Destroying Idols

Introduction

Picture yourself, if you will, in a worship gathering, and all of a sudden people begin to run around the building holding trash bags over their heads. Then, as one little boy is praying, they place the trash bag on him, working it down around his sides to enclose him in it. Imagine they are doing this because, “God’s Spirit is moving, and they feel led to do it, and they don’t want to quench the Spirit.”

What is your response? Like many, your response would probably be, “this is crazy.” And yes, this really did happen.

But how did they get there? They arrived at the place where that sort of practice is acceptable, by allowing, what I would call for our purposes this morning, the god of emotionalism to remain as a part of what they worship.

And as I work to serve as your under-shepherd, I realize that there is a particular pressure that you all are often under from worshippers of emotionalism

There is also a very real pressure from traditionalism as well.

This morning, I’d like to take some time to warn you against that…and encourage you to realize, you don’t have to feel pressured by any of it.

Today, I want to attempt something dangerous, but a danger that I believe is worth the risk.

I want to preach a stand alone message, one not a part of a verse by verse study of a book of Scripture. And I’d also like to preach from a text, and focus upon a secondary implication of the text, and not the primary point of the larger context.

I do so, prayerfully, not to make the text say what I want it to say…but to draw upon a principle that is laid out in much of Scripture, but clearly spelled out in an example in John’s gospel, in the 4th chapter, of John, in Jesus’ conversation with the woman at the well.

And in connection with that, I’ll also be giving you Scripture from different places in the Bible, in a topical sermon fashion as well.

I’d like to preach to you on destroying idols. And by that, I’m not referring necessarily to wooden statues, nor as we normally do and focus primarily upon those things that occupy the majority of our time. Both of those would fit, and both need to be destroyed.

But I’m referring to those things I feel are far more dangerous, because it almost never gets addressed in this manner: that those acceptable idols in modern Christianity, which actually makes one believe they are worshipping God.

One of the things stressed throughout Scripture, and here in this passage, is that there is a distinction between true worship, and false worship.

In Satan’s cunning and crafty ways, he is skilled as skewing our understanding and luring us away from true worship, oftentimes by offering new things to worship and we are even ignorant to the presence of those new things.

We can have all the terminology right…and wholeheartedly believe ourselves to be worshipping God…while not even truly knowing WHAT or WHO we are worshipping.

That was a major problem for the Samaritans, and I believe it remains one for you and I as well.

It is a war, for genuine worship of God. And there are MANY idols that we bring along with us to the worship gathering, that compete with God.

But for our time this morning, there are 2 I want to warn you about…and those are the idols of traditionalism and emotionalism.

John 4:19–24 ESV

19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Before we unpack those, let’s look at a portion of this conversation of Jesus

John 4:19–24 ESV

19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

In this whole context, Jesus is revealing to this lady quite a bit. He reveals who He is, the Messiah. He reveals her own sin. He reveals what God is....God is spirit, and therefore must be worshipped in the particular manner of which He is worthy.

He reveals that there is a distinction between true worship and false worship. And he reveals that the debate between Jew and Gentile for centuries over “where” to worship, is about to become null and void. For in the dawning of the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit will be poured out....and although to some degree everyone who has ever worshipped, worshipped in spirit and truth....now, true worshippers will not be identified by WHERE they worship, but only if they worship truly....in spirit and truth.

And in reality, the summation of our verses could be: The validity of worship isn’t location based, but object based.

But there’s one statement that Jesus made to this lady, that I want to focus our attention upon.

John 4:22 ESV

22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

John 4:22 ESV

22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

He doesn’t question whether or not they worship....He questions the object of their worship.

Worship is simply: acknowledging the worth of a deity, by selfless acts of obedience.

Jesus said, the Samaritans are not aware of the object of their worship....they are not even aware of who/what they are acknowledging as worthy to receive these selfless acts of obedience.

The Samaritans have an interesting history.

After Assyria defeated Israel, this particular land had many of its inhabitants exiled and taken to Assyria. There were some who were left behind.

The King of Assyria sent many from his own lands into this land....and they also brought their gods with them.

God’s judgement came upon them for idol worship, so a priest was located to instruct in the ways of worshipping the true God, and there was worship of GOD…and worship of idols.

