Ex 20:4-6 – No idols – sermon notes
Do you feel a bit like the American sailor who heard the Ten Commandments being recited? As he listened to all this stuff about adultery, lying, coveting, and so on, he began to feel more and more uncomfortable. But as he reviewed the whole list in his mind he turned to his neighbour, and said, “Well, at least I’ve never made a graven image.”
So, can we relax on this one and just worry about the other nine? I’m afraid not. This commandment is as relevant to each of us as all the others.
Let’s look at the What, the Why, and the How of the 2nd commandment.
1. What?
This commandment refers to making and worshiping of any man-made image of God. It is closely related to the 1st Commandment. The 1st Commandment, is about Whom we should worship; the 2nd is about How we should worship. According to the 1st Commandment, it is possible to worship the wrong god; according to the 2nd Commandment, it is possible to worship the right God in the wrong way.
The Israelites would have been sorely tempted the break the 2nd Commandment. Both Egypt, the country they had just left, and Canaan, the land towards which they were heading, were full of images of various deities. The Egyptian gods Apis and Hathor were both represented by a bull. Baal, the Canaanite storm god, was pictured as a mighty warrier, wielding a club and a lightning bolt. The Israelites must have thought, “everyone else is making images of their gods, why shouldn’t we make an image of ours?”
Indeed, it wasn’t very long before the Israelites broke this commandment. In Exodus 32 we read how Aaron made a golden calf, and set up an altar in front of it, and a feast was called in honour of the calf as a “festival to the LORD (Jehovah)”.
Again, in 1 Kings 12:28 we read how Jeroboam I set up images of two golden calves, one in Bethel, and the other in Dan, so that they wouldn’t have to travel to Jerusalem to worship.
In neither case was there an intention to depart from the worship of Jehovah. In neither case had Jehovah been completely forgotten. These images were set up not as rivals to Jehovah, but as aids to the worship of him. But in both instances a great sin was committed. The honour due to the Lord was given instead to images of him. This was idolatry.
Idolatry is an ever-present danger. Like weeds in a garden, idols and images crop up not so much through forethought and planning, but through carelessness and neglect. We may think that our Roman Catholic friends, with their crucifixes, statues of Mary, relics, prayers to the saints, and adoration of the bread and wine in the eucharist, are in danger of violating the 2nd Commandment. But Protestants will do well to consider what mental images of God they have formed:-
- Policeman – waiting to blow the whistle as soon as you step out of line
- Firefighter – useful in an emergency
- Grand Old Man – kindly, but senile and ineffective
- Master of Ceremonies – just wanting everyone to have a good time
Whenever you are tempted to say, “I like to think of God as…” or “My God would never…” then there is a grave danger that you have reduced God to an image of your own making.
Whether our images are physical or mental, they all represent an attempt on our part to turn God into something other than, or less than, he really is, an attempt to bring him down to our level, an attempt to make him more manageable. And God says, “Don’t do it.” “No idols.”
2. Why?
(a) Because the Lord is a jealous God. Listen to John Stott: ‘It is written that the Lord, “whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (Ex 34:14). Now jealousy is the resentment of rivals, and whether it is good or evil depends on whether the rival has any business to be there. To be jealous of someone who threatens to outshine us in beauty, brains or sport is sinful, because we cannot claim a monopoly of talent in those areas. If, on the other hand, a third party enters a marriage, the jealousy of the injured person, who is being displaced, is righteous, because the intruder has no right to be there. It is the same with God, who says, “I am the Lord, that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols” (Isa 42:8). Our Creator and Redeemer has a right to our exclusive allegiance, and is “jealous” if we transfer it to anyone or anything else.’
(b) Because the Lord is an incomparable God. ‘”To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.’
An idol is dumb; but God speaks. When Moses came down from the mountain did not come down with a picture or a statue of God but with ten words on two tablets of stone. God had chosen to reveal himself by his word. The task of communicating the reality of God was entrusted not to connoisseurs of the fine arts but to prophets.
An idol is confined to one place; but God is totally unconfined. In fact, says Isaiah, the idol has to be nailed down in its place, lest it topple over (Isa 41:7). Acts 7:48f “The Most High does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says: “‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me? says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be?”
An idol is material; but God is spirit. Isaiah ridicules idols and poors scorn on those who fashion them. “Shall I bow down to a block of wood?” jeers the prophet. “God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (Jn 4:24)
An idol is created; but God is Creator. Rom 1:25 They ‘worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator–who is forever praised. Amen.’
That’s why we should not worship idols: because God is a jealous God, because God is incomparable.
3. How?
How then should God’s people worship him?
(a) We should worship him ‘in spirit’. The teaching of the Bible on idols and images reminds us that God is much more interested in the internals of worship than in the externals. Have you ever noticed the almost deafening silence of the NT on the outward form and structure of worship, on the kind of buildings we should meet in, on the kind of liturgy we should use. It seems that if the sacraments are observed, if there are regular opportunities for prayer, praise, and preaching, what matters most thereafter is our attitude of heart. God is a spirit, and we are to worship him in spirit and in truth.
‘God is a Spirit infinitely happy, therefore we must approach him with cheerfulness; he is a Spirit of infinite majesty, therefore we must come before him with reverence; he is a Spirit infinitely high, therefore we must offer up our sacrifices with deepest humility; he is a Spirit infinitely glorious, we therefore must acknowledge his excellency…he is a Spirit infinitely provoked by us, therefore we must offer up our worship in the name of a pacifying mediator and intercessor.’ (Stephen Charnock)
(b) We should worship him ‘in Christ’. God has not revealed himself in images made by human hands, or dreamed up by human imagination; but he has revealed himself in his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ is the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15). He is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being (Heb 1:3). No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known (Jn 1:18). Any one who has seen him has seen the Father. (Jn 14:9).
If you want an image of God, take a look at Jesus Christ. If you want to approach God, come through Jesus Christ. If you want to live your life for God, live it in Jesus Christ.
‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.’
‘Keep your eyes upon Jesus. Let nobody else take his place. So that hour by hour you may know his power. ‘Til at last you have won the great race.’