QUOTE ON GOD THE FATHER

 

“GOD is the Almighty Father and the Creator of heaven and the earth! HE created us to worship Him and have personal relationship with Him. Knowing and loving GOD is the essence of life and the key to good success.”

 

• Ezra Aniebue

 

 

LESSON 2 ARTICLE II: GOD

Statement of Faith Article II

We believe there is one true GOD and He has revealed Himself as the eternally self-existent “I AM,” the Creator of heaven and earth and the Redeemer of humankind. He has further revealed Himself as embodying the principles of relationship and association as One GOD in Three Persons: FATHER, SON and HOLY SPIRIT. GOD is the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the Universe. GOD is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. To HIM we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience.

 

 

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES ON GOD THE FATHER

 

Read each of the Scripture verses cited. For your own benefit, on a separate paper, write notes and insights you receive from reading these verses and parallel them with the stated statement of faith.

 

• And GOD said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth (Genesis 1:26).

 

• And GOD said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And GOD said moreover unto Moses, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, the LORD GOD of your fathers, the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this  is my memorial unto all generations (Exodus 3:14-15).

 

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our GOD is one LORD (Deuteronomy 6:4).

 

Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me  there was no GOD formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour (Isaiah 43:10-11).

 

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the FATHER, and of the SON, and of the HOLY GHOST (Matthew 28:19).

 

And the HOLY GHOST descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased (Luke 3:22).

 

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the LORD, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8).

 

 

NOTES ON STATEMENT OF FAITH ARTICLE II

 

Theology is the study of sound doctrine about GOD. It is the learning of the right biblical thinking about GOD that leads to righteous living, and righteous leadership. It is a study that is based on the following premise:

 

Genesis 1:1 – GOD is Real and is the CREATOR of Heaven and earth

Psalm 24:1 – GOD did not only create the earth, HE owns every single person and everything on the earth.

 

John 17:1-3 – GOD can be known. The Bible admonishes us to know GOD both personally, and biblically – experientially and literally.

 

Hebrews 1:13; 2 Timothy 3:16; John 1:18; 2 Peter 3:17-18; Jeremiah 9:23-24 – GOD has revealed HIMSELF through JESUS CHRIST.

 

In discussing theology, it is important to realize that there are three kinds of theological studies:

Historical:

Is a study that addresses orthodox, and heretical doctrinal beliefs in different dispensations or historical time periods.

Systematic:

The epicenter of this approach is a study that focuses on the orderly arrangement of what the Bible teaches about GOD and His works.

Biblical:

Is a study that focuses on what all or a specific book of the Bible or writer teaches about GOD.

 

 

RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR WORLD VIEWS OF GOD:

 

Theism – There is one GOD who is both transcendent and immanent. The Creator, Owner and Ruler of the world.

 

Monotheism – One GOD exists who is separate from but involved with the universe.

 

Monism – There is one ultimate force at work in the universe

 

 

Atheism – There is no God

 

Deism – God created an orderly world to operate on its own.

 

Agnosticism – If there is a GOD, no one knows for certain.

 

Materialism – The natural laws at work in the world explains everything

 

Pantheism – GOD is everything and everything is GOD

 

Naturalism – Matter is all that exists and is best understood through science.

 

Nihilism – Objective truth and positive values are to be questioned and dismissed.

Nihilism is more of an attitude than a formal philosophy. The word nihilism is derived from the Latin word for “nothing.” It holds that all traditional values are baseless. In response to religion, it repudiates previously held morality and spiritual beliefs. When it is brought into politics, it favors the destruction of existing traditional social institutions as a means of making way for improvements.

 

Existentialism – Life has no objective meaning, so, significance must be subjectively created within.

 

 

 

VARIED BELIEFS

 

Many people have strong and adamant beliefs due to their family backgrounds and traditions. Others hold on to their perception of reality with strong convictions for various reasons. Why? The answer lies in one’s attempts to answer the following life’s questions:

 

• Whatis truth?
• WhoamIandwhy amIhere?
• WheredidIcomefromandhowhasmyenvironmentaffectedmymindset?
• Whatis thebasis for myvalues?
• Where do I see myself, five years from now, and where do I see myself inthefuture?
• Who are the most significant people in my life, and what did I learn from them,goodand bad?

 

THE BIBLE EMPHATICALLY STATES, THERE IS ONLY ONE TRUE GOD

 

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our GOD, the Lord is one!” (Deut. 6:4). The oneness of GOD is unique in a world where there is belief in many gods.

 

 

ETERNALLY SELF-EXISTENT

 

God has no beginning and no end. In fact, GOD is the beginning and the end (Rev 1:8). HE was before all things and exists after all is dead and gone.

 

“You are My witnesses,” says the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no GOD formed, Nor shall there be after Me. I, even I, am the Lord, And besides Me there is no savior. (Isa 43:10-11)

 

“I AM”:

 

And GOD said to Moses “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover, GOD said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord GOD of your fathers, the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.” (Exodus 3:14-15).

 

“I am who I am” is a translation of the Hebrew name of GOD “Yahweh” (In the King James Version it is rendered Jehovah, but the more accurate Hebrew rendering is Yahweh from the Hebrew consonants YHWH.

UNDERSTANDING THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

 

God is Omnipotent. That means He is all powerful. GOD is Omnipresent. That means He is everywhere present at all times. GOD is Omniscient. That means He is all-knowing. Relating to GOD’s omnipotence and omniscience is GOD’s transcendence. This means that GOD is above and beyond all. Yet GOD is also immanent. This means He is close and pervasive. This relates to His omnipresence.

