Keeping Ourselves from Idols

“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:20-21).

When I was younger, and I was teaching ladies’ Bible studies in person with women (not on the internet), and I taught the pure word of God, and not the teachings of man, sometimes I would get this response, “But my pastor said…” And what they were saying, in essence, was that what their pastor said trumped what the Scriptures taught. If their pastor said it, they believed it, even if the Scriptures taught the opposite of that.

Now my style of teaching the Scriptures in person was always to ask questions to get the women to discover for themselves what the Scriptures were teaching so that I was not “spoon feeding” them what I believed. My goal was to get them to search the Scriptures and to learn at the feet of Jesus what he wanted to teach them from his word, i.e. to teach them how to hear from God, and how to learn what the Scriptures teach.

But so many people are so locked into what a certain man (or woman) said, usually (but not always) because they have certain credentials, that they end up becoming man followers instead of God followers, who are following certain people and particular church denominations and their theologies rather than searching the Scriptures for themselves to learn what the Scriptures actually teach. But we are to be followers of God, not of man.

A few years back I asked my pastor a question about a particular theology a neighbor was presenting me with, which I did not understand. His response to me was, “Now dearie, don’t worry about that, for that is not what our church denomination believes.” But I didn’t want to know what our church denomination believed. I wanted to know what the Scriptures taught, and I was hungry for the truth of the Scriptures, for so many are teaching lies.

More recently I have had men tell me that I need to listen to a particular theology of a particular church denominational head, and that basically I was to ignore what the Scriptures are teaching. And they quoted this man as though he is the authority, as though he is God, and as though I am to listen to him over what the Scriptures teach. But it is not what that man says that I am to follow. I am to follow what the Scriptures teach.

And a while back I was visiting a church fellowship, along with my husband, and we were in the process of determining whether or not this was where God wanted us. And I did ask one of the pastors a few questions, not out of line, but perfectly within the appropriate parameters that I was given. And his response to me was that I was to sit back and be silent, and that I was to let him be God’s voice to me. It is what he said, in writing. 

But no man is to be God’s voice to me in place of God’s voice. Can I learn from other people? Certainly! I can learn from children and youth and adults and anyone who is seeking the Lord and who is listening to the Lord and to what his word teaches, regardless of who they are (title or no title). But no man is going to replace the word of God. No man is going to replace God’s voice to me. But so many people are listening to men and not to God.

And what does this passage say to us today? “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” When we make man our God in place of God and his word, then we are worshiping idols. We are making human beings our idols, our God, in place of God, and in place of the teachings of his word. For it is the Holy Spirit who is to guide us into all truth. It is Jesus Christ who gives us understanding. God – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit – is to be our one and only God. No man, no matter how godly, should replace God.

And the Scriptures are quite clear on this subject that we are not to be followers of man, but of God, and that we are to be those who are testing whatever we hear, read, or see against the truth of the Scriptures, but in context. For many are teaching lies based off of Scriptures removed from their context and twisted to make them say what they do not say in the proper context. So context is always critical to correct biblical interpretation. So, be students of the Scriptures, test everything, and follow Jesus Christ.

Testing everyone: [Matthew 7:15-23; Matthew 24:11-14; John 10:1-15; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15; Philippians 3:2; 2 Peter 2:1-22; 1 Timothy 1:3-7; 1 Timothy 6:3-10; 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 1 John 4:1-6; Jude 1:1-25] 

Not followers of man: [Psalms 146:3; Psalms 118:9; Isaiah 40:23; Hosea 8:4; Hosea 13:10; Psalms 147:10-11; Jeremiah 17:5-6; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; 1 Corinthians 3:1-9,18-23; 1 Corinthians 7:23; Galatians 1:10; Galatians 2:12; Ephesians 4:14-16; Ephesians 6:5-8; Colossians 2:8,20-23; Colossians 3:23-24; 1 Thessalonians 2:3-8; 1 Peter 4:1-5; 2 Peter 3:17-18]

Be Thou My Vision 

attr. to Dallan Forgaill

tr. by Mary E. Byrne, pub.1905

arr. by Eleanor H. Hull, 1912

Irish melody

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;

Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art;

Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,

Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;

I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;

Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;

Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;

Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;

Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tow’r:

Raise Thou me heav’nward, O Pow’r of my pow’r.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,

Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:

Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,

High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,

May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heav’n’s Sun!

Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,

Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kxwtUSqrVY

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