For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Matthew 24:24
This week we have been talking a lot about idols or false gods. Many Christians do not realize that they have created false gods in their lives. False gods can look like many different things and two of those are people and otherwise “good things” in our lives.
What Would You Do For Love?
When we love people more than God and seek their love or approval in return, above anything else, then we have made them an idol in our hearts. When we place expectations on human beings to meet our needs and desires, we are setting ourselves up for heartache and setting them up for failure. We are asking them to do something that only God can do for us. When we make other people our idols, we focus on them, follow them, we are consumed by the thought of them, and we are expecting them to fulfill us. We are expecting them to fill the hole in our hearts that only God can fill and those are pretty big shoes to fill. It happens in relationships with people – romantic relationships and friendships. It happens in social media. We can become obsessed with a speaker, author, or pubic figure. We listen to every live video, we buy every book, we follow them on every social media platform, and often we invest in everything they are selling, possibly believing that somehow, this person is going to change my life. In romantic relationships we can fall into the trap of expecting the other person to make us happy or meet all our needs, so we feel loved and secure always. The only place we should be seeking security is in the only One True God because He is the only one who will never leave us or forsake us. Humans let us down – because they are human! And the changes we are seeking in our lives can only come through the strength of Jesus Christ in our lives. When our desires for other people, or what we believe they can give us are obsessive and unreasonable, that’s a clue that we have made them an idol in our hearts.
When we love people more than God and seek their love or approval in return, above anything else, then we have made them an idol in our hearts. When we place expectations on human beings to meet our needs and desires, we are setting ourselves up for heartache and setting them up for failure. We are asking them to do something that only God can do for us. When we make other people our idols, we focus on them, follow them, we are consumed by the thought of them, and we are expecting them to fulfill us. We are expecting them to fill the hole in our hearts that only God can fill and those are pretty big shoes to fill. It happens in relationships with people – romantic relationships and friendships. It happens in social media. We can become obsessed with a speaker, author, or pubic figure. We listen to every live video, we buy every book, we follow them on every social media platform, and often we invest in everything they are selling, possibly believing that somehow, this person is going to change my life. In romantic relationships we can fall into the trap of expecting the other person to make us happy or meet all our needs, so we feel loved and secure always. The only place we should be seeking security is in the only One True God because He is the only one who will never leave us or forsake us. Humans let us down – because they are human! And the changes we are seeking in our lives can only come through the strength of Jesus Christ in our lives. When our desires for other people, or what we believe they can give us are obsessive and unreasonable, that’s a clue that we have made them an idol in our hearts.
Good Things
It doesn’t have to be something bad or evil to become an idol in our lives. Anything we elevate above God or set our hearts on besides Him becomes an idol in our hearts. Can you really love the Bible and Bible study groups and church too much? If you love it more than you love God, then yes. It seems that when we are involved in church activities then we feel we are serving and showing our love for God – and we are. But it can become more than that if we aren’t careful.
It doesn’t have to be something bad or evil to become an idol in our lives. Anything we elevate above God or set our hearts on besides Him becomes an idol in our hearts. Can you really love the Bible and Bible study groups and church too much? If you love it more than you love God, then yes. It seems that when we are involved in church activities then we feel we are serving and showing our love for God – and we are. But it can become more than that if we aren’t careful.
When we look to people to fix our circumstances and make us feel good, we will be disappointed, and never satisfied or fulfilled. When we make God the God of our hearts and lives, and depend on Him for all our needs, we find peace.
Scripture to Claim:
And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. John 17:3