 

THREE PERSONS IN ONE GOD: FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT

 

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt 28:19).

 

In the Old Testament, the Trinity is more implicit; in the New Testament, the Trinity is more explicit. In the very beginning in Genesis, GOD hints at His Tri- unity: “Then GOD said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our

likeness.” (Gen 1:26). This implies a plurality of persons. Further, the Hebrew word for GOD, “Elohim,” is plural but is used with singular verbs.

“And the HOLY SPIRIT descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, ‘You are My beloved Son; in You I am well

pleased.’” (Luke 3:22).

 

In this passage, we see the three Persons of the Trinity: Jesus, His Father saying “You are My beloved Son; and the Holy Spirit coming upon Him.

 

UNDERSTANDING THE TRINITY

 

Sometimes the Trinity is difficult to wrap our minds around. Very simply, Trinity means GOD is three-in-one—three persons in one GOD—GOD the FATHER, GOD the SON, and GOD the HOLY SPIRIT—all in one GOD, one essential being, yet each distinct. GOD the FATHER is not GOD the SON or GOD the HOLY SPIRIT, GOD the SON is not GOD the FATHER or GOD the HOLY SPIRIT, and GOD the HOLY SPIRIT is not GOD the FATHER or GOD the Son. Each has their own function or role.

 

There is a heresy known as “Modalism” which teaches that GOD changes modes, that GOD was the FATHER, then became the SON, then became the HOLY SPIRIT, rather than all three-in-one at the same time. There is another similar heresy known as “Jesus Only” which teaches that Jesus is the Father and is the Holy Spirit, failing to distinguish three-in-one. Human beings may not fully understand how GOD can be three and yet one, but that is what makes GOD, GOD. He is beyond human understanding. If we could fully comprehend Him, He would not be GOD. It is magnificent to realize that GOD is three-in-one, and see glimpses of the pattern of the Trinity throughout creation. For instance, St. Patrick taught the Trinity from the shamrock or three-leaf clover. There is the beauty of a three-fold chord in music. We as human beings were created in His image as triune beings— spirit, soul, and body. And the images and comparisons could go on-and-on.

 

John 4:21-24 GOD is a spirit, not limited by space or time.              

Luke 24:39 “a spirit does not have flesh and blood”

 

Acts 17:24-25,28-29 GOD is not made with hands or material. GOD created man; man did not invent GOD. Heb. 12:9 GOD is the “father of our spirits,” that eternal part of us that is not flesh and blood. GOD is Self-Existent

 

Acts 17:28 “for in Him we live and move and have our very being” John 1:1-4 in Him is life (John 14:6) Col. 1:15-17 He is the creator and sustainer of all things.

 

Psalm 33:8-9 He spoke and it was done; He commanded and it stood fast. GOD   is Infinite. GOD does not have the limitations of men. He is not limited by space or time. Time: 2 Pet. 3:8; Rev. 1:8; Psa. 90:2 (Eternal) Space: Psa. 139:7-12; Prov. 15:3; Matt. 28:20 (Omnipresent) GOD is Omniscient (All-knowing). GOD knows and understands all things about people, nature, animals and the universe. See Psalm 147:5; Isa. 46:10; Psa. 139:1-6. The eyes of the Lord are in every place keeping watch on the evil and the good (Prov. 15:3).

 

GOD is Omnipotent (All-powerful). With GOD, all things are possible (Mark 10:27); GOD can do all things (Job 40:2); and “nothing is too hard for Him” (Jer. 32:17).

 

GOD IS SUPREMELY HOLY

 

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts” (Isa. 6:3). It is impossible for GOD to lie (Heb. 6:18; Tit. 1:2). GOD cannot be tempted nor does He tempt any man with sin (James 1:13). GOD commands His children, “Be ye holy, for I am holy” (1 Pet.1:16). GOD’s eyes are too pure to approve sin (Habakkuk 1:13; cf. Isa. 59:1,2). It is GOD’s holiness that demands justice for sin. GOD is incapable of sin (Tit. 1:2; Heb. 4:15). GOD is Impartial, GOD does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right (Acts 10:34,35).

GOD IS SOVEREIGN LORD

 

GOD rules the nations, plants and uproots (Acts 17:26; Jer. 18:7-10). GOD now commands that all men everywhere repent (Acts 17:30). GOD is able to destroy our souls in hell (Matt. 10:28). At the end of the world GOD will judge each of us according to our works and according to His Word (John 12:48; Rev. 20:11-15). GOD is Unique.

 

There is but one GOD and there can be no other (Deut. 6:4-6). Man’s whole duty in life is to fear GOD and keep His commandments (Eccl. 12:13). Man-made Gods are forbidden because they never reflect the true grandeur and glory of the eternal GOD who does not live in temples made with hands (Acts 17:22-31).

 

 

EVANGELISM HANDBOOK:  GOD

 

Man’s problems begin when they do not acknowledge GOD as GOD or give thanks (Rom. 1:18-32). GOD is Unchangeable (Immutable) About Himself, GOD declares,

“I am the Lord, I do not change” (Mal. 3:6). GOD is not a man that He should lie or repent. “Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Num. 23:19; cf. 1 Sam. 15:29). In GOD, there is no variation; He does not change (James 1:17). 

 

GOD is Merciful. Christians are to be merciful, “just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36; Matt. 5:45). Even though men were foolish and disobedient, GOD’s kindness and love appeared in Christ Jesus. He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy (Tit. 3:3-7). GOD’s mercy can save the worst of sinners (1 Tim. 1:12-16). See also Deut. 4:31; Ex. 34:6; Psa. 116:5; 145:8,9; Luke15:11-24.