Israelites intermarried with the Gentiles as well. This mixed group became known as the Samaritans

Later, it would appear the blatant idol worship was dropped, and only worship of the true God was allowed. But…through time, they had developed their own way of worship. Essentially having their own copy of the Scriptures, their own location of worship, etc.

Jesus’ point to the Samaritan lady, was that it was the Jews....not the Samaritans, who were the “vehicle” through which God’s revelation of Himself, and God’s Messiah, would come. Salvation, is of the Jews.

But....as for the Samaritans......they worship what they do not know.

Jesus is not questioning their sincerity....He is saying that the Samaritans themselves are completely oblivious as to the OBJECT of their worship.

That when they come to worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob....when they come to worship the God who delivered them from Egypt; that the object they are actually worshipping is unknown to them.

When they come to worship God, it isn’t God they’re worshipping

And that is what I fear is true of us many today as well. That often times we come to church to worship God....and we are able to rightly give a biblical, historical, orthodox definition of WHO God is....but our worship with our lives through the week, and our worship in our gatherings, are simply not worshipping God alone.

With our words, actions, and worshipful thoughts....it is not the true God we are acknowledging as worthy....but something else entirely.

We have a different standard than Scripture....and therefore whatever we’re obeying, isn’t God.

The first is simply to establish further, the principle of worship.

God deserves worship

To state it simply, and to focus upon two main idols we would be pressured to worship today......I believe much of modern day “conservative” Christianity carries with them the idols of emotionalism and traditionalism…and it’s these ideas we deem as worthy of selfless acts of obedience.

To make that point, let’s first ask the question....

This is the point everyone agrees upon. Jew and Gentile would have affirmed this.

What is True Worship?

What isTrue Worship?

John 4:24 ESV

24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

John 4:23–24 ESV

23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

John 4:21 ESV

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.

True worship of God has always been spiritual…and it has always been truthful.

There has never been a moment when insincere worship has been accepted by God

Isaiah 29:13–14 ESV

13 And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men, 14 therefore, behold, I will again do wonderful things with this people, with wonder upon wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the discernment of their discerning men shall be hidden.”

Isaiah 29:13 ESV

13 And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,

God did not accept their outward externalism....

Nor did He accept David’s act of obedience as he was bringing the ark of the Covenant back into Jerusalem in a way God’s Word doesn’t ascribe. God killed a man…and it was ultimately due to David’s poor execution of what could have been a legitimate act of worship.

So the new part of worship now, is not that it will be in spirit and truth....but that the spirit and truth with which New Covenant believers worship, is in a more full measure than those in the O.C.

Because we live in the fulfillment of redemptive historical prophecies and promises....for God’s plan was to have the Temple serve as the model, to show how He nows dwells with His people in the N.C.…and how He WILL dwell with them eternally.

Instead of His people coming to a temple, they have become the Temple.

Instead of the Spirit indwelling the Temple, the Spirit indwells all the people.

True worshippers now, don’t have to wait until their journey to Jerusalem…they worship by the power of the omnipresent Holy Spirit and the TRUTH that has been disclosed through the Messiah Himself.

John 14:6 ESV

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

True worship of the Father, is worship that is infused and informed by the power of the Holy Spirit, with Christ Jesus as the centerpiece.

D.A. Carson said this in relation to worship in spirit and truth:

The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel according to John 9. Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (4:1–42)

There are not two separable characteristics of the worship that must be offered: it must be ‘in spirit and truth’, i.e. essentially God-centred, made possible by the gift of the Holy Spirit, and in personal knowledge of and conformity to God’s Word-made-flesh, the one who is God’s ‘truth’, the faithful exposition and fulfillment of God and his saving purposes (cf. esp. de la Potterie, 2. 673ff.). The worshippers whom God seeks worship him out of the fullness of the supernatural life they enjoy (‘in spirit’), and on the basis of God’s incarnate Self-Expression, Christ Jesus himself, through whom God’s person and will are finally and ultimately disclosed (‘in truth’); and these two characteristics form one matrix, indivisible.

In other words, we mess up when we begin to say: “This group worships God in spirit, but not in truth” or “this group worships God in truth, but not in spirit.”

In reality....there is no true worship of God that isn’t by the power of the Spirit and the new life He sovereignly gives, in light of the truth of God’s Word-made-flesh, Jesus Christ.

Unbeliever

The idea that you can clean your life up, then come to God…proves you aren’t aware WHO this God is.

