“Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him,
put away the strange gods that are among you,
and be clean, and change your garments” (Genesis 35:2)
God had just spoken to Jacob to arise, travel to Bethel, and to make an altar there for the Lord, a place where worship could be held. Jacob understood the holiness of God, even before there was a law, and commanded his families to sanctify themselves before the Lord. He knew that, to come before God in any other manner, would be disrespectful and worthy of death.
This later became a commandment for the children of Israel to observe, but the same standard was not being practiced by other nationalities. Because of this, God was against the mixing and matching of His children with those others who worshipped other gods. And while we think, in our modernistic society, that idol worship is a thing of the past, I’d like to enlighten you a little bit.
The term idol has been popularized recently by the hit show “American Idol”, but few people really take its meaning to heart. We’re just not taking the things of God very seriously.
Idol
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An image or other object representing a deity to which religious worship is addressed
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A person or thing regarded with blind admiration, adoration, or devotion
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Occurs 13 times in scriptures with references like horrible thing, false gods, good for nothing, worthless, or referring to a heathen
God not only hates idol worship, but he even hates idol acknowledgment. You see, to acknowledge the idol gives it validity and legitimacy, even though you may not bow down before it. To acknowledge the thing, in many ways, gives power to it. Take a look at what the apostle Paul said about idols:
“As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world and that there is none other God but one”
(1 Corinthians 8:4)
He continued to say that, though there are many that are called gods, there is but ONE God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and ONE Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him. Howbeit, there is not in every man that knowledge. God also prophesied in Hosea 4:6 that “my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge”.
Exodus 20 – God speaks to Moses to instruct the people that He is the Lord that brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, and that they should have no other gods before Him. We are not allowed to make any graven images or any likeness of anything that is in heaven, to bow down to serve them, because God is a jealous god, promising to curse those who do such things and their children, even to their third and fourth generation.
Exodus 34:10 – The Lord enters into a covenant with the children of Israel and promises that, if they would observe it, He would drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and the Jebusites from before them. And He warned them in verse 12 against entering into any covenant with them, but to destroy their altars, their images, and to cut down their groves. The Lord has entered into a similar covenant with us, promising a crown of life to all them that love Him.
Groves – Hebrew “asherah” which was the name of a Babylonian-Canaanite goddess (of fortune and happiness). These were sacred trees or poles set up near their altars bearing her images.
God commanded His children not to take their sons or daughters to marriage because to mix and match with heathens would lead them to following other gods. This is exactly what happened to such notable figures as Solomon, Samson, and Ahab. These men disobeyed God and married outside of the families of Israel, and their wives caused them to be led into destruction.
Paul followed this same discourse in 2 Corinthians 6:14 when he commanded us to “be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers”. He said that there should be no fellowship between righteousness and unrighteousness; they should have nothing in common. God is commanding us to love not the world, and neither the things that are in the world, but to set our affections on things above. (1 John 2:15; Colossians 3:1-3 ;)
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather reprove them” (Ephesians 5:11)
The Lord is calling His people to separate from evil works, unrighteous practices, and worldly associations. That does not mean that you can’t talk to someone who’s not saved, or work with them, or go on business trips with them. If we had no contact with them at all, then how would we ever get the opportunity to minister the word of God unto them? That’s not what Paul is referring to. But Paul was referencing here is our agreement with their ungodly lifestyles. Amos 3:3 says “can two walk together, except they be agreed?”
Leviticus 20 – The Lord commands His children, again, concerning the importance of holiness and sanctification, and warns them against following after pagan gods like Molech.
Molech – the god of the Ammonites and Phoenicians to whom some Israelites sacrificed their infants in the valley of Hinnom. Some depictions show him standing as a man, but having the upper body of a bull with horns.
Now, we probably don’t make images like this today and bow down before them to worship, but many of us do just as badly when we don’t acknowledge God for the sovereign King that He is. Holy scriptures teach us to “love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). We’re commanded to teach these principles to our children so that they, when they have their own children, can teach them also. But it’s not happening, largely due to our alliances with the enemy, partnerships that cause us to compromise the integrity of our worship.
“Abstain from all appearance of evil. And the very God of peace sanctify
you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body
be preserved blameless unto the coming of o
ur Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:22-23)
We are not obligated by God to perform the rituals commanded under the Old Testament law, for we’re saved by the grace of God through our faith in Jesus Christ. However, the standard for holiness established by the law has not been repealed, for Jesus said “think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17). He went on to say in verse 20 that “except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Be not deceived, for evil communications corrupt good manners. Awake to righteousness, and sin not, for he that committeth sin if of the devil (1 Corinthians 15:33; 1 John 3:8 ;). We cannot partake of the Lord’s table and also eat from the table set by our enemy. We cannot abide as “lukewarm” Christians, angering God enough with the very concept that He promises to spew us out of His mouth if we come before Him in that fashion (Revelation 3:15-16).
Jesus Christ is coming back, but the time or the season has not been revealed to any man. We must watch and pray daily as if today is our last day. We must not allow ourselves to become hardened to the voice of God and to walk in disobedience to His commandments. He wants to preserve a people who will walk in holiness and true righteousness, and will not accept any compromise on the matter. Because He is holy, He also commands us to be holy, and to make a distinctive difference between that which is clean from that which is unclean.
“Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters” (2 Corinthians 6:17-18)
Please read also 1 Peter 1:13-23