 

GOD is love, and one must know GOD to know love (1 John 4:7-11). We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). GOD demonstrated His love by giving His Son Jesus to die for our sins (John 3:16; Rom. 5:6-9). See also Eph. 2:4-7; Heb. 12:6-7; 1 John 3:1.

 

GOD is GOD. Whether men accept Him or approve of Him, He is still the one true and living GOD; and He cannot deny Himself (2 Tim. 2:11-13). 

 

 

 

 

 

     

 

SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

(NOTE FROM ANONYMOUS SOURCE)

NATURAL REVELATION

 

 

The source of all knowledge about GOD comes from GOD himself and this can be divided into two areas: natural revelation (i.e., the creation itself) and special revelation (primarily, GOD’s words recorded in the Bible and in the incarnation of Jesus Christ).

 

There are at least five passages of the Bible that speak of the natural revelation that GOD gives through his creation. The first is in Psalm 19. It reads: “The heavens declare the glory of GOD; the sky displays his handiwork. Day after day it speaks out; night after night it reveals his greatness. There is no actual speech or word, nor is its voice literally heard. Yet its voice echoes throughout the earth; its words carry to the distant horizon” (Ps 19:1-4). This passage says that, every day people can see the glory and magnificence of GOD. Everyone day and night 24-7 can understand the greatness of GOD.

 

The second passage occurs in Romans 1. It reads, “for the wrath of GOD is revealed from heaven against all un-Godliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth by their unrighteousness, because what can be known about GOD is plain to them, because GOD has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So people are without excuse” (Rom 1:18-20). Here, Paul states that another thing we can learn from creation is how powerful GOD is. A vaguer expression relates to the divine nature of GOD, which is seen as well.

 

Thirdly, in Matthew, Jesus makes a statement that relates to this topic. He states, “But

I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be like your Father in heaven, since he causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matt 5:44- 45). In arguing that disciples of Jesus need to love their enemies, Jesus mentions that the blessings of the sun and rain go to all people whether they are righteous or unrighteous. This would imply that GOD’s love toward all is seen in these blessings, which is sometimes referred to as common grace. In a similar passage, Paul addresses the topic of GOD’s goodness as witnessed in the blessings he gives to all people. Luke records the speech: “In past generations he allowed all the nations to go their own ways, yet he did not leave himself without a witness by doing good, by giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying you with food and your hearts with joy” (Acts 14:16-17). The last passage is from Genesis 1. “GOD created humankind in his own image, in the image of GOD he created them, male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27). Since GOD is a spirit and man is created in GOD’s image, there must be something about the immaterial nature of man that is reflected in GOD.

 

The question though is: what part of GOD’s image is there? Both GOD and man are personal, relational, moral, and rational. These seem to be some of the inferred characteristics that both GOD and man share.

 

So what can we understand about GOD through natural revelation? The following characteristics are evident: 1) GOD is glorious; 2) GOD is powerful; 3) GOD loves all; 4) GOD is good to all and; 5) GOD is a personal, relational, moral and rational being. One must also notice what is not understood though natural revelation, which is GOD’s plan of salvation.

 

 

SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOD 

SPECIAL REVELATION

 

As good as natural revelation is, special revelation was needed to communicate more specific truths about GOD and his plan of salvation for man. Paul states regarding the gospel that it needs to be preached and heard: “And how are they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to hear without someone preaching to them (Rom 10:14).”

 

This suggests that no one is going to understand GOD’s plan of salvation by looking at a star. Even understanding what natural revelation communicates comes from special revelation found in the Bible. Special revelation is GOD speaking to man through signs, dreams, visions, manifestations of GOD, inspired verbal messages, inspired written messages and also the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The focus of special revelation centers on two areas: the written word of GOD (the Bible) and the incarnation of Jesus Christ.

 

The Bible speaks about GOD and is inspired by GOD. Every scripture is inspired by GOD as Paul states (2 Tim 3:16). Over and over in the Old Testament the prophets   speak: “This is what the Lord says.” The Bible speaks about who GOD is and what GOD does and what he wants people to do. For example, “In the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth” (Gen 1:1). Apart from such statements, mankind would be very much in a fog of knowledge about GOD and his actions.

 

The second major area of special revelation is GOD the Father revealed by the Logos (translated as “Word”) who is his son Jesus Christ. John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with GOD, and the Word was fully GOD. The Word was with GOD in the beginning. Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory . . No one has ever seen GOD. The only one, himself GOD, who is in closest fellowship with the Father, has made GOD known (John 1:1, 2, 14, 18). Later Jesus stated, “The person who has seen me has seen the Father!” (John 14:9). The author of Hebrews states that GOD has spoken by his Son, who is the exact representation of GOD (Heb 1:1-3).

 

 

THE NAMES OF GOD

 

One good way to start to understand GOD is through the names of GOD as recorded in the Bible. Names have meaning attached to them and the names of   GOD are no exception. The meanings of GOD’s names give us instruction as to who GOD is and what he is like.

 

The first reference to GOD in the Old Testament is the Hebrew word Elohim (Gen 1:1). Sometimes, this fuller name is abbreviated to El. The root meaning of this Hebrew word is to “Be strong.”1 The Greek translation of the Old Testament normally translates these Hebrew words as theos, which is the basic Greek word for GOD. The word ‘Elohim’ is used 2,310 times for the true GOD in the Old Testament. One interesting point about this name is that it is a plural word in Hebrew. A common explanation for this is that, it is a plural of majesty indicating the manifold greatness of GOD. It has also been suggested that it allows for the later revelation of the Trinity.

