February 11, 2025 • 17 mins
Welcome to another episode of Becoming Whole. Today our host Josh Glaser opens up the issue of idolatry, which many of us mistakenly believe to be a relic of the past or a concern only in other cultures. But idolatry is alive and rampant in our modern world, communities, and even in our churches. Tune in for an honest discussion on how turning to God can lead us to true freedom and fulfillment.
Free Resources to help you on your journey to Becoming Whole
👉Men's Overcoming Lust & Temptation Devotional
👉Women 21-Day Prayer Journal & Devotional - (Women overcoming unwanted sexual Behavior)
👉Compass 21-Day Prayer Journal & Devotional - (Wives who are or have been impacted by partner betrayal)
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I've been struck recently with a reality about me
that I'm not happy.
It's actually been sobering anda bit sad to realize how I have
idols in my life, and I want toshare just some of what I've
been going through my thoughtsabout idols, because idolatry is
(00:20):
very serious.
I think a lot of us today thinkabout idols and idolatry as
something that maybe is a thingof yesteryear.
It's a thing that happened inthe time of the Old Testament,
maybe in the New Testament,maybe it happened in third world
countries, but not in our lives, not in 21st century Western,
developed world.
(00:40):
But idolatry is alive and well,as alive and well as it ever
has been, and it is rampant inour culture, in our communities
and in our churches and, I'm sadto say, in me.
Before I go any further, though, I want to say the reason that
talking about idolatry isimportant.
The reason acknowledging ourown idolatry is important is
(01:03):
because that's where the hope isis important.
The reason acknowledging ourown idolatry is important is
because that's where the hope is.
Paul in Romans 1 talks aboutthis pattern that people
throughout time have followed,where they, in his words,
exchange the glory of theincorruptible God for and this
is my paraphrase, they exchangethe glory of the incorruptible
God for images in the form ofthe things that God has created.
(01:25):
That exchange is idolatry,where we turn away from the God
who has created all things.
Worshiping him, giving him ourlives, serving him, obeying him,
believing him, depending on him, loving him.
We turn away from him and giveour devotion, our attention, our
(01:47):
allegiance, our time, our love,our obedience, our faith to the
things that have been created.
That is idolatry and God,because our God, the real God,
is a God of love who does notforce us to love him in return,
because that would not be love.
(02:07):
Love has to be freely given.
We have to freely giveourselves to God in order for
our gift to be a real gift, andthat's worthy of a whole podcast
in and of itself.
But in order to love God inreturn for his love, for his
gift of life and for existenceand all that we have, in order
to love him, we must bringourselves freely.
We must give our devotionfreely, our obedience freely,
(02:30):
our affection freely, ourworship freely.
So when we choose to turn awayfrom him to an idol, to
something else, to bring us thelife and love and security
belonging whatever else is thatwe're seeking.
He lets us go, and it's notbecause he's indifferent about
us.
He lets us go because he simplywants us to be free and he
(02:51):
wants us to have.
He knows that he is best for us, but he will let us go.
And here I think of Jesus'parable of the prodigal son whom
the father let go.
But the reverse is not true.
The reverse is not real.
When we are done with our idols,when we realize they don't
satisfy, when we realize thatthey weren't what we thought
(03:12):
they were, when we realize thatthey haven't actually loved us
in return, when we realize thatthey have evil intent toward us,
when we realize that they arenot working for us and they're
leaving us emptier than wethought at the beginning, when
we realize that they are notworking for us and they're
leaving us emptier than wethought at the beginning, when
we realize that they arestealing from us rather than
giving anything to us that theypromised, when we realize that
they are not the bargain theytold us they were in the
(03:35):
beginning and we believe theywere.
When we find out that we wantto leave them, when we decide
we're done with our idols.
They are not like God.
They don't care about ourfreedom and they don't actually
want our love, and so when wetry to leave them, they often do
not let us go.
