The False Gods of this World
by Jason Lovelace
Key Scripture:
Exodus 20:3-6 –
Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any
graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in
the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow
down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth
generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that
love me, and keep my commandments.
II Kings 10:39 – Howbeit, form the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden
calves that were in Bethel, and that were in Dan.
Psalm 135:15-18 – The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the
work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but
they see not; They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in
their mouths. They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that
trusteth in them.
Romans 1:21-26,28-29 – Because that, when they knew God, they
glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their
imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves wise,
they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image
made like unto corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and
creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the
lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who
changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more
than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause, God gave them up
unto vile affections…And even as they did not like to retain God in their
knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are
not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness…
I Corinthians 10:19-21 –What say I then? that the idol is anything, or
that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is anything? But I say, that the
things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God:
and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the
cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s
table, and of the table of devils.
Are there false gods and/or idols in today’s world? When you hear the
word idol, what comes to your mind? When someone talks about
false gods, what do you think of? Do you think that people in today’s
post-modern, information-age world still worship and bow to false gods? If so,
what are today’s, modern false gods and idols? Are they people? Are they places?
Are they things? Can an idol or a false god be something abstract? What do you
think of idols and false gods in today’s 21st Century world?
Just What Is a False God???
A false god is any god other than God as described in the Bible. This god can be
just about anything, from a statue to money to a living person. Anything that is
given the highest worship of a person is a false god. Many religions describe
many different gods. Buddhism has Buddha and other gods; Islam has Allah;
Hinduism has 300 million different gods from which to choose; and while
Judaism’s god seems very similar to the Biblical version, Judaism’s god is one
that requires little faith and lots of works. Any god that is different than God
Himself is a false god, and there are many in the world today. The list and
descriptions of false gods that pervade the world today are nearly endless. As
mentioned above, religions of this world follow false gods, but there are also
false gods that have little to nothing to do with an organized religion. Money
is one of these. There are more millionaires in the world today than there have
been in the previous century combined. Just one hundred years ago, John David
Rockefeller was the richest man in the world, his assets at the time of his
death in 1933 amounting to around $ 2 billion. Things have definitely changed
since then! In fact, according to Forbes Magazine, the number of
billionaires in world for the year 2007 (946) is nearly double that of just
three years prior, (588 in 2004). Money has always been a false god that people
chase after. Power and fame are also false gods of this post-modern era. There
are now more CEOs, executives, and celebrities than there were at any time in
history combined. Another false god of this information-age is materialism. If
the neighbors have the latest fashion or techie toy, then it seems we just have
to have them, too, and better. More and more advertisements in media today are
aimed at material desires in one way or another. Further is the growing trend of
credit card debt, which, in the technologically advanced nations especially, has
skyrocketed in the last 30 years alone. More people are paying down debt from
credit cards than ever before. The race to be better than the Jones’s is heating
up to meltdown proportions. Sex, as well, is another god of this world that,
though having been around for a long time, is more and more popular than ever.
Cases of extra-marital affairs, single mothers, couples living together before
marriage, abortions, sexually transmitted diseases, people having multiple sex
partners, people choosing homosexuality, and the break-up of the family are all
growing at alarming – even astounding – rates and percentages. As with
materialism, advertisements in today’s media outlets have focused more and more
towards the sensual, these ads directed at younger and younger ages as well. As
you can see, false gods of this day and age abound, and it seems that they are
everywhere, each calling for people’s allegiance and worship. However, really
all of these are basically lesser deities of the most popular false god…
Lookin’ Out for #1!
The most popular false god in the world today is not money, power, fame,
materialism, nor sex (though these are all vying hotly for second place); the
most popular false god in the world today is self. The false god of self can be
found in just about every corner of the world, every society, and every culture,
and it knows no bounds. Even in the Church of Jesus Christ, the false god of
self often raises its ugly head. If we take a serious look at our post-modern,
information-age world, we can easily see that selfishness and satisfying self is
the most popular false god in the world today. In fact, self has been the most
popular god ever since the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve first sinned,
giving in the temptation to “…be as gods…” (see Genesis 3:5). Ever since that
day, self has been on the throne of peoples’ lives, replacing God, and ruling
the life of the individual with dictatorial and tyrannical power. If one were to
look at the majority of crimes today, it would be easy to see that all of these
crimes were undertaken to please the false god of self in one way or another.
The Bible has interesting names for self. Regularly in the Bible, we see the
false god of self called the inner man, the old man, the carnal
nature, and (possibly the most popular name) the flesh. Whatever the
name, the false god of self is ultimately sinful, destructive, and controlled by
someone else.
If You’re Not Serving God, You’re Serving……
As the verses from 1st Corinthians state, with a lot of clarity, anyone who
chooses to follow the false god of self, or any of its lesser forms, is really
serving the devil. The Bible makes no bones about the truth that to serve a
false god or an idol is to follow the devil, and to be under his control. Just
as the false god of self takes many forms, so too does the devil. The devil is
so clever in his disguises that he can even take on the form of something that
looks good and godly (see 2nd Corinthians 11:13-15). In fact, so convincing is
the devil in his “good” form that, Jesus states even his followers would be
fooled (see Mark 13:22). Just as the false god of self has many, many different
names in the Bible, so, too, does the devil. In fact, many of the names of the
devil are also the names of many of the false gods and idols of the ancient
world. The Canaanite god Baal – worshipped in
Israel
by apostate Jews and Israel’s
neighbors – was also called Baal-zebub, a satanic name. Such is the same
today for anyone who worships a false god. The devil and his fallen angels are
really behind every false god, and when it is brought into someone’s life and
home, disaster is sure to strike. Ultimately, when someone is giving into self
in one form or another, that person is really worshipping the devil.