 

There are also other compound names of GOD: 1) El-Shaddai means GOD Almighty, which indicates GOD’s omnipotence (Gen 17:1); 2) El-Elyon means GOD Most High (Gen 14:19), which stresses GOD’s supremacy and sovereignty; El- Olam meaning The Everlasting GOD. (Gen 21:33), which communicates his timelessness or eternality; El-Roi means The GOD who Sees (Gen 16:13), which is an indication of his omniscience.

 

The personal name for GOD in the Old Testament is the Hebrew YHWH (יהוה) or Yahweh. The four consonants are sometimes referred to as the tetragrammaton. The first occurrence of YHWH is in Gen 2:4 and it occurs about 5321 times in the Old Testament. This name is probably related to a Hebrew word which means “to be or exist.” The name Yahweh was considered so sacred in Israel that one was not allowed to speak it. As a substitute, when the Old Testament was read, Adonai was spoken. Adonai is the Hebrew word for Lord.

 

The Jewish people had other ways of referring to GOD that avoided verbalizing GOD’s name. For example, instead of saying Yahweh will bless you, one could say the Lord or heaven will bless you. One could also put a statement in the passive voice “you will be blessed” with Yahweh as the understood agent of the blessing. Following this respect for GOD’s personal name, the Greek in the Old and New Testaments translated the divine personal name as kurios, which means lord in Greek as Adonai did in Hebrew.

 

A key passage regarding GOD’s personal name is found in Exodus 3. There Moses said to GOD, “If I go to the Israelites and tell them, ‘The GOD of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ – what should I say to them?’

GOD said to Moses, ‘I am that I am.’ And he said, ‘You must say this to the Israelites,

I am has sent me to you.’ GOD also said to Moses, ‘You must say this to the Israelites, ‘The Lord *Yahweh] the GOD of your fathers, the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob – has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my memorial from generation to generation’” (Exod 3:13-15). One thing to notice in these passages is, that Moses was instructed by GOD to verbalize GOD’s name = Yahweh to Israel. Saying the name itself was even commanded by GOD so that people would know what his name was. As with the name El, there are also compound names for GOD with Yahweh.

 

Yahweh Jireh means, The Lord Will Provide (Gen 22:14); Abraham named GOD this after GOD provided a ram as a substitute for Isaac who was one altar and about to be offered as a sacrifice. Yahweh Nissi means, The Lord is my Banner (Exod 17:15); Moses named GOD this after a defeat of one of Israel’s enemies. Yahweh Shalom means, The Lord is Peace (Judges 6:24). Yahweh Sabbaoth means The Lord of Hosts or Armies (1 Sam 1:3). Yahweh Maccaddeshsem means The Lord your Sanctifier (Ex 31:13).

 

Yahweh Roi means The Lord my Shepherd (Ps 23:1). Yahweh Tsidkenu means The Lord our Righteousness (Jer 23:6). Yahweh Shammah means The Lord is There (Ezek 48:35).5 These names indicate the greatness of GOD and how he concerns himself in meeting our needs in various situations we face. Someone once well said, “GOD is the answer now what is the question.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE ATTRIBUTES/PERFECTIONS OF GOD

 

What is GOD like? The names of GOD start to address this question but there is much more. GOD is the subject but what is the predicate? GOD is………………………… what? What are the characteristics or attributes of GOD? Some like to refer to these attributes as perfections since GOD has the full or perfect expression of them. For example, someone might be a loving person but is that person perfectly loving with no flaw? GOD is perfectly loving with no flaw.

 

GOD is the fullest or perfect expression of all his characteristics. Also, one must be careful when studying the attributes of GOD as these attributes relate to each other. As Enns points out, “In the study of GOD’s attributes, it is important not to exalt one attribute over another; when that is done, it presents a caricature of GOD. It is all the attributes of GOD taken together that provide an understanding of the nature and person of GOD.”6 The following is only a survey of some of GOD’s attributes or perfections and the implications of these for us.

 

GOD is all powerful, that is omnipotent. Jeremiah states, “After I had given the copies of the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, ‘Oh, Lord GOD, you did indeed make heaven and earth by your mighty power and great strength. Nothing is too hard for you!’” (Jer 32:17 cf. Job 42:2). The New Testament echoes that with GOD all things are possible. This should give us Christians comfort that nothing is out of GOD’s reach and ability; it’s only a matter of his will.

 

A philosophical question is sometimes asked: “can GOD create a rock so big he cannot move it?” GOD’s omnipotence extends to the things that are logically possible and not logically impossible. It also only extends things that are consistent with GOD’s nature, not to things inconsistent with his nature. Can GOD be unjust? The answer is no because it’s not consistent with his nature.

 

GOD is everywhere; that is omnipresent. A very good passage on the omnipresence of GOD as it relates to us is found in Psalm 139. It reads, “Where can I go to escape your spirit? Where can I flee to escape your presence? If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there. If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be. If I were to fly away on the wings of the dawn, and settle down on the other side of the sea, even there, your hand would guide me, your right hand would grab hold of me” (Ps 139:7-10). No matter where we are, GOD is there for us, in any place, in any circumstance.

