What a curious conclusion to the book of 1 John! John has spent five chapters writing of love, obedience and what it means to be a true follower of Christ only to conclude his book admonishing his readers to abstain from idolatry. Weren't his readers Christians??? Didn't his readers already have faith in the true God of Heaven and His Son Jesus? Why warn such people of the dangers of idolatry?
We don't often think ourselves susceptible to the sin of idolatry. We are quite secure in our monotheism; the belief in only one God. However, our actions are much more an indicator of what we believe than the profession of our mouths. Do our thoughts and actions indicate a bent toward polytheism (belief in multiple gods)? The answer to such a question is found in what it means to worship and whether we are worshipping anything or anyone other than the one true God.
To worship means to "ascribe worth" or "reverence" something. Naturally we find worth and value in a myriad of people and things. We value our family, friends and even institutions like our alma mater and the company for which we work. But, if we ascribe as much (or greater) worth to these people or things as we do to God we become polytheistic and idolators. If we are to be true to the one and only God, Jehovah, we must give no thing or person equal or greater worth than that which we ascribe to Him.
Often, it is good to value some person or institution in our life, but to worship anyone or anything other than God is not good! Worship is the lifting up of God to a place of primacy, honor and value above all else.
"You shall have no other gods before me." -- Exodus 20:3
Take some time this morning to pray and ask God if there is anything or anyone in your life whom you have put on equal footing with God. Let there be no idols, no other gods, in your life! There is only one God and His name is Jehovah! "Keep yourselves from idols."
James
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