And this is at the heart of whyso many men and women wrestling
(03:58):
with unwanted sexual behaviorsfind themselves returning again
and again and again to theirbehaviors, even though they are
trying to follow God.
The idols they've worshiped haveaddicted them.
And, just as an interestingside note here, god is not
addictive, isn't thatinteresting?
(04:19):
The God of the universe, who isthe most beautiful, powerful,
wonderful, infinite, omnipotentcreature sorry, not a creature
creator is not addictive, butour idols and the things our
idols feed us are addictive.
And so, through brain chemistry, through spiritual oppression,
(04:42):
through demonization, throughwhatever means, when we try to
leave them, they will hold us,and they will hold us firm,
(05:07):
grieved and yet grateful that Ihave idols, that I idolize
ministry, that I idolize certainversions of success, that I
idolize my children, that Iidolize an image of myself, that
I idolize other people'sopinions, that I idolize food, I
idolize comfort, I idolizeconvenience.
I'm sure the list goes on.
(05:29):
I can't remember who it was.
It might've been Luther,might've been someone else, I
can't remember who referred tothe human being as an idol,
factory and man.
I'm just finding that in mylife these days.
I have churned out idols overand over and over again and just
to return to one of the ones Ijust named, that I idolize
ministry and ministry success.
(05:52):
I love being in ministry.
I'm honored to be in Christianministry.
I mean, all of us are, we'reall in Christian ministry.
If you're a Christian, you arein Christian ministry.
Hard stop.
Whatever you do, do it unto theLord.
You are in Christian ministry.
Hard stop.
Whatever you do, do it unto theLord.
And yet to be in vocationalministry is quite an honor.
And yet to find myself in aspace where I recognize that I
idolize this, that I use thisfor my own to draw people to
(06:14):
myself, to try to somehow givemyself a sense of validation and
worth and belonging man, that'sugly, that's idolatry.
So what are we to do aboutidolatry?
And for many of you listening,the one you may resonate with
most is idolatry of sex,idolatry of the male or female
(06:36):
body, idolatry of sexualpleasure, idolatry of being in
control of your own sexualpleasure, um, idolatry of your
own ego and all that, all theways that that feeds into your
sexual acting out.
For some of you listening, youhave an idol of your own image,
(06:57):
and what people think of you,and the way that that is playing
out in your life in regards tosexual sin, is that you're not
telling anybody about sexual sin.
You're withholding from peoplearound you people in your church
, maybe people in yourcongregation that you preach to,
maybe you're withholding fromyour husband or your wife that
this is an area of struggle foryou because you are so committed
(07:18):
to, so devoted to the idol oftheir opinion of you, or you're
so devoted to your ego that youbelieve they cannot live without
you, and so, if they find outthat you have these faults,
they're going to leave.
And then they will.
They will be um, devastatedsomehow, as though you are are
their sustance, as though youare their source of life.
(07:38):
So what are we to do about idols?
What are we to do when we findthese?
Well, step number one, Ibelieve, is we come to the Lord
and we say Lord, expose my idols, expose my idolatry, and we do
this as best we can with a heartof humility.
And we do this as best we canwith a heart of humility, not a
(07:59):
heart of scrupulosity, not aheart that demands perfection
and that we get this absolutelyright, but a heart that says I
don't want idols in my life, Iwant to rid myself of idols.
And as we become aware of idolsin our lives, that which we are
turning to, devoted to loving,committed to seeking life from
apart from God, we acknowledgeit, we confess it to God and we
(08:23):
confess it plain.
We just tell him Lord, I havebeen worshiping ministry success
.
Lord, I've been worshipingpornography.
I've been bowing down at theidol of sexual sin.
I've been bowing down at theidol of of sexual sin.
I've been bowing down at theidol of male bodies, female
bodies, sexual pleasure, uh, myown control of sexual, my own
(08:47):
sexual pleasure, you name it.
We acknowledge that humbly tothe Lord and we ask for his
forgiveness.