 

GOD is all knowing and in control, that is omniscient and sovereign. Isaiah writes, “Truly I am GOD, I have no peer; I am GOD, and there is none like me, who announces the end from the beginning and reveals beforehand what has not yet occurred, who says, ‘My plan will be realized, I will accomplish what I desire” (Is 46:9-10). Nothing catches GOD by surprise as he knows everything before it will happen. While we might be surprised at certain events, we also have to realize that GOD has a plan and he will accomplish what he desires. GOD is unchanging, that is immutable. James explains, “All generous giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change” (Jas 1:17). GOD will always act consistent with his nature. We do not have to be concerned that GOD will be good one day and then bad the next or that he will only sometimes be just or merciful.

 

GOD is eternal, that is without beginning or end. The Psalmist states, “even before the mountains came into existence, or you brought the world into being, you were the eternal GOD” (Ps 90:2). This means that GOD always was, always is, and always will be. GOD is not here today and gone tomorrow. GOD does not die, he only lives. For us as Christians, he will always be there for us. Revelation 1:8 confirms this with the statement, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord GOD – the one who is, and who was, and who is still to come – the All-Powerful!”

 

GOD is just/righteous. “Equity and justice are the foundation of your throne” (Ps 89:14). Society is consistently crying out for justice in the world. Human abuses of justice are everywhere. But what many of them do not realize is that GOD is a just GOD in his nature and his actions are always just. They are just by his perfect standards. It is true that justice does not always come right away but it will come in GOD’s timing of things. He will right every wrong, bring evil acts to judgments, and righteous acts in his name will be rewarded.

 

GOD is holy. John states, “Each one of the four living creatures had six wings and was full of eyes all around and inside. They never rest day or night, saying: “Holy Holy Holy is the Lord GOD, the All-Powerful” (Rev 4:8; cf. Is 6:3). The holiness of GOD is mentioned three times in this passage to emphasize that absolute holiness and purity of GOD, that he is the Most Holy. GOD is good. “Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good except GOD alone.’”

 

(Mark 10:18). When hard times and trials come, sometimes we are tempted tothink that GOD is bad. After all, why is GOD doing this or at least allowing it tohappen?Weknow fromtheBiblethatGODis usingthehard timesfor his purposes including bringing maturity to our faith(Jas 1:2-4).

 

GOD is true. “And we know that the Son of GOD has come and has given us insight to know him who is true, and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ.

This one is the true GOD and eternal life” (1 John 5:20). Conversely, the author of Hebrews states that it is impossible for GOD to lie (Heb 6:18). This would mean that we can count on all that GOD says including his promises. It would mean, GOD is trustworthy. If GOD says it, we can “take it to the bank” so to speak.

 

GOD is merciful. Paul describes the nature of GOD’s mercy. “But GOD, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us” (Eph 2:4). As Christians, we deserved death but GOD gave us life. We deserved curse, but GOD gave us blessing. We deserved judgment but GOD gave us mercy. Not only is GOD merciful but as Ephesians says here, he is “rich” in mercy; it overflows; it is plentiful and abundant. GOD is love. “The person who does not love does not know GOD, because GOD is love” (1 John 4:8).

 

When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he answered by giving two: love GOD and love your neighbor (Matt 22:34-40). Paul stated that the greatest Christian virtue is love and that even if he gave everything he owned or his body to the flames but did not have love, he was nothing (1 Cor 13).

 

There are many more attributes that could be given. What is interesting about all of GOD’s attributes is that, man in a very dim way is to reflect GOD’s nature by becoming more Godly in character.

Peter reminds us of the command: “Be holy for I am holy (1 Pet 1:16).” Paul states that we as Christians are “predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom 8:29). As we study what GOD is like, we learn more what we should be like. As people experience GOD in a greater way, they grow to be more like him.

 

 

WHAT DID GOD SAY ABOUT IDOL WORSHIP?

 

Because of the worldwide practices of occultism, idolatry and witchcraft, it is important to remind Christians to read and meditate on a couple of Scriptures on this subject. It is imperative for Christians and Christian leaders to get the message, “No Idol Worship says GOD!” In different parts of the world, some pastors engage occultism in order to grow their churches and perform miracles. Such conduct and practice are abominations to GOD and must not occur in any church. This is the primary reason why we are spending a lot of time on this topic.

 

The word “idol” is not limited to occultism and worship of statues and objects reminiscent of those worshiped by pagans in ancient cultures. For some, the idol in their life is an insatiable drive for materialism and success in the eyes of the world. Such people pursue the high regard of others as their ultimate goal. Some seek after comfort or a myriad of other passionate, yet empty, pursuits. Sadly, modern societies often admire those serving such idols. In the end, however, it doesn’t matter what empty pleasure we chase after or what idol or which false god we bow down to; the result is the same—separation from the one true GOD.

 

An idol can be anything we place ahead of GOD in our lives, anything that takes GOD’s place in our hearts, such as possessions, careers, relationships, hobbies, sports, entertainment, goals, greed, addictions to alcohol/drugs/gambling/pornography, etc.

Some of the things we idolize are clearly sinful. But many of the things we idolize can be very good, such as relationships or careers. Yet Scripture tells us that, whatever we do, we are to “do it all for the glory of GOD” (1 Corinthians 10:31) and that we are to serve GOD only (Deuteronomy 6:13; Luke 16:13).

 

There is another form of idolatry prevalent today. Its growth is fostered by cultures that continue to drift away from sound biblical teaching, just as the apostle Paul warned us, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:3). In these pluralistic, liberal times, many cultures have, to a large degree, redefined GOD.

