Is Idolatry Still Around Today?
21Although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to impurity for the degrading of their bodies among themselves. 25They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Romans 1:21-25 (NIV) ‘impurity‘ and ‘among themselves‘ would be a better translation (from ESV)
This section of Romans 1:18-32 discussed how ‘godlessness’ leads to ‘wickedness’. Godlessness is about idolatry and wickedness is about morality.
In Romans 1:24-25, Paul exposes the heart of idolatry, marking it as the beginning of a descent into ‘wickedness.’ This passage highlights not only the act of idolatry but also its consequences, revealing a profound truth: redirecting our deepest affections and worship from the Creator to the creation leads us into a spiral of sin and degradation.
Idolatry is about what we value most. Paul describes it as exchanging the truth of God for a lie, worshipping and serving created things rather than the Creator. This exchange manifests in various forms of idolatry that might not be as overt as bowing to statues but are equally destructive.
In modern society, the pursuit of material wealth often takes precedence over everything else. When accumulating money or possessions becomes our primary goal, it usurps God’s place in our hearts. We see this in the lives of those who sacrifice relationships, integrity, and even their health in the relentless pursuit of wealth.
Similarly, an excessive emphasis on personal achievement, career advancement, and social status can become idolatrous when our identity and worth are derived from our accomplishments rather than our relationship with God. The consequences of this misplaced focus are evident in the burnout, anxiety, and emptiness that often accompany the single-minded pursuit of success.
Placing relationships at the center of our lives to the point where they dictate our happiness and decisions is another form of idolatry. When we expect another person to fulfill the deep needs only God can satisfy, we set ourselves up for disappointment and further estrangement from Him. Codependent relationships, where personal boundaries and spiritual growth are sacrificed on the altar of human connection, illustrate the pitfalls of this form of idolatry.
In an age of instant gratification, the pursuit of pleasure through entertainment, leisure, and sensual pleasures can easily become our primary focus. The destructive potential of this idolatry is apparent in addiction, where the pursuit of pleasure consumes one’s life, leading to broken relationships, financial ruin, and spiritual bankruptcy.
The spiral into ‘wickedness’ detailed in Romans 1:24-25 begins with the heart’s idolatry—choosing creation over the Creator. This choice leads to a perversion of God’s design for human flourishing and opens the door to a multitude of sins that mar our relationship with Him and others. Recognizing and repenting from our personal idols is the first step towards reversing this spiral, realigning our hearts and lives with God’s will. As we navigate daily life, let us be vigilant of the subtle ways idolatry can manifest, always striving to place God at the center of everything we do.
Consider the subtle ways idolatry can manifest in daily life. How can you cultivate a greater awareness of these tendencies and proactively guard against them?
I would say that the most obvious way that idolatry has manifested in my daily life would be the pursuit of pleasure in my years of active alcoholism/addiction. However, there are certainly more subtle ways in which it has crept into my life. One of these would be through relationships, in which, in the more recent past, I have, as our reading states, “expected another person to fulfill the deep needs only God can satisfy, setting myself up for disappointment and further estrangement from Him.” One way I have cultivated a greater awareness of these tendencies and proactively guarded against them in a practical sense would be through the twelve steps and practicing of the principles of the program of Alcoholics Anonymous. The constant and consistent self examination along with the active working out of my own faith have served to develop a pattern of life that helps me to continually “recognize and repent from personal idols,” and “realign my heart and life with God’s will.” It is certainly a process, and, as Roger says, it’s “progress, not perfection,” but it has certainly helped me to remain vigilant against the many subtle ways that idolatry can manifest in my life, and is a very real, practical way in which I can strive to keep God at the center of everything I do😊
Idolatry comes in so many forms that it is hard to know when you fell into the trap but I think just being aware of the possible ways and be constantly on guard and be aware is how to guard against it. I have been studying God’s Words for years now but it wasn’t until the last 6 months when I feel like I am actually absorbing His words and as become more aware of His presence, I pay attention to the Spirit in me and I am more aware now of the constant war and internal conflict that is the Spirit voice vs my own sinful desires and the opposition pushing me. I am guarded and I’m resisting these warring desires and more often now I at least recognize that it is happening. I would resist for a time and sometime I am successful but other times I would fail again – it’s not like I have an excuse to say that I don’t know that I failed like before when I was just ignorant of my desires – now I know that I’m disobeying but at time I still “choose” to do it. I have no excuse in those times – I would intentionally disobey even as I beg God for forgiveness and each time I feel the Father presence and I imagine Him sighing but He is patience and I feel Him still guarding over me because I still feel the struggle. He never gave up on me and I hope that I get better and better at resisting the temptation to give in to my desires. As we’ve said often, the mind and spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.
Lord, I know You are always with me and always helping me in this constant inner battle. I know it is my choice to disobey and yet I feel You are always willing to forgive and always there to help me to continue the battle another day. I feel that studying Your Words is what got me to this point where I’m aware of the battle and I know that being deep in Your Words every day and keeping my mine and heart on You is what is allowing me to continue this struggle and to armor me with Your strength and only keeping my eyes on You can I hope to win more than I lose – I don’t know if I will always win all the time but I know You are always there to help me.