Daniel 3
This particular principle has more to do with Daniel’s friends than Daniel himself. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had gone through the Babylonian training and ended up in leadership in the Babylonian Empire.
Meanwhile, Daniel had interpreted a dream that had been troubling Nebuchadnezzar. In this dream, God showed Nebuchadnezzar an image of a man that symbolized the current kingdom, Babylon, as the head and then the subsequent kingdoms that would follow.
Nebuchadnezzar took this message from God about the temporal nature of his own kingdom … and proceeded to make a huge image of himself made completely of gold. Then Nebby decided that everyone had to bow down to it.
After three years of a diet of vegetables and water, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had seen the favor and faithfulness of the Lord. They would not bow down. The consequence of not bowing down was to be put in the fiery furnace. Nebby practically pleaded with them to reconsider. Their response? “God will deliver us. But even if he doesn’t, we will not bow down.”
We all know the rest of the story well. Basic Sunday School type stuff. God did deliver them and Nebby even saw a “fourth” person like the “son of God” in there with them. The three young men emerged from the fiery furnace unscathed.
While this is a very familiar story, the principle I would like to take away today is, what image are we being asked to bow down to? Those who seek to serve the Lord alone will bow to NO OTHER IMAGE. What does that mean?
Well, surely we don’t bow to actual idols, at least in our culture, so we feel safe from idolatry. But did you know that the scripture equates greed and covetousness with idolatry? So even though we do not bow down to a little (or big) image of something or someone, we still might be guilty of idolatry.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego all served in the empire. They weren’t rebelling against the whole empire. They just would not bow down to any besides the true God. Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon had its place for its time, but it did not have THAT place.
So at what point do we bow to something? When you seek your identity from that thing, or your security, or your provision. When you give place to something that should only belong to God. If we continually have faith in the state to rescue our nation from every woe, then we bow down and worship the state. If we have faith in our nation to police the world and its conflicts, then we bow down and worship our own nation. If we see a political party or candidate as a reason for hope and prosperity, we bow down to those things.
America, its government and leaders have a place … but not THAT place.
We could also get into religious idolatry, as Alice left in a comment from yesterday’s post. The hero worship that happens with ministers in the Body of Christ is quite disconcerting at times. To see preachers, teachers, and worship leaders marketed like the latest celebrity is more worldly than we seem to understand. It goes directly against Jesus’ example and teaching. He wouldn’t let them make him an earthly king and continually told people to NOT tell anyone what he did, even though they did it anyway. He also taught that “the first will be last” and leadership in the Body works differently from the world, that we shouldn’t even let ourselves be called by names like “teacher” or “father” or other position type mentalities.
Those are the words of Jesus, of course.
There are other types of idolatry. Idolatry is basically giving created, temporal things the place of the eternal Creator. This is why Paul lists greed and covetousness as idolatry. You seek your satisfaction from things. True satisfaction can only come from God.
As people seeking to serve the Living God, be sure that you bow to only him. He is a jealous God, and he broaches no competitors. Not your career or your wealth or your entertainment or your country or your politics or your heroes. Nothing should have his place.
Thoughts?
Peace.
Our typical notions of worship can become an idol as well.
A few years back I knew a friend of mine was upset about something. I asked if this friend wanted to talk about it. The answer? “I can’t. It’s time for Bible study.”
This isn’t an isolated incident either. What would happen if we were late for or even (gasp) skipped a sermon to make something right with a brother or sister?
Bible study shows what God values more, so how do we mess that one up?
Good stuff, Britt. The take away principal and question posed; “what image are we being asked to bow down to?” is thought provoking indeed. It is good to remember that the “shadow” or characterizing of a person (ie: Jezebel), or a symbol (ie: Bronze Serpent), or a system (bowing down to idols) in the OT has it’s modern, deceptively disguised, relevant counterpart issue today, and that things are definitely not as they seem!
The form of idolatry that is most unsettling (because of my recent revelation of the depths of it and it’s horrifying implications) would be that which is shadowed in Exodus 32 where Israel gets tired of waiting for Moses to come down, reckons him dead, throws in all their gold treasure given to them from God as they made exodus from Egypt to the “Priest” commanding that he make them some gods “that shall go before us.” The “priest” does their bidding then makes an alter to the golden calf WHICH THEY CALLED ELOHIYM! He declared a feast, they gave burnt and then peace offerings, ate, drank and then rose up to play. When Moses and Joshua came down they heard “the noise of war in the camp” which was actually the sound of singing and then they beheld the people dancing and partying it up before a gold cow. Those sadly deceived people were made to drink of the ‘cup of their abomination’, so to speak, and then were killed by their own brethren, the sons of Levi, who were “on the LORD’s side.” Reminds me of a certain Jehu, a few certain enochs throwing down a certain deplorable harlot.
The very idea that we have the capacity within us to ‘create god’ in our religious systems, or even more terrifying; our own minds, based on our faulty, or lazily obtained knowledge of Him and then call this figment of our imaginations “The Most High God”, not only misrepresenting Him to the world but bringing about the death of our souls is chilling. There is much to be learned from this story in Exodus, as well from the book of Daniel…if we are willing to search it out then humble ourselves to hear it. Truly by grace are we saved and miraculously redeemed from these wicked propensities of humanity.
Most recently revealed to me is the fearful, massively deceptive, idolatry of focusing on and glorifying a temporal ‘geographic’ shadow as if it were the eternal fulfilment, ie: the Jerusalem from beneath and the Jerusalem from above. Currently I am searching out the scriptures on this one so I can come out of it fully! Israel was in this same idolatrous state when their long awaited Messiah came and they did not recognize Him due to their temporal earthly expectations of a king. Although a remnant did not miss the day of their visitation and were found crying out “Hosanna” to their humble King who rode in on foal of a donkey, many of “God’s chosen people” called for the releasing of a murderer in place of a savior and declared that they had “no king but Ceasar.” Very scary. Very, very scary indeed.
If we, the “Israel of God”, would simply just have no other gods before Him: not glorify “the man of God” and command him to ascend the hill of the Lord for us and then come down and tickle our ears, instead of entering into the glory of searching Him out for ourselves, since now in Christ the veil has been rent!! If we would just not try to make anything with our own hands to be with God. Although our accomplishments look and are lauded as silver or gold down here they will be proven to be hay and stubble on that Day. If we would examine ourselves, as you so effectively challenged us to do, to see what exactly it is that we are bowing down before to serve, then we might know the truth and be set free.
O, that we would have the correct knowledge of the I AM, this infinitely wild and Jealous God, before the Day that He comes to claim and simultaneously avenge His bride. For Jealously is a Husband’s fury and who can endure the Day of His coming? He will purify the sons of Levi (the ones on the LORD’s side) because they have turned to Him and fear His Name. And the people shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked. Between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve Him (Malachi 3). For as the prophetic scripture reveals: When His judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants will learn righteousness (Isaiah 26:9). And blessed is He who is not offended because of his faulty knowledge of the One True God Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
I believe selfishness is one of my biggest idols. I think of myself a lot and how what I do and others do affects me. I bow to my flesh, instead of the spirit in me.
Living in a house full of troubled teens I see this a lot. The idol of self. I see in in the Littles, in the Bigs, in MYSELF.