 

We have forsaken the GOD revealed to us in Scripture and have recast Him to comply with our own inclinations and desires—a “kinder and gentler” god who is infinitely more tolerant than the One revealed in Scripture. One who is less demanding and less judgmental and who will tolerate many lifestyles without placing guilt on anyone’s shoulders.”

https://www.gotquestions.org/idol-worship.html

 

Article on Idol Worship Today from https://www.rethinknow.org/idol-worship-today/

Before you read this list, hear me on this: I’m not saying we should rid ourselves of the things on this list. For many of the things, that would be impossible. Rather, we need to evaluate our lives to make sure they are in the right order and none of these things have become more important than God to us. When that happens it’s idolatry.

With that in mind, here are 6 modern day idols we still worship.

1. Our Identity

It’s easy to place our identity in something or someone other than God. Whether it be our social media following, our position at work, our abilities/skills, or the achievements we are after, many have their identity wrapped up in the wrong thing.

Not only is this an idol, but it’s also a tough way to live. If your identity is in your work, your skills, your looks, or anything else, you will constantly feel like you don’t measure up.  They are harsh masters. But when our identity is secured in God, we can live in freedom. While we will still fall short, God’s love will never fail us.

For some, their identity has become an idol. They have placed more value on who they are, rather than in God.

2. Money/Consumerism 

It doesn’t matter if you have money or are broke. The pursuit of money and the acquisition of things is an idol for many in our culture. Many people trust their money more than they trust God. Hear me on this. Money is not bad. Money is a tool. And like any tool, you have to use it correctly; otherwise, it can cause much damage. Money isn’t the problem, it’s how we use and view it that can become a problem. Many have placed their hopes and dreams in money. They trust it to provide for them, care for them, and protect them. The problem is, it can’t live up to what we are trying to get from it. Money has become the ultimate thing for many of us. If the motivating factor in your life is money and not God, then that’s an idol. 

3. Entertainment

We are obsessed with being entertained. And it comes in many forms- from Netflix to vacations and video games to podcasts. We love entertainment in all forms. Again, as with the other modern-day idols, it’s not that entertainment is bad. It can be a good thing. But when our lives become all about the search for entertainment and chase of the best experiences we can find, then it’s become an idol. It’s become more important than God. I would argue that entertainment is good and a gift from God, but we should worship the giver not the gift.

4. Sex

We are obsessed with sex in our culture. It is everywhere. It might be the only thing we think about more than money. We have taken a gift from God and made it into the god of our lives. And for many, their lives are controlled by sex. To even question the sexual ethic in our society will bring a slew of accusations, showing how tied to our idol we actually are.  Our sexual identity, sexual practices, and sex lives are sacred to us. The church has some blame for this. Rather than portraying sex as a good gift from God, in recent history, they have heaped guilt and shame. You could argue this is one of the factors that brought the over-exaggeration of sex. But regardless of how we got here, for many today, sex is an idol.  We value it more than we do God. 

 

 

5. Comfort

There is an endless list of products promising to simplify and add comfort to your life. We have made our lives much easier and much more comfortable than at any other time in history. Tasks that used to take all day can be done in minutes. Many menial tasks are now automated. While that’s a good thing, our pursuit in life should not be comfort alone.

Jesus tells a very different narrative for his followers. He says that his followers will face trials, persecution, and difficulty. While comfort isn’t bad, it can become damaging when it becomes the main pursuit in life. When comfort is an idol, we will struggle when God calls us to something difficult.

6. Our Phones 

Smartphone addiction is increasingly becoming a worrying trend. This is especially true for Gen Z and Millennial generations, but it’s certainly not confined to them. For many, they simply cannot live without their phones (or online presence). This is quickly becoming an idol for many. The problem isn’t our phones or social media or any form of technology. It’s the value we place on it that makes it a problem. When our lives revolve around how many likes we get, what our following looks like, or if we can’t sit in silence for 5 minutes without refreshing our newsfeed, we might have an idol. Anything that takes the place of God in our life, anything that becomes more important than him, is an idol.

How To Know If You Have a Modern Day Idol

Again, let me reiterate. This isn’t a list of things to avoid or a list we should use to beat ourselves down or ammo to shoot at others. This is a list of things that can take the place of God in our lives. When a good thing becomes an ultimate thing, ultimately, it becomes a destructive thing in our lives. That’s idolatry. What we should do with this list is use it to prayerfully evaluate our lives to make sure nothing has become more important to us than God. We should each ask ourselves what is an idol in my life? So how do we know if something has become an idol? Here are 4 questions to ask yourself to help you identify idols in your life:

Where Do I Spend My Time?
Where Do I Spend My Money? 
Where Do I Get My Joy? 
What’s Always on My Mind? 

Actually, think about those questions. They will lead you to what either is an idol or what you might be tempted to make an idol. Spend some time in prayer asking and seeking what is an idol in your life. Idol worship today might look different, but it still exists. We shouldn’t let anything, even a good thing, take the place of God in our lives.

SCRIPTURES AGAINST IDOLS

Exodus 20:3-6 ESV

“You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved 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. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your GOD am a jealous GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

 

Colossians 3:5 ESV

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

 

Jonah 2:8 ESV

Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love.

 

1 John 5:21 ESV

Little children keep yourselves from idols.

 

Isaiah 44:9-20 ESV

All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame. Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is profitable for nothing? Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble, let them stand forth. They shall be terrified; they shall be put to shame together. The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint. The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. …

 

Leviticus 19:4 ESV

Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves any gods of cast metal: I am the Lord your GOD.  

