Those who make an image, all of them are useless, and their precious things shall not profit; they are their own witnesses; they neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed. Who would form a god or mold an image that profits him nothing? Surely all his companions would be ashamed; and the workmen, they are mere men. Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; yet they shall fear, they shall be ashamed together. (Isaiah 44:9-11)

Modern Day Idols

Man is a funny creature. He will venture into the woods to cut a tree down so that he can fall before the broken tree and worship it. The idol is not just a piece of wood. There will be great care to fashion the idol with imagery and beauty. He will fashion the idol in the coals working long and hard to create his masterpiece. With a rule and chalk and plane and compass, the idol will take shape in the figure of a man. The irony of the man’s work is that while he creates an idol with one part of the tree, he takes the other part to build a fire to warm himself and cook his dinner. When the idol (a former piece of a tree) is completed, the man falls down before his creation and prays, “Deliver me, for you are my god.”

The senselessness of idolatry is the god is made by a man, rather than the god creating the man. A deceived heart has turned the man aside to believe in a contradiction of foolishness to believe a lie the god will deliver him. When the storms come, the man must protect the god. Thieves can break in and steal the god if the man is not watching. There is no power in the god. He does not speak or move on his own. As a creation of man, the god is dependent upon its creator. Why would someone form a god or mold an image that profits him nothing? The prophet Isaiah warned men against the foolishness of idolatry and its vanity.

Isaiah’s warnings against idolatry still have applications in the modern world. Some religions use idols in their worship, but more prominent are the idols that men worship who profess allegiance to Jesus Christ. An idol is something created by man to give him security, hope, and pleasure that he can control as he desires. The modern-day idols are found in the security placed upon the pursuit of wealth, houses and cars, retirement, good health, the physical body, and the beauty of the body. Billions of dollars are spent to secure the good life for the enjoyment of those who gain the whole world in their stuff. What separates an idol from something of value is purpose. What if a man works his entire life to acquire a home, cars, wealth, retirement, and pleasure, and then he dies? What has he gained? Has he not chopped down the tree of the world in exchange for his soul? The foolishness of an idol comes when a man falls down to worship it and pleads for the idol to deliver him.

Money will not deliver a soul. The biggest house and the fastest car cannot save a lost soul. Spending thousands of dollars and hours upon hours to beautify the body will not change the fact that age will transform the body. Making millions of dollars to take one’s ease, eat, drink, and be merry, still ends in death. Is not life more than what a person has? Is there not a lie in my right hand? Is there a God besides the one True God? There is no other rock. True happiness comes when a man turns his heart toward God. It is then he finds his true value in life. The blessings of life can be enjoyed, but the heart is not dependent upon a man’s stuff to deliver him. He knows the only deliverance is through Jesus Christ. Many idols today do not have the label of idol upon them; but they are idols. Do not put faith in those idols. Serve the Lord Jesus Christ.