These Dumb Idols

Good morning on this Thursday! Paul tells us: "You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led." (1 Corinthians 12:2) The usual thing to start this message would be to list a bunch of activities and call them idol worship, and then list a bunch of people or devices and call them modern idols. In that listing, I might of course step on this person's hobby, and that person's job. An idol is of course anything we place before God or trust in first before we come to our Lord. For one it may be this thing, but for another that thing is merely an enjoyable hobby. Yes, we have run into sects who say that all hobbies are idolatrous and that every moment should be spent in drudgery and worship of God; often in their pious zeal making it difficult to tell which activity is which. Jesus gave us a better example: children.

But what does this example mean? We seem to lose the knowledge of becoming child-like, without growing up childish, and yet mature at the same time into responsible, working adults. Perhaps we never had that knowledge. Maybe, such a thing is not possible until Jesus makes us into what He desires. Birds would be a lot more useful in the garden if they pulled up and ate weeds, but they don't. Cats would be great around the house if they ran the vacuum once in a while, but they hide from it. We may not be able to become as little children without falling into the horrors of adult childishness, unless we first come to Jesus and surrender to Him. Attempting to avoid dumb idols without the Spirit of Christ in us might be right up there with wishing for weed-pulling birds and house-cleaning cats. Salvation is the start of our journey with Jesus. We have much to learn and a ways to grow in Christ!

God's love and grace to you,
Bucky