Daily Devotional for Wednesday, October 26 

The Emptiness of Idolatry

The question has been asked, “What other gods could we have besides the Lord?” The answer to that question is plenty. Israel had turned to the gods of the Canaanites. They worshiped Baal whose worship included a rampage of gluttony, drunkenness and ritual prostitution. Today, we have similar gods that pull us away from the one true God. Some of these gods are sex, money and gluttony. Another enslaving trio may be identified as pleasure, possessions and position. John describes these sins for us in 1 John 2:16, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” God said, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). 

Idolatry today may not look like statues and places of worship to false gods. But, make no mistake, idolatry is very real for Christians. We place worldly possessions and pursuits ahead of devotion to God and call it purpose. We place recreational activities above Sunday worship and call it Sabbath. We place personal entertainment above personal sanctification and call it moderation. Whatever our vice may be, we should not fool ourselves into thinking that idolatry no longer exists. 

The great tragedy of idolatry is the emptiness of every pursuit. As empty as a carved tree hollowed out for worship, so is the pursuit of every earthly replacement of our devotion to God. 

REFLECTION: Every idolatrous pursuit in this world will leave you empty. God alone can satisfy the longings of our soul.

Steven Ridings