Your acts of obedience mean nothing, prior to coming to know Him as Lord and Savior.

The call to you right now is not: clean up your life. The call to you right now is not: run away from God, until you feel you can approach Him.

The call to you right now is: run to God. The only way to flee His judgement, is to run to Him for mercy.

Trust His promise, that Christ Jesus died for sinners. Trust His promise, that Jesus rose from the dead, and He carries with Him all those who trust in Him. Give your life to Him today....and He will save you.

Believer.....this question is before you.....is the way Jesus is referring to worship the way we think of worship?

I think, we have created the idols of traditionalism and emotionalism, with the best intentions....but based upon a false dichotomy of these two elements of worship....and with deadly results.

That out of a fear of becoming only truth driven, we give into emotionalism....and out of a fear of becoming chaotic and emotions-driven, we give into traditionalism.

So for the remainder of our time, I want to focus on these two concepts…what I’m calling two idols. I want to do my best to convey what I mean by the terms, and why I believe them to be idols

And I want to do so, so that you have the ammunition necessary to fight against that pressure to be lured into these ideas.

The Idol of Traditionalism

From the outset, let me say, traditions in and of themselves are not bad

There are traditions commanded in Scripture

There are traditions adopted by the church, and practiced for centuries, that would need very clear wisdom to stop their practice…because they are beneficial to the church.

Yet traditions, that are established by humans, are not infallible as is God’s Word

This is of course one place we depart from Roman Catholicism....we do not believe that which is passed down by the councils is to be taken as God’s Word

But we seem to have a carry over effect of that even in Protestantism....whereby what a generation believed 60 years ago, somehow becomes the Law of God.

We give no attention to what was believed 200 years ago....but only the closest fountainhead historically of our sect of beliefs, that we can draw upon as authoritative.

We then begin to develop the idea, that we are superior to others who claim Christianity, because we have the unadulterated version of the truth that no one else holds to....as is clearly seen by our standing for the “old paths.”

This.....is the idol.....of traditionalism.

It is an idol that is deceptive in that it makes one believe they are holding to truth....standing firm in the midst of compromise....staying true to God when every one’s being deceived by the devil.

But in reality, it is not God who is being worshipped at all. It is....man.

This was a problem in Jesus’ day as well:

Mark 7:6–8 ESV

6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “ ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

They had established rules, that were not clearly spelled out in Scripture. But they were based upon laws clearly spelled out in Scripture.

They became seen as ways to REALLY obey God. And of course, after a while, they become ways of proving whether or not one is obeying or disobeying God at all.

I hope we see the problem.

The Scriptures…the Word of God…the Law of God....the commandments of God…are given to man by divine revelation. They are God’s Words....so when a person says, “I’ll obey God’s Word,” and they’re doing it sincerely, it comes from a heart that ACKNOWLEDGES God for WHO He is....and acts with selfless devotion to show Him love and obedience.

God is worthy to be obeyed....this is what God’s Word says do.....I’ll obey......THIS IS WORSHIPPING GOD!

BUT…when man’s traditions are held high as if they are the commands of God, God is no longer the object of worship, when men and women obey those traditions.

No....we worship what we do not know.

In fact, when it’s man’s traditions that are seen as worthy of selfless obedience....it is man we are worshipping.

We’re obeying our own commands.

We are buying into the lie that, “you’ll be like gods, knowing good and evil.”

We become like those who crafted the golden calf, “who knows what happened to Moses…make us a god Aaron.”

Who knows what’s happened throughout church history....make us some rules for the here and now.

What about specific examples?

How do we worship the idol of traditionalism today?

It’s different in each group.

For some, it’s particular items of clothing

They twist particular areas of Scripture in order to fit well with those of whatever tradition they’d like to be a part of....and they hold those twisted interpretations of God’s Word up high and demand all Christians to follow.

I have heard some go as far as to say, “If you feel led to dress a certain way, then go back on that…you have gone back against God, and you cannot go to heaven.”

That is idolatry…for they hold high their traditions, which come entirely from themselves.

They worship....they know not what

I have heard others speak of blatantly heretical groups that deny the Trinity, but they have modest dress....and they’ll say, “I’ll leave it in God’s hands whether or not He sends those people to heaven or hell.”

It’s clear…whose word is authoritative in their movement

It’s not only dress