I think it's also important hereto acknowledge our idolatry to
other believers.
If you're of the denominationthe Christian tradition that has
a priest or pastor that expectsor is present, available for
(09:10):
confession, by all means go toyour priest or pastor for
confession.
If you don't go to a brother orsister, someone you can confide
in and confess plainly theidolatry in your life.
And in addition, now you haveto reckon with the ways the
idols are holding you, the waysthat they are not letting go.
Now there will be times, byGod's grace, there will be times
(09:34):
where a confession, anacknowledgement and confession
of your idol, will be enough torelease you from that idol.
But there will be many othertimes where you have become
addicted to it, where you havebecome habituated to it, where
your life is so entwined withthis idol that it is not letting
you go, where there'sdemonization that's connected to
it.
Now, for you where there's beensome kind of brain chemistry
(09:55):
change, for you where there'sbeen some, just a habit that's
formed in your life you maybeeven have formed your life so
around this idol.
That to give it up means thereare other natural consequences
involved financially,relationally, whatever.
And so now there comes theprocess of untangling yourself
from these false idols, and forthat I want to prescribe two
(10:17):
things.
The first thing I want toprescribe is that you get help.
So this is again whyregeneration exists there.
We have coaches here, we havegroups here that can help you to
untwist your life from yourunwanted sexual behavior and
from the sexual idols in yourlife, and it can even help you
walk out some of what may be thefallout of letting those things
(10:37):
go.
At minimum, find some others,one other hopefully, two or
three or four others who canwalk with you as you give up
this idol and who can hold youaccountable, who can help you
with the practicals, who canpray for you, who can stand with
you.
You're going to need help inthis process.
We gave ourselves individually.
We've given ourselvescollectively.
We are going to need others'help on the way out as we leave
(11:00):
these idols behind.
Of course, you're going to needthe Lord's help too.
And that leads me to the secondrecommendation, which is the
spiritual practices or thespiritual disciplines.
There is something powerfulabout age-old spiritual
disciplines to help us to bothexpose our idols or have them
revealed to us and to loosentheir grip on us.
Spiritual practices are not away to earn God's help to find
(11:25):
freedom from idols.
They're not a payment that wemake to anyone for the idol to
let us go.
They are simply posturingourselves in a position of
openness before the Lord thathis spirit can move more freely
in us, and so the fabric of ourlives can be less and less
conducive for the presence andthe hold of idols on us.
(11:47):
So, specifically especially Iwould recommend and there may be
other spiritual practices thatare just as effective or more so
especially I would recommendand there may be other spiritual
practices that are just aseffective or more so, but
specifically I would encourageyou to move towards some of the
spiritual practices of silenceand solitude I've been
practicing for many months now,just the practice of being still
before God for about 10 minutesmost mornings.
(12:14):
Still before God for about 10minutes most mornings.
Not seeking to actively pray Imay meditate on one passage or
pray one passage of scripture tothe Lord but simply to be in
the Lord's presence, to letmyself be, and I try to posture
even my body in a posture ofopenness.
I try not to cross my arms orcross my legs or cross my hands,
but just to position myselfwith a level of openness and I,
even in that, will picturemyself facing the Lord and just
(12:38):
being still with him.
And it is amazing what stirs inthose times.
Emotionally it can be difficult, physically it can be difficult
, mentally I can find myselfflooded with all sorts of
distracting thoughts.
But it is a way to quiet mybody, quiet my mind, quiet my
heart before the Lord and itdoes something.
I can't exactly explain what,but my faith, my trust in that
(12:58):
process is that as I open myselfto God, that just being in his
presence and him and openingmyself to him, that he may come
closer to me and he isdefinitely willing to come close
or that I can experience hiscloseness, that does something
to change the topography of myinner landscape and make it less
conducive, less hospitable toidols.
(13:24):
The second spiritual practiceI'd recommend is fasting, and
I'm going to do a whole podcaston this at another time.
