THE REAL IDOL

Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Idols are sacred to those who worship them; they depend, trust, and rely on them. Whatever you depend on and feel you can't do without has become your god. The real idol is not the one carved with wood; it is the one carved in our heart; that thing, that person, that feeling that has replaced the sacred place made for God alone in our lives. That habit that you can´t do without, that substance that is controlling you, you are worshipping it, you feel you can't do without it, but you can sacrifice your relationship with God just to have a taste; it has become an idol. That is why it is very easy to miss it; you may say, Nene, but I am not worshipping any other gods. I don't worship money, and I am not bowing to any image. It is true, but you are worshipping that child who is a gift from God, you are nursing an offense, bitterness, you are worshipping fame that God gives to you, you are worshipping that relationship, you are saying that it is a no-go area, that is a sacred line that no one dares to cross. You are saying nobody comes between me and this thing. Which means even  God cannot stop you. Think about it for a second. Are there any such things in your heart? What is it that has occupied that space in your heart that is meant for God that you need to let go of? God is a jealous God, and you are His spouse; He cannot share your attention with anyone or anything. 

Exodus 20:1 And God spake all these words, saying, 2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Our relationship with Jesus is the utmost; every other thing is a fringe benefit, and that is the reality that needs to sink in. If not, you will find yourself having an idol. God hates idolatry. Let go of your idol so that you can have a better relationship with the Holy Spirit. You don't need to compromise your faith by putting your job or a friend first, forgetting that God gave them to you in the first place, and by sacrificing your attachment to them for your relationship with God. He will give you a better one. God really wants to bless you, but that blessing may become an idol, and He hates it. That's what led Him to test Abraham; He thought Isaac was competing with his love for Him. Most times, the devil is not that powerful that he will get his way in our lives, no, but when we break the rules of our relationship with God, he will step in as a persecutor. If Isaac happens to come from my hometown and dies, we will say witches have killed him. We have to be careful not to make the gift of God an idol and place it above Him. Our relationship with God is more important than the gift; He would rather save our souls than let His gift cause problems for us. We really need to balance things so that we can enjoy the blessing of God. If you want the blessing of Abraham, you need to pass the test of your love for God by letting go of your idol. 

Rachel failed by holding on to the gods of his father's house; her love for Isaac was not enough; Isaac's love for her was not enough to let go of her idol. She cleaved to them. At that moment, she had made her choice between the God of Jacob and the god of her father´s house. When you cleave to the wrong things, you will begin to lie to cover up, and that too is a sin.

Genesis 31:32 With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them. 34 Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not. 35 And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images.

We have many Rachels in our generation today who will never let go of their idol, no matter the kind of love God shows them; it is heartbreaking. Our God is a consuming fire and a jealous God; no one can quench His anger against anyone who replaces Him with an idol. One may say, but Nene, I am not sacrificing to the devil; immediately you choose a side, you have made a sacrifice, and it is to the devil. God is love, and love is all about sacrifice. You have sacrificed your relationship with God for the devil. God considered it hatred towards Him.

Deuteronomy 32:16 They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger. 17 They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not. Deuteronomy 32:21a They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities:

Friends, do you have anything in your custody contesting your love for God? You need to focus on your journey, and the only way to do that is to drop the distractor. Drop them quickly, pray the salvation prayer below, and be blessed, in Jesus' name.

Lord Jesus, I repent of my sins and accept You as my Lord and Saviour. I believe you died for me so that I could become a new man/woman. Forgive me all my sins, wash me with your blood, and give me a new heart. Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul. Now I believe I am born again. And I am a child of God. Amen!

NENE ISAH,

#womanyouarefree; Twitter: @woyouarefree; Email: neneisahoc@gmail.com

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