
Nor can they do any good.” (Jeremiah 10:5)
The idol as an object created, vs God as the Creator.
He has established the world by His wisdom,
And has stretched out the heavens at His discretion.
When He utters His voice,
There is a multitude of waters in the heavens:
“And He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
He brings the wind out of His treasuries.” (Jeremiah 10:12-13)
Why worship the created when we can worship the Creator Himself?
Idolatry: the worship of an idol—an object of worship representing a god; an extreme admiration for something or someone; whatever comes between us and God is our idol
Covetousness
Celebrity-chasing / people as an idol
Money
Covetousness is idolatry (Colossians 3:5), and listed as one of the reasons why the wrath of God will come (Colossians 3:6)
Very serious: a covetous person has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ (Ephesians 5:5)
Definition of covetousness: “having or showing a great desire to possess something belonging to someone else”
Perhaps this form of idolatry is one of the greatest to plague us in this hyperconnected age
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:17)
So many “neighbours” now – people whom we see online… so many different lifestyles
Being on social media has almost become a fact of life, with many of our messaging apps becoming entwined with features that allow us to share more about our lives
Not a bad thing in itself – it’s just accelerated the ease with which we can compare ourselves with others and urges us into wanting more things
Celebrity-chasing
Solomon chasing royalty – we don’t know if they were necessarily like celebrities today but having marriage as that connection was a way for him to secure positive affiliation and fame for himself too
We may enjoy the camaraderie that comes with banding with fellow admirers; enjoy the attention we get from the celebrity when they respond to us
Sometimes almost a religious fervour? We don’t desire God as much as that individual
Modelling our lifestyle after this person. Surrender and submission to whatever is said.
Parasocial relationship with this idol… When they do not personally know us. But we do not think so much about the deep communion with God that He promises us when we draw near to Him.
Wealth
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24)
Therefore… Do not worry. Seek God first and His righteousness, and He will give us everything we need.
