The Danger of Divided Devotion

Not everyone worships God as He instructs, but all of us worship something or someone. Throughout Scripture, God repeatedly teaches His people how to worship Him and warns them to turn away from idols. His instructions and examples are abundant, direct, and clear.

Jesus makes the issue personal, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37 NASB). This raises a powerful question: Do I disrespect or disobey God just to please my mother, father, son, daughter, or anyone else for that matter? Do I pursue the approval of others more than I pursue loving God? It is so easy to do.  We must watch out for this.

This call for wholehearted devotion is not new. In the Ten Commandments, God said: “You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.  You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods” (Exodus 20:3b-6a, NLT). These two passages are sobering reminders that God calls for our wholehearted devotion.

What is idol worship? Loving anything more than God. What is the problem? Idolatry divides our allegiance and draws our hearts away from trusting God. The Old Testament illustrates the severe consequences of idol worship. The loss of closeness in our friendship with God and protection and guidance found in walking in His ways are just some of those consequences.

But God also shows us how uselessness and empty idols really are. “The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear, and mouths but cannot breathe. And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them” (Psalm 135:15-18, NLT). This makes me stop and ask, “What am I worshiping? What idols have I allowed into my life?”

Whenever our hope, identity, or sense of worth is entrusted to anything or anyone other than God, idolatry takes hold.

We turn to idols when we seek control, comfort, approval, or other things apart from God. We choose to rely on ourselves instead of God the Father. As we see in Psalm 135, idols cannot provide what we are striving for. We may think control, comfort, or approval will give us peace, but really, we were made to trust Him. Only God the Father can provide the peace our hearts truly need. Isaiah 26:3 gives us this powerful promise: “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, all whose thoughts are fixed on You!” (NLT).

This is why Jesus warns us about divided allegiance. “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other” (Luke 16:13, NLT).

Removing Idols and Returning to God

Scripture shows us the contrast between the enemy’s destructive work and the abundant life Jesus gives: “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10, NLT). Idols cannot give us that life. Instead, they compete for our trust, distort our desires, and keep us from walking freely with God.

When Israel entered Canaan, God warned that what they failed to remove would become “splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides” (Numbers 33:55, NLT). In a similar way, idols that remain unaddressed in our lives continue to trouble and entangle us. That is not the abundant life Jesus wants to give us. That is the problem with idols.

God says, “And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God…Therefore come out from among unbelievers and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6:16-17). This passage calls God’s people to separate themselves from idolatrous compromise. Because we belong to the living God, we must not allow idols to share the place that belongs to Him alone.

Separation from idols is only part of the response. Scripture also calls us to return our hearts to God. First Samuel 7:3 gives us a clear picture of repentance: “Then Samuel said to all the people of Israel, ‘If you want to return to the Lord with all your hearts, get rid of your foreign gods and your images of Ashtoreth. Turn your hearts to the Lord and obey Him alone’” (NLT). Repentance is not only turning away from idols. It is turning our hearts back to God.

In Psalm 139:23-24, David prays: “Search me, O God, and know my heart…Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life” (NLT). We must pay attention to what we love and to anything that draws our hearts away from God toward self, approval, comfort, control, or anything else that begins to take His place.

Notice God’s compassion in Isaiah 30:19-22: “He will be gracious if you ask for help. He will surely respond to the sound of your cries. Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink, He will still be with you to teach you. You will see your teacher with your own eyes. Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, ‘This is the way you should go,’ whether to the right or to the left. Then you will destroy all your silver idols and your precious gold images. You will throw them out like filthy rags, saying to them, ‘Good riddance!” (NLT). We see God’s tenderness as He responds to our cries, teaches us, and helps our eyes and ears to see and hear the way He wants us to go.

Ultimately, removing idols is part of what it means to follow Jesus. In Luke 9:23-25, He says, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world, but you are lost and destroyed?” (NLT).

The answer to idolatry is not simply removing something from our lives, but returning our hearts fully to God. Jesus said, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind” (Matthew 22:37, NLT). Isaiah 31:6-7 also calls God’s people to return to Him and throw away their idols: “Though you are such wicked rebels, my people, come and return to the Lord. I know the glorious day will come when each of you will throw away the gold idols and silver images…” (NLT). That is the heart of being a God-follower and removing idols from our lives with God’s help. Return to the Lord, or continue following Him.

How Do We Respond?

Begin by turning your attention toward the Father. Ask Him to help you remember who He is and to show you the way He wants you to go.

What are you looking to for comfort, approval, control, or security apart from Him?

What might He be asking you to confess, surrender, or trust Him with today?

Ask the Father to search your heart, expose what you cannot see on your own, and help you recognize the schemes of the evil one.

Then choose to follow Him. Ask Him to shape you into the person He has called you to be and to help you glorify His name in the choices you make today.

May the Lord help you recognize what competes for your heart, surrender it to Him, and follow Him with wholehearted devotion.