The Danger of Idolatry and Serving False Gods.
The Bible states very clearly the consequences for serving a false god, and the
world today is seeing just the tip of the iceberg with regards to them. In the
Books of Exodus and Deuteronomy, God states clearly that to worship a false god
or an idol is to condemn not only the person him/herself, but also that person’s
children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. The main reason for the
Israelites under Moses and Joshua destroying the Canaanites was not because God
was capricious and hated them, but mostly because the Canaanites – despite
recognizing who the Israelites’ God was – were unrepentant idolaters, who’d
followed the pattern written of by the Apostle Paul in Romans 1:21-32 to the
letter. We can see the same kind of unrepentant behavior in the fruits of modern
idolatry in today’s world. Along with the problems mentioned above that we are
seeing with the worship of the various false gods of today’s world, worldwide
alcoholism, drug use and abuse, suicide, violent crime, war, and terrorism are
also on the rise. With these problems come mental and emotional illness,
depression, despair, hopelessness, and fear of the future. All of these have
sharply risen worldwide for the last few decades, and the Bible states that it
will only get worse before it gets better. However, these physical, earthly,
terrestrial problems are just a scratch compared to the eternal consequences of
serving false gods. The Bible states quite clearly that no idolater will ever
enter into heaven (1st Corinthians 10:21, Ephesians 5:5, Revelation 21:27). So
on top of having a varied number of physical, earthly problems, the unrepentant
idolater will also have an eternity of pain and torment, forever completely
devoid of the presence of God. Further, unless the children, grandchildren, and
great-grandchildren also repent, the unrepentant idolater condemns his or her
children to a life of problems and Godly disfavour as well. Basically, serving a
false god of this world, serving self, and, ultimately, serving the devil, just
isn’t worth it.
False gods Really Do Not help…
Psalm 115 and 135 both tell the tale: false gods, idols really do not help
anyone. Yes, a follower of a false god may have times of peace, times of
prosperity, may have times of victory, just as the followers of the false gods
and idols in Ancient Israel had some victories in battle, war, and economically.
The Kingdoms of both King Omri and King Jeroboam II of the Northern Kingdom of
Israel were two of the most prosperous in the history of the Northern Kingdom of
Israel, following her break-away from Judah after the death of King Solomon.
Both Assyrian and Babylonian Historical writings declare that both of these
kings of Israel
were very powerful, and exerted much influence over the Ancient Middle East.
However, in the end, the Idolatry that these two kings led and encouraged
brought about the destruction of Israel in 722 BC, just under 200 years
following her breakaway under King Jeroboam I. the Southern Kingdom of Judah, as
well, had some success under idolatrous kings, but, just as with the Northern
Kingdom, because of idolatry, Judah was carried into captivity in Babylon in the
500s BC. The same is said for idolatry today. People who follow false gods and
serve idols will see some success…but ultimately, that success will be
short-lived. Egypt
in ancient times was one of the most idolatrous nations on the face of the
earth, and exerted much power for centuries in the Ancient Middle East. However,
today, Egypt
is almost a third world nation, and hasn’t been a world-wide power since her
collapse in Ancient times. The same can be said for
Persia,
Greece, Rome, and every other nation that has given in
to idolatry and the worship of false gods. In modern times, we are seeing the
same patterns of rise and fall happening in countries and nations that have
replaced God with something other. The United States of America – blessed
by God over her short, two centuries plus of history and national life – is
quickly becoming a place of idolatry, from the worship of the famous and
celebrated to money, power, and self-centeredness. None of these false gods,
when tough times come, will be around to save, to help, and to rebuild when
disaster strikes. Just as the ancient world suffered when false gods were
worshipped, so now will false gods of this day and age be found wanting. False
gods and idols will not help, and do not offer comfort, when the tough times
come.
Conclusion – Are You Serving a false god of This World? Are You Worshipping
an Idol?
If the answers to these questions are in the affirmative, then only trouble will
come for you, and the tragic part of this is, serving an idol will hurt your
children, your descendants. Many of the problems being experienced in the
modern, technologically advanced nations in the world today with regards to
children and disobedience, crime, sexual activity, and delinquency can be traced
to the fact that their parents have served a false god and an idol (usually
self). If you are serving a false god, you are placing yourself, and your
present and/or future children at grave risk. Turn from the false gods and idols
of this world, and turn to Jesus Christ. Only he can save and give you the
peace, assurance, and salvation you desire. Only Jesus can give you the
fulfillment in life, and the everlasting peace that your soul craves. You may
have peace for a time with your false god, but that peace will fade like dew
under a desert sun. Your idol will leave you just as surely as the idols of Rome, Greece,
and Egypt
left them. Turn to Jesus Christ today!!
Prayer – Father, there are many, many false gods in this world. There are
numerous idols and man-made things clamoring for our attention. We pray, Father,
for release form the false gods of this world for anyone who is seeking escape.
Money, sex, power, material wealth, and lust and selfishness can only last a
short time. Allah, Buddha, the Hindu gods, Shintoism, and the other false gods
of worldwide religion can only offer works and more works for the adherent. We
pray, Lord Jesus, that those who seek you will find you, just as you promise in
Matthew 7. We pray that many will come to know you through this message, through
this lesson! We pray this, and we bless thee, Lord, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Verse to Remember
Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.
—1st Corinthians 10:14