But there is something powerfulabout fasting, and I mean
specifically fasting from food,abstaining from food for part or
a whole day, or multiple days.
There are various forms of this.
You can fast from sunup tosundown.
You can fast from 6 am to 6 pmand then have a small dinner.
(13:47):
You can fast from everything,for 24 hours, for 36 hours, for
48 hours but fasting abstainingfrom food, it simply does
something and, in another way,opens us, and one of the prayers
that I pray as I'm fasting issimply God, I want you more than
food.
John Mark Comer and others havepointed out that fasting does a
(14:08):
couple of things for us.
One it does somehow open us toGod's spirit in some ways, and I
can't describe that or how thathappens.
But there you have it.
It also is a practicing withour bodies of discipline.
It is learning to disciplineour bodies and say no to our to
our physical desires In thiscase our physical desires for
(14:28):
food.
But that certainly translatesto strengthening our will to be
obedient to God, saying yes tohim and no to other temptations
like our idolatries.
All right, let me land thisplane with this.
One of the false images that Ithink a lot of us have about God
is that somehow he is eitheraloof or he is very rigid with
(14:52):
us and demanding our worship anddemanding our obedience.
I think the reality that we areso free to worship idols, that
we are so free to give ourselves, is a is also a clear
(15:18):
indication that God's heart forus is good.
Why does God want us to obeyhim?
Why does God want us to lovehim?
Why does God want us to servehim?
Why does God want us to be withhim?
Why does God want us to pursuehim, to practice spiritual
practices, to engage inChristian fellowship, to do what
he says?
Why all these things?
Is it because he needs servants, people to do stuff for him
(15:41):
because he's too lazy?
No, is it because he's amegalomaniac and just wants
everything to revolve around himout of some kind of prideful
covering that's covering up somekind of deep insecurity?
And the maker of all things?
No, why does God want ourobedience, our allegiance?
Because he loves us.
(16:02):
All other allegiances end upholding us, binding us,
enslaving us, imprisoning us,destroying and killing us.
Allegiance to him does none ofthose things.
Allegiance to him is freedomand life and love.
It is a fellowship in thegoodness, the lavish generosity,
(16:23):
the holiness, the wonder, thelove, the joy of God.
Why does God demand ourobedience?
Because there, and only there,are we free.
I've been struck recently with a reality about me
that I'm not happy.
It's actually been sobering anda bit sad to realize how I have
idols in my life, and I want toshare just some of what I've
been going through my thoughtsabout idols, because idolatry is
(00:20):
very serious.
I think a lot of us today thinkabout idols and idolatry as
something that maybe is a thingof yesteryear.
It's a thing that happened inthe time of the Old Testament,
maybe in the New Testament,maybe it happened in third world
countries, but not in our lives, not in 21st century Western,
developed world.
(00:40):
But idolatry is alive and well,as alive and well as it ever
has been, and it is rampant inour culture, in our communities
and in our churches and, I'm sadto say, in me.
Before I go any further, though, I want to say the reason that
talking about idolatry isimportant.
The reason acknowledging ourown idolatry is important is
(01:03):
because that's where the hope isis important.
The reason acknowledging ourown idolatry is important is
because that's where the hope is.
Paul in Romans 1 talks aboutthis pattern that people
throughout time have followed,where they, in his words,
exchange the glory of theincorruptible God for and this
is my paraphrase, they exchangethe glory of the incorruptible
God for images in the form ofthe things that God has created.
(01:25):
That exchange is idolatry,where we turn away from the God
who has created all things.
Worshiping him, giving him ourlives, serving him, obeying him,
believing him, depending on him, loving him.
We turn away from him and giveour devotion, our attention, our
(01:47):
allegiance, our time, our love,our obedience, our faith to the
things that have been created.
That is idolatry and God,because our God, the real God,
is a God of love who does notforce us to love him in return,
because that would not be love.
