“Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:21
He peered from underneath the brim of his weathered brown fedora as he slowly reached for the small gold figure. Its surface gleamed in the thin beams of light that escaped from the fissures lining the darkness of the cave walls. He approached carefully, already anxious from the deadly traps that had hindered his entrance. Assuming there was yet one trap left, he weighed out the sand in his small leather satchel, hoping to offset the weight of the figure. He eased the statuette off its base and slid the bag of sand in its place, the move was as fast as human reflex could reproduce. A small sigh slid from his lips as he alertly listened for ancient gears, pulleys, or any other sound that could bring about his immediate death. Nothing. He exhaled; he was home free. And then the world proceeded to crumble around him.
Surely almost everybody knows this cinematically masterful scene, yes? The opening of Raiders of the Lost Ark begins not only the first adventure of the world’s most famous archaeologist, Indiana Jones, but four additional adventures as the franchise grew. But at the center of this iconic scene, lies an idol. And one I think we all easily drift to when we think of the word or term ‘idol’ used in God’s Word. An idol to us is some strange, foreign, gold or silver statue that uneducated heathens bow down to as they worship an insignificant figure, all the while blatantly violating the first commandment of God. (Exodus 20:3) But what if I were to tell you that the lives we live today are jam packed with more idols than all the Indiana Jones movies combined?
My favorite definition of an idol is, “anything that creates distance between you and God.” Yes, you read that right, anything. And at the core of our idolatry lies one foundational concept…time. You see, all relationships at their core live and die at the hands of the clock. The more time you spend with someone, the more the relationship grows. And the opposite rings just as true. If I wanted to greatly damage or even destroy my relationship with Margie, I would simply stop spending time with her, and we would inevitably drift apart. As my wise mother used to tell me, “Dan, the most valuable thing you can give somebody is your time.” True indeed Mom.
So, as we consider John’s powerful verse above that closes the entire book of 1 John, we must delve deeper into its use and purpose. The book of 1 John is a jewel adorning the crown of the New Testament. Its lofty topics include, love, light, truth, and the power and necessity of abiding (living) in Christ. Yet to close one of the most theologically practical and profound books in the entire New Testament, John utters these 6 little words to wrap it all up.
“Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:21
You see, John’s Holy Spirt inspired words knew the true problem with his readers…they were human. And at their base, all humans are in rebellion against God. We are always seeking something else to worship instead of the one, true Almighty God. (here I cite the entire Old Testament as my reference)
I’d like for us to combine the above-mentioned definition of idolatry with the concept of time to come to a better understanding of what can constitute an idol in our lives. “Anything we spend abundant time on that creates distance between us and God, thereby affecting the health of our relationship with Him.” And just what are some of the idols in our lives? I think you’ll be surprised. And maybe even offended.
1) Yourself. We have an innate ability to elevate ourselves over every single other person in our lives, and on this planet. We are the most important, we deserve the most, we have the best ideas, we are the center of it all. This deceptive self-love (read self-worship) is rooted in pride and was the fuel for the fall in the garden of Eden. We can and will worship ourselves unless we sacrificially place God on the throne of our hearts, purposefully and intentionally removing ourselves first.
2) Relationships and family. Yes, family can become idols in your life if they are granted more time and importance than Almighty God. Sure, the kids need time, but where do they truly sit within your heart? Are they the single most important thing in your life, eclipsing all, including God? I have seen many children sitting atop the altar of their parent’s hearts, just like Indy’s little statue. And as far as relationships, we have a nasty tendency to elevate the love of our life to paramount levels. Be careful, family and relationships are claimed as good, normal, and even honorable in our society today, but loved ones can create great distance between a child of God and their Heavenly Father.
3) Stuff. Man, do we love our stuff. Houses, cars, clothes, boats, motorcycles, electronic gadgets, shoes, jewelry, watches, furniture, and on and on. This list could extend into volumes that could fill the now extinct library of Alexandria. We work hard to buy stuff we don’t need, with money we don’t have, to impress people we don’t know. Our stuff is fueled by our pride to appear as something we desire to be. And we can easily spend more time with our stuff than we do with our Creator. I mean, you financed that boat for 6 years, you need to use it every single weekend, right?
4) The pursuit of money. How are you gonna get the above stuff if you can’t buy it first? And here the rat race of the human race is run. The mad dash to make a bunch of money to buy the stuff that will elevate our image and make us happy. Between the 50-60 hours a week we spend to make all the money to buy all the stuff and then the additional 15-20 hours a week we spend to use all the stuff we bought, is it any wonder that our consumeristic, consumption-based society is drifting away from God? There’s simply no time left for Him.
5) Your smart phone. Did you know that the average person today spends 3 hours and 15 minutes on their phone every day? What at first was thought to be one of biggest societal advances in history, allowing individuals to connect anywhere anytime, is quickly being seen as the opposite as it is actually drawing people into seclusion, not society. Take a very careful accounting, where are you going the most…your phone or the throne.
Folks, the formula is simple, where you spend your time, your heart will follow. The dog you feed the most will be the biggest. However, the idols in your life will be easy to spot, just jot down how you are spending your time every day. And then compare that list with the time you spend with the Lord. You see, just as with any relationship, time lies at the core. God desires quality time with you, He made you, He loves you, He wants to be with you, He desires (and deserves) your worship and praise. Even Jesus knew the importance of spending quiet time alone with the Father as He walked this earth in human form:
“And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed.” Mark 1:35
“But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray.” Luke 5:16
“In these days He went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God.” Luke 6:12
“He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed” Luke 22:41
Even during a short three-year ministry that would save the world from its sin, Jesus knew the importance of keeping the main thing the main thing…quiet time with the Father. I encourage you to perform a careful accounting today, not of your finances, but of your time. Reduce the time spent on idols in your life and pour that time back into quiet, still time with Christ. And in doing so, strengthen the only relationship on this planet that will see your joy and gladness made complete to overflowing.
Bendiciones a ustedes ~ Dan
“If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. I have told you these things, that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy and gladness may be of full measure and complete and overflowing.” John 15:7, 11 AMP