1 Corinthians 10:14 ESV

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

 

Psalm 16:4 ESV

The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips.

 

Galatians 5:19-21 ESV

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of GOD.

 

Psalm 135:15-18 ESV

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear, nor is there any breath in their mouths. Those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them!

 

Exodus 20:1-8 ESV

And GOD spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your GOD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved 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. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your GOD am a jealous GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, …

 

Jeremiah 11:12 ESV

Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they make offerings, but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble.

 

Deuteronomy 12:32-13:18 ESV

“Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it. “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your GOD is testing you, to know whether you love the Lord your GOD with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord your GOD and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. …

Isaiah 45:20 ESV

“Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save.

Galatians 4:8 ESV

Formerly, when you did not know GOD, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods.

 

Revelation 9:20 ESV

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk,

 

1 Samuel 15:23 ESV

For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you from being king.”

 

1 Corinthians 10:7 ESV

Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.”

 

Exodus 23:13 ESV

“Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips.

 

Jeremiah 7:18 ESV

The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven. And they pour out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke me to anger.

 

Judges 10:14 ESV

Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.”

 

Psalm 115:1-18 ESV

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness! Why should the nations say, “Where is their god?” Our GOD is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. …

 

Romans 1:23 ESV

And exchanged the glory of the immortal GOD for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

 

Jeremiah 10:3-16 ESV

For the customs of the peoples are vanity. A tree from the forest is cut down and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good.” There is none like you, O Lord; you are great, and your name is great in might. Who would not fear you, O King of the nations? For this is your due; for among all the wise ones of the nations and in all their kingdoms there is none like you. …

 

Deuteronomy 27:15 ESV

‘Cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image, an abomination to the Lord, a thing made by the hands of a craftsman, and sets it up in secret.’ And all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen.’

 

Isaiah 44:17 ESV

And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”

 

1 Corinthians 6:9 ESV

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of GOD? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,

 

Hosea 11:2 ESV

The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols.

 

Micah 5:13 ESV

And I will cut off your carved images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands;

 

Deuteronomy 7:25 ESV

The carved images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your GOD.

 

Isaiah 46:7 ESV

They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it, they set it in its place, and it stands there; it cannot move from its place. If one cries to it, it does not answer or save him from his trouble.

 

Isaiah 2:8 ESV

Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made.

 

Revelation 2:14 ESV

But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teachingof Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, sothatthey mighteatfoodsacrificedtoidols andpractice sexualimmorality.

 

Micah 5:13 ESV

And I will cut off your carved images and your pillars from among you, and you shall bow down no more to the work of your hands;

 

Deuteronomy 7:25 ESV

The carved images of their gods you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to the Lord your GOD.

 

Isaiah 46:7 ESV

They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it, they set it in its place, and it stands there; it cannot move from its place. If one cries to it, it does not answer or save him from his trouble.

 

Isaiah 2:8 ESV

Their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made.

 

Revelation 2:14 ESV

But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality.

1 Corinthians 10:19 ESV

What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?

 

Isaiah 42:17 ESV

They are turned back and utterly put to shame, who trust in carved idols, who say to metal images, “You are our Gods.”

 

Habakkuk 2:18 ESV

“What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metal image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation when he makes speechless idols!

 

Colossians 2:18 ESV

Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind,

 

Acts 17:29 ESV

Being then GOD’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.

 

1 Peter 4:3 ESV

For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry.

Jeremiah 1:16 ESV

And I will declare my judgments against them, for all their evil in forsaking me. They have made offerings to other gods and worshiped the works of their own hands.

 

Ephesians 5:5 ESV

For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and GOD.

 

Exodus 20:3 ESV

“You shall have no other gods before me.

 

Deuteronomy 7:26 ESV

And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your house and become devoted to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest and abhor it, for it is devoted to destruction.

 

Revelation 21:8 ESV

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

 

Daniel 5:23 ESV

But you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the GOD in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.

 

Isaiah 2:20 ESV

In that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made for themselves to worship, to the moles and to the bats,

 

 

Amos 4:4 ESV

“Come to Bethel, and transgress; to Gilgal, and multiply transgression; bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every three days.

 

Zephaniah 1:5 ESV

Those who bow down on the roofs to the host of the heavens, those who bow down and swear to the Lord and yet swear by Milcom.

 

Leviticus 26:1 ESV

“You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your GOD.

 

Acts 15:29 ESV

That you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”

 

Habakkuk 2:19 ESV

Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it.

 

Jeremiah 13:9-27 ESV

“Thus says the Lord: Even so will I spoil the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be like this loincloth, which is good for nothing. For as the loincloth clings to the waist of a man, so I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, declares the Lord, that they might be for me a people, a name, a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen. “You shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the Lord, the GOD of Israel, “Every jar shall be filled with wine.”’ And they will say to you, ‘Do we not indeed know that every jar will be filled with wine?’ Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will fill with drunkenness all the inhabitants of this land: the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. …

 

Matthew 6:24 ESV

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve GOD and money.

 

Ezekiel 20:31 ESV

When you present your gifts and offer up your children in fire, you defile yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I will not be inquired of by you.

Isaiah 57:6 ESV

Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion; they, they, are your lot; to them you have poured out a drink offering, you have brought a grain offering.

Shall I relent for these things?

 

Isaiah 42:8 ESV

I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.

 

Isaiah 17:8 ESV

He will not look to the altars, the work of his hands, and he will not look on what his own fingers have made, either the Asherim or the altars of incense.

 

Exodus 20:5 ESV

You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your GOD am a jealous GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me,

 

1 Corinthians 5:11 ESV

But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.

