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IDOLATRY
WHAT IS IT?
It is any image one prays to or through. How
often do you acknowledge that
someone is speaking to you when they are talking to a dog? a wall?
a picture, etc.?
Who advises God? Who's ways are equal with God's? Forget the
middleman and
pray directly to God. It is required, not requested. If a prayer
is answered that was
spoken to a dead saint, does God get the credit, or God?
Deu 4:16 Make
NO shape of any figure in the likeness of:
Male or female
(This includes the saints,
Mary, Jesus, Buda, etc.)
any beast on the earth
any winged fowl that flies
anything that creeps on the ground
any fish
WHAT HARM CAN IT DO IF MY INTENTIONS ARE GOOD?
The Old Testament puts it this way.
Deu 4:19 Lest
when thou lift thine eyes to heaven
thou sees the sun, moon, stars, and the host of
heaven
(The word host here is not the celestial bodies, it
means a
mass
of people especially an army and comes from a root word meaning to mass
an
army or servants. The saints are
an army and have become, to some, their
servants to pray
to. This is by some who know who God is.)
thou be driven to worship them
(The word for worship here means to depress i.e.
prostrate, and is used for
bow down, humbly beseech, do obeisance, or
do reverence. Some do this
to the Old Testament saints and some to angels.)
The New Testament puts it this way.
Rom 1:19-20 God has shown his eternal power,
as well as
invisible things to man
Rom 1:21 When they knew God, they glorified
him not as God
and were
unthankful.
(How many thank the dead saints?)
They BECAME vain in their imaginations and their
foolish hearts were darkened
(Imaginations means
discussion or internal consideration. I would
say that many
have the statues on their minds; but not God
himself. This is dangerous because
God
is a jealous God. Praying to God through a statue is Idolatry, go
direct.)
Rom 1:22-23 Professing themselves to be wise, they became
fools and changed the
glory of the incorruptible God into
an image made like to corruptible man,
birds, four-footed
beasts, and creeping things.
WHAT ARE CONSIDERED IDOLS TO GOD
Deu 4:16 and Rom 1:22
ANY image or likeness of:
A male or female/corruptible man
A beast on earth/four footed beast
A winged fowl/bird
A thing that creeps/creeping things
A fish/?
Deu 4:19 That one bows to, prays to, or does
reverence to,
whether a physical
image or a spiritual one that one has or
has not made an image to.
Rom 1:22-23 Professing themselves to be wise, they became
fools and changed the
glory of the incorruptible God into
an image made like to corruptible man,
birds, four-footed
beasts, and creeping things.
(Consider this. The people that the bible is speaking of are
those who know
who he is. It is not pagans that are in question. They just made
images to
pray to instead of him directly. Israel is a prime example
when
they came out of Egypt. While Moses was up on the mountain, they
made
two golden calves and
said they were the God that brought them out of
Egypt. Now they knew that two cows didn’t bring them out. They
just
made them so they had something tangible
to pray to. This, God
says,
tends to make man forget the awesome glory of God;
and He becomes
diminished in man’s mind, or should I say, out of man’s mind?
They don’t
start praying to another god, just a statue. Statues of the saints, Mary,
or
even a crucifix fall into this category. Genuflecting, kissing, or
praying to
them would be included. They are the army of God and
the servants
of God;
but man has declared them to be man’s servants by
making them the
object of
their prayers, expecting a response from them.
I am not saying
that these people
don’t know who God is,
I’m saying they don’t know God.
They have no
relationship with him
because the relationship they have is
with a statue. God
demands a
relationship. Anything less leaves the person
out of God’s scheme
of
things. It’s not my words, it’s Gods.)
BRINGING IDOLATRY INTO PERSPECTIVE
When one kisses a crucifix, are they thinking King of kings
and
Lord of lords?
When one looks at a nativity scène, are they thinking
of the Christ
that
shines brighter than the sun, has eyes as flames, or that is
returning to
destroy
them that destroy Israel? I find it hard to believe that
one
would. This is why God says pray to him directly and have nothing in
the
middle. I realize that all these are done with good intentions; but I’ve
heard that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
WHAT HAPPENED TO ISRAEL FOR IDOLATRY
Ex 32:28 Three thousand fell for the calves
Deu 4:25 When
they are long in the land they will corrupt
themselves and make
images
Deu 4:26 They
perished off the land that they were given to
possess
Deu 4:27 They
were scattered among the nations and were
left few in number
Deu 28:;37 They
would become an astonishment and a
byword
(Hasn’t Jew become a byword?)
Rom 11:20 Because of unbelief, they were
broken off
WHAT ABOUT CHRISTIANS
Rom 11:21 If God spared not the natural
branches, take heed
lest he also spare not
thee.
(It was, after all, for making images and praying to them. Why
would
we
dare think that God would spare us from the destruction of idolatry
if he
didn’t Israel? It breaks the very first commandment of the ten handed
down and written in stone.)
ANOTHER FORM OF IDOLATRY
KNOWING CHRIST BUT FOLLOWING A MAN
GENERAL VIEW
I Cor 3:1 Paul cannot speak spiritually unto the
carnal
I Cor 3:3 They
are carnal and walk as men because:
I Cor 3:4 One
says that he is of Paul, another says he is
of Apollos
I Cor 3:5 They
are only ministers of Christ, as Christ gave
to men
I Cor 3:6 One
plants, one waters, but God gives the increase
I Cor 3:7 So the
man is nothing, it is God that increases
I Cor 3:8 These
men will receive a reward for their labor
I Cor 3:9 They
are laborers with God, but
The people are
God’s husbandry, God’s building
How many say: I am Lutheran or
Methodist or Presbyterian or any number of other religions. Isn't it
better to say I am Christian, a follower of Christ?
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