(02:07):
Love has to be freely given.
We have to freely giveourselves to God in order for
our gift to be a real gift, andthat's worthy of a whole podcast
in and of itself.
But in order to love God inreturn for his love, for his
gift of life and for existenceand all that we have, in order
to love him, we must bringourselves freely.
We must give our devotionfreely, our obedience freely,
(02:30):
our affection freely, ourworship freely.
So when we choose to turn awayfrom him to an idol, to
something else, to bring us thelife and love and security
belonging whatever else is thatwe're seeking.
He lets us go, and it's notbecause he's indifferent about
us.
He lets us go because he simplywants us to be free and he
(02:51):
wants us to have.
He knows that he is best for us, but he will let us go.
And here I think of Jesus'parable of the prodigal son whom
the father let go.
But the reverse is not true.
The reverse is not real.
When we are done with our idols,when we realize they don't
satisfy, when we realize thatthey weren't what we thought
(03:12):
they were, when we realize thatthey haven't actually loved us
in return, when we realize thatthey have evil intent toward us,
when we realize that they arenot working for us and they're
leaving us emptier than wethought at the beginning, when
we realize that they are notworking for us and they're
leaving us emptier than wethought at the beginning, when
we realize that they arestealing from us rather than
giving anything to us that theypromised, when we realize that
they are not the bargain theytold us they were in the
(03:35):
beginning and we believe theywere.
When we find out that we wantto leave them, when we decide
we're done with our idols.
They are not like God.
They don't care about ourfreedom and they don't actually
want our love, and so when wetry to leave them, they often do
not let us go.
And this is at the heart of whyso many men and women wrestling
(03:58):
with unwanted sexual behaviorsfind themselves returning again
and again and again to theirbehaviors, even though they are
trying to follow God.
The idols they've worshiped haveaddicted them.
And, just as an interestingside note here, god is not
addictive, isn't thatinteresting?
(04:19):
The God of the universe, who isthe most beautiful, powerful,
wonderful, infinite, omnipotentcreature sorry, not a creature
creator is not addictive, butour idols and the things our
idols feed us are addictive.
And so, through brain chemistry, through spiritual oppression,
(04:42):
through demonization, throughwhatever means, when we try to
leave them, they will hold us,and they will hold us firm,
(05:07):
grieved and yet grateful that Ihave idols, that I idolize
ministry, that I idolize certainversions of success, that I
idolize my children, that Iidolize an image of myself, that
I idolize other people'sopinions, that I idolize food, I
idolize comfort, I idolizeconvenience.
I'm sure the list goes on.
(05:29):
I can't remember who it was.
It might've been Luther,might've been someone else, I
can't remember who referred tothe human being as an idol,
factory and man.
I'm just finding that in mylife these days.
I have churned out idols overand over and over again and just
to return to one of the ones Ijust named, that I idolize
ministry and ministry success.
(05:52):
I love being in ministry.
I'm honored to be in Christianministry.
I mean, all of us are, we'reall in Christian ministry.
If you're a Christian, you arein Christian ministry.
Hard stop.
Whatever you do, do it unto theLord.
You are in Christian ministry.
Hard stop.
Whatever you do, do it unto theLord.
And yet to be in vocationalministry is quite an honor.
And yet to find myself in aspace where I recognize that I
idolize this, that I use thisfor my own to draw people to
(06:14):
myself, to try to somehow givemyself a sense of validation and
worth and belonging man, that'sugly, that's idolatry.
So what are we to do aboutidolatry?
And for many of you listening,the one you may resonate with
most is idolatry of sex,idolatry of the male or female
(06:36):
body, idolatry of sexualpleasure, idolatry of being in
control of your own sexualpleasure, um, idolatry of your
own ego and all that, all theways that that feeds into your
sexual acting out.
For some of you listening, youhave an idol of your own image,
(06:57):
and what people think of you,and the way that that is playing
out in your life in regards tosexual sin, is that you're not
telling anybody about sexual sin.
