We are not to worship any physical representation of God. We need to remember that this commandment was given to the people of Israel after they had spent generations in the land of Egypt and the Egyptians worshiped many different gods, most of whom were represented in the form of animals. For example, the god Horus had the head of a falcon; the god Anubis had the form of a jackal. While the Egyptians worshipped these images of their gods, the God of Israel wanted to separate his people from the Egyptians and all the other people around them who worshipped images and idols so gives this command to not create any image of him that could be worshipped.
One of the reasons God gives this commandment is to help his people realize that they are different than the people around them. They don’t worship carvings of stone or wood, they don’t worship images of animals or people – they worship the God who created it all. God wants to set his people apart and this is one clear way of doing it. While everyone else was creating and worshipping images of their gods – God says I want you to worship me in spirit and truth – don’t be like the people around you, God says, don’t make and bow down to or worship any physical representation of me.
Now there is a good reason why we should not make any image of God, any physical representation of God is limiting. Any and every physical representation of God limits God in some way and that not only insults God because the image falls dreadfully short of the real glory and power of God, but it also misrepresents God to the world. We see this all at work in the story of God’s people disobeying this commandment and making an idol of God in the golden calf. Exodus 32:1-6.
So after the 10 Commandments were given, God called Moses back up Mt. Sinai to receive more laws which would help the people live as God’s unique people in this world. While Moses was away, the people became afraid and unsure if Moses is ever going to come back and they want to be able to see God, so Aaron takes all their gold and melts it down and forms it into the image of a calf. They weren’t worshipping a foreign god here, they were still worshipping God, but in the form of a calf which was to be for the people a symbol of strength and power. But that calf insulted God, not just because they made an idol after God said not to, but because there is no way a calf – even a golden calf – could fully represent the power and glory and strength and majesty of God. While they might be a symbol of strength, but calves die, calves get sick, calves can be overtaken and destroyed by something bigger and stronger so turning God into a golden calf is not only limiting – it is insulting. Any image of God is limiting and that limitation insults God and weakens our relationship with God.
So we need to take this commandment seriously, because we know that God does. In fact here is how serious God is, once Moses comes down from Mt. Sinai and sees what the people have done, he doesn’t just destroy the golden calf, look at what he does… Exodus 32:19-20. God is serious – he says do not make any image of him, he doesn’t want us to create any idol that we might worship.
Now a question that immediately comes up is what about religious art that depicts God? What about things like the Sistine Chapel?
So we don’t create any image of God because it insults God by failing to take into account God’s full nature and it doesn’t reflect to the world God’s full power and glory. Now let’s look at the other side of this commandment, we are not to bow down to, worship or serve any other idol. Now, you may be saying to yourself that we don’t do that today. We don’t have statues of calves or birds at home that we bow down to or worship, but there are idols that can consume us and become the center of our lives if we are not careful. These idols are things like wealth and power, status and success, fame and love and we see images of these idols everywhere. Every time we turn on the TV and see pictures of people happy and fulfilled because they have a new car or new clothes or phone or house, we begin to think that we need those things to make us happy. When we see those images again and again and again we begin to believe that we really can’t live without them and so we give ourselves to acquiring whatever it is that we think will make us happy. It’s not just wealth and material possessions that can become an idol in our lives; it can also be fame and success. Think about the millions of people who each year try to get on TV shows like American Idol, Big Brother and Survivor. Think about the people who do absolutely absurd and even dangerous things on the internet with the hopes of being noticed and having their videos go viral so they can become famous. Wealth, fame and material possessions can become idols we will worship if we do not guard our hearts and lives, so how do we protect our hearts from these idols and make sure we are worshipping God alone? The answer is found by going back to the story of Moses and the golden calf.
When Moses came down the mountain and saw the golden calf he destroyed it. He smashed that idol to pieces and then ground those pieces into dust and we need to have the same zeal when it comes to tearing down idols in our own lives. If always needing to buy new or bigger and better things has become an idol then we need to cut up our credit cards and stay away from stores. If social media as become an addiction we need to cancel our facebook accounts. We need to take seriously and think creatively about how to smash the idols that tempt us today.
In 1994 I realized that I spent too much time watching TV so when I heard about a ministry that needed a TV, I gave them mine and for 5 months had no TV in my house at all. For 5 months I removed the idol from my life and while I do have a TV today, I don’t watch it anywhere near as much as I did then. We need to identify those things that are working their way into the center of our lives and those things that are becoming an idol and then we need to do whatever it takes to tear them down. Moses tore down the golden calf and worked to help people get their focus back on God. Generations later, the people of Israel again were worshipping idols and so when Josiah became king he tore down the sacred poles and stones and altars that the people set up and worshipped in an effort to get their hearts and lives back on God. If we can identify an idol in our lives, we need to tear it down and then we need to ask others to help us keep our eyes and minds and hearts on God.
Let me end this morning by sharing one of the reasons we need to take this command seriously, the Bible says that over time we become what we worship, look at Psalm 115:8. Whatever we worship is what our lives will reflect and if you think about this, it makes sense. If we spend all of our time thinking about accumulating more and more things, eventually that is all we will talk about, all we will care about, and all people will see in us and hear from us. If all we work for is fame, then when we reach a place of success – it won’t be enough and we will have to find more ways to get noticed. Whatever we focus on, whatever is at the center of our lives is what our lives will reflect and the only thing that will bring life and joy and peace and love is God. It is only when God is at the center of our lives that we will experience what is known as the fruit of God’s spirit which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. When wealth or fame or success is at the center of our lives then what we experience and reflect is greed, pride, restlessness and self-centeredness. We become what we worship and so if we want life and if we want to reflect life and love to the world around us we need to smash any idol that has found its way into our lives and worship God alone.
