Read: Revelation 2:18-29
In one sense it is easy to avoid idolatry today because Christians don't worship images or symbols of God. Sure, churches are full of crosses and there are plenty of statues, paintings, relics, icons, stained glass windows and so on, but these objects aren't worshipped. Instead, they are revered. Deeply admired, these works of art remind us of holy lives well lived.
Where idolatry is a danger in modern time is when activities substituted for worship. Being side-tracked is so easy when, instead of going to church, we are tempted to do other stuff on Sunday. How easy is it to go shopping or attend a child’s birthday party or wash the car or whatever? Has following a favourite sporting team become an all-consuming passion.
Idolatry is the practice of worshipping idols. Traditionally this meant venerating an image, or a symbol, of a god during worship. Today we deeply admire sports stars, talented singers and actors, and so on. The cult of celebrity is all powerful. Pictures of these beautiful creatures fill the media. We like them of Facebook and follow them on Twitter.
And yet the Bible warns against such adoration. Consider the Second Command given to Moses by God: "You shall not make for yourself an idol". Ironically, this was the one rule the Israelites broke straight away. As Moses has been away for too long they started to worship a Golden Calf. If it was today, they'd probably have spent lots of time on goldencalf.com.
As the Jewish religion developed, no images of God where created for use in worship. Even in the Temple, which was built in Jerusalem, there was no statue of Him. The Roman historian Josephus said when Pompey, the Roman leader, went into the holiest part of the Temple, he didn’t find an idol.
Jesus said nothing about idolatry when he was on Earth. However, after his resurrection he did condemn the church at Thyatira for eating food that had been dedicated to idols. It seems like they continued the practice of blessed meals in the name of an ancient deity. In doing this they were following the lead of a local celebrity called Jezebel.
Food is a powerful symbol, as the sacrament of the bread and the wine known as communion testifies. Of this I have very little experience because my denomination makes no use of this and I'm uncomfortable even having bread rolls and grape juice at Easter. Nonetheless many Christians use this practice to draw closer to God.
Therefore, it is easy to conclude, the use of symbols in worship is fine. Only when these symbols are worshipped is there a problem. Such worship can take different forms. For example, fandom is a type of worship, as is substituting a world activity for a religious one. So you need to make sure you don’t fall into this trap.
Prayer: Jesus. Help me to see if anything I do could be considered to be idolatry and help me to restore the right balance in my life. Amen.
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