You're withholding from peoplearound you people in your church
, maybe people in yourcongregation that you preach to,
maybe you're withholding fromyour husband or your wife that
this is an area of struggle foryou because you are so committed
(07:18):
to, so devoted to the idol oftheir opinion of you, or you're
so devoted to your ego that youbelieve they cannot live without
you, and so, if they find outthat you have these faults,
they're going to leave.
And then they will.
They will be um, devastatedsomehow, as though you are are
their sustance, as though youare their source of life.
(07:38):
So what are we to do about idols?
What are we to do when we findthese?
Well, step number one, Ibelieve, is we come to the Lord
and we say Lord, expose my idols, expose my idolatry, and we do
this as best we can with a heartof humility.
And we do this as best we canwith a heart of humility, not a
(07:59):
heart of scrupulosity, not aheart that demands perfection
and that we get this absolutelyright, but a heart that says I
don't want idols in my life, Iwant to rid myself of idols.
And as we become aware of idolsin our lives, that which we are
turning to, devoted to loving,committed to seeking life from
apart from God, we acknowledgeit, we confess it to God and we
(08:23):
confess it plain.
We just tell him Lord, I havebeen worshiping ministry success
.
Lord, I've been worshipingpornography.
I've been bowing down at theidol of sexual sin.
I've been bowing down at theidol of of sexual sin.
I've been bowing down at theidol of male bodies, female
bodies, sexual pleasure, uh, myown control of sexual, my own
(08:47):
sexual pleasure, you name it.
We acknowledge that humbly tothe Lord and we ask for his
forgiveness.
I think it's also important hereto acknowledge our idolatry to
other believers.
If you're of the denominationthe Christian tradition that has
a priest or pastor that expectsor is present, available for
(09:10):
confession, by all means go toyour priest or pastor for
confession.
If you don't go to a brother orsister, someone you can confide
in and confess plainly theidolatry in your life.
And in addition, now you haveto reckon with the ways the
idols are holding you, the waysthat they are not letting go.
Now there will be times, byGod's grace, there will be times
(09:34):
where a confession, anacknowledgement and confession
of your idol, will be enough torelease you from that idol.
But there will be many othertimes where you have become
addicted to it, where you havebecome habituated to it, where
your life is so entwined withthis idol that it is not letting
you go, where there'sdemonization that's connected to
it.
Now, for you where there's beensome kind of brain chemistry
(09:55):
change, for you where there'sbeen some, just a habit that's
formed in your life you maybeeven have formed your life so
around this idol.
That to give it up means thereare other natural consequences
involved financially,relationally, whatever.
And so now there comes theprocess of untangling yourself
from these false idols, and forthat I want to prescribe two
(10:17):
things.
The first thing I want toprescribe is that you get help.
So this is again whyregeneration exists there.
We have coaches here, we havegroups here that can help you to
untwist your life from yourunwanted sexual behavior and
from the sexual idols in yourlife, and it can even help you
walk out some of what may be thefallout of letting those things
(10:37):
go.
At minimum, find some others,one other hopefully, two or
three or four others who canwalk with you as you give up
this idol and who can hold youaccountable, who can help you
with the practicals, who canpray for you, who can stand with
you.
You're going to need help inthis process.
We gave ourselves individually.
We've given ourselvescollectively.
We are going to need others'help on the way out as we leave
(11:00):
these idols behind.
Of course, you're going to needthe Lord's help too.
And that leads me to the secondrecommendation, which is the
spiritual practices or thespiritual disciplines.
There is something powerfulabout age-old spiritual
disciplines to help us to bothexpose our idols or have them
revealed to us and to loosentheir grip on us.
Spiritual practices are not away to earn God's help to find
(11:25):
freedom from idols.
They're not a payment that wemake to anyone for the idol to
let us go.