 

Acts 17:16 ESV

Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.

 

Hosea 1:2 ESV

When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.”

 

Jeremiah 32:35 ESV

They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

Isaiah 65:3 ESV

A people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks;

 

1 Corinthians 12:2 ESV

You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led.

 

1 Corinthians 10:1-33 ESV

For I want you to know, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them GOD was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. …

 

Jeremiah 19:13 ESV

The houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah—all the houses on whose roofs offerings have been offered to all the host of heaven, and drink offerings have been poured out to other Gods—shall be defiled like the place of Topheth.’”

Isaiah 46:6 ESV

Those who lavish gold from the purse, and weigh out silver in the scales, hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; then they fall down and worship!

 

Ezekiel 14:1-14 ESV

Then certain of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me. And the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. Should I indeed let myself be consulted by them? Therefore speak to them and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Any one of the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart and sets the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to the prophet, I the Lord will answer him as he comes with the multitude of his idols, that I may lay hold of the hearts of the house of Israel, who are all estranged from me through their idols. …

 

Deuteronomy 8:19 ESV

And if you forget the Lord your GOD and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish.

 

Acts 17:23 ESV

For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown GOD.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

 

Jeremiah 51:17 ESV

Every man is stupid and without knowledge; every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false, and there is no breath in them.

 

Psalm 115:4 ESV

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.

1 Corinthians 10:20-22 ESV

No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to GOD. I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

 

Zechariah 10:2 ESV

For the household gods utter nonsense, and the diviners see lies; they tell false dreams and give empty consolation. Therefore the people wander like sheep; they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.

 

Micah 6:7 ESV

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

Ezekiel 16:17 ESV

You also took your beautiful jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself images of men, and with them played the whore.

Jeremiah 8:19 ESV

Behold, the cry of the daughter of my people from the length and breadth of the land: “Is the Lord not in Zion? Is her King not in her?” “Why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images and with their foreign idols?”

 

Isaiah 57:3-13 ESV

But you, draw near, sons of the sorceress, offspring of the adulterer and the loose woman. Whom are you mocking? Against whom do you open your mouth wide and stick out your tongue? Are you not children of transgression, the offspring of deceit, you who burn with lust among the oaks, under every green tree, who slaughter your children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks? Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion; they, they, are your lot; to them you have poured out a drink offering, you have brought a grain offering. Shall I relent for these things? On a high and lofty mountain you have set your bed, and there you went up to offer sacrifice. …

 

Psalm 106:38 ESV

They poured out innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.

 

1. Kings 18:4 ESV

He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).

 

Deuteronomy 5:9 ESV

You shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the Lord your GOD am a jealous GOD, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,

 

Exodus 34:14 ESV

(for you shall worship no other GOD, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a  jealous GOD),

 

Acts 14:13-15:29 ESV

And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, “Men, why are you doing these things?

 

We   also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living GOD, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. Yet he did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.”

 

Ezekiel 8:1-9:11 ESV

In the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, with the elders of Judah sitting before me, the hand of the Lord GOD fell upon me there. Then I looked, and behold, a form that had the appearance of a man. Below what appeared to be his waist was fire, and above his waist was something like the appearance of brightness, like gleaming metal. He put out the form of a hand and took me by a lock of my head, and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me in visions of GOD to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the gateway of the inner court that faces north, where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy. And behold, the glory of the GOD of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the valley. Then he said to me, “Son of man, lift up your eyes now toward the north.” So I lifted up my eyes toward the north, and behold, north of the altar gate, in the entrance, was this image of jealousy. …

 

Jeremiah 44:17 ESV

But we will do everything that we have vowed, make offerings to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her, as we did, both we and our fathers, our kings and our officials, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty of food, and prospered, and saw no disaster.

 

Deuteronomy 7:1-26 ESV

“When the Lord your GOD brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than yourselves, and when the Lord your GOD gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote

them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other Gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and chop down their Asherim and burn their carved images with fire.

 

Revelation 2:20-22 ESV

But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols.

I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works,

 

Malachi 2:11-13 ESV

Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob any descendant of the man who does this, who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts! And this second thing you do. You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand.

 

Hosea 9:10 ESV

Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season, I saw your fathers. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.

 

2 Chronicles 28:23 ESV

For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel.

 

Jeremiah 16:20 ESV

Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!”

Jeremiah 8:2 ESV

And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. And they shall not be gathered or buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.

 

Isaiah 2:6-22 ESV

For you have rejected your people, the house of Jacob, because they are full of things from the east and of fortune-tellers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners…..their land is filled with idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made. So man is humbled, and each one is brought low — do not forgive them! Enter into the rock and hide in the dust from before the terror of the Lord, and from the splendor of his majesty. …

 

“Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

 

 

ASSIGNMENT:

PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

 

• Match these attributes of GOD by choosing or writing in the number that corresponds to the descriptions:

 

1. Omnipotent
3. Omniscient
4. Immanent
5. Transcendent

 

1. GOD is everywhere present at all times
2. GOD is close and pervasive
3. GOD knows all
4. GOD is above and beyond all
5. GOD is all powerful

 

• What is your personal definition of GOD and why?

How many Bible verses were presented in this text or magazine in our discussion on idols?

• Write or type 10 Scriptures from this lecture notes regarding idols
• Should a Christian consult a psychic, astrology, palm readers, or voodoo priests for prayers or directions? The answer is an emphatic NO. In your own words write two reasons why GOD and the Bible forbids it?