They are simply posturingourselves in a position of
openness before the Lord thathis spirit can move more freely
in us, and so the fabric of ourlives can be less and less
conducive for the presence andthe hold of idols on us.
(11:47):
So, specifically especially Iwould recommend and there may be
other spiritual practices thatare just as effective or more so
especially I would recommendand there may be other spiritual
practices that are just aseffective or more so, but
specifically I would encourageyou to move towards some of the
spiritual practices of silenceand solitude I've been
practicing for many months now,just the practice of being still
before God for about 10 minutesmost mornings.
(12:14):
Still before God for about 10minutes most mornings.
Not seeking to actively pray Imay meditate on one passage or
pray one passage of scripture tothe Lord but simply to be in
the Lord's presence, to letmyself be, and I try to posture
even my body in a posture ofopenness.
I try not to cross my arms orcross my legs or cross my hands,
but just to position myselfwith a level of openness and I,
even in that, will picturemyself facing the Lord and just
(12:38):
being still with him.
And it is amazing what stirs inthose times.
Emotionally it can be difficult, physically it can be difficult
, mentally I can find myselfflooded with all sorts of
distracting thoughts.
But it is a way to quiet mybody, quiet my mind, quiet my
heart before the Lord and itdoes something.
I can't exactly explain what,but my faith, my trust in that
(12:58):
process is that as I open myselfto God, that just being in his
presence and him and openingmyself to him, that he may come
closer to me and he isdefinitely willing to come close
or that I can experience hiscloseness, that does something
to change the topography of myinner landscape and make it less
conducive, less hospitable toidols.
(13:24):
The second spiritual practiceI'd recommend is fasting, and
I'm going to do a whole podcaston this at another time.
But there is something powerfulabout fasting, and I mean
specifically fasting from food,abstaining from food for part or
a whole day, or multiple days.
There are various forms of this.
You can fast from sunup tosundown.
You can fast from 6 am to 6 pmand then have a small dinner.
(13:47):
You can fast from everything,for 24 hours, for 36 hours, for
48 hours but fasting abstainingfrom food, it simply does
something and, in another way,opens us, and one of the prayers
that I pray as I'm fasting issimply God, I want you more than
food.
John Mark Comer and others havepointed out that fasting does a
(14:08):
couple of things for us.
One it does somehow open us toGod's spirit in some ways, and I
can't describe that or how thathappens.
But there you have it.
It also is a practicing withour bodies of discipline.
It is learning to disciplineour bodies and say no to our to
our physical desires In thiscase our physical desires for
(14:28):
food.
But that certainly translatesto strengthening our will to be
obedient to God, saying yes tohim and no to other temptations
like our idolatries.
All right, let me land thisplane with this.
One of the false images that Ithink a lot of us have about God
is that somehow he is eitheraloof or he is very rigid with
(14:52):
us and demanding our worship anddemanding our obedience.
I think the reality that we areso free to worship idols, that
we are so free to give ourselves, is a is also a clear
(15:18):
indication that God's heart forus is good.
Why does God want us to obeyhim?
Why does God want us to lovehim?
Why does God want us to servehim?
Why does God want us to be withhim?
Why does God want us to pursuehim, to practice spiritual
practices, to engage inChristian fellowship, to do what
he says?
Why all these things?
Is it because he needs servants, people to do stuff for him
(15:41):
because he's too lazy?
No, is it because he's amegalomaniac and just wants
everything to revolve around himout of some kind of prideful
covering that's covering up somekind of deep insecurity?
And the maker of all things?
No, why does God want ourobedience, our allegiance?
Because he loves us.
(16:02):
All other allegiances end upholding us, binding us,
enslaving us, imprisoning us,destroying and killing us.
Allegiance to him does none ofthose things.
Allegiance to him is freedomand life and love.
It is a fellowship in thegoodness, the lavish generosity,
(16:23):
the holiness, the wonder, thelove, the joy of God.
Why does God demand ourobedience?
Because there, and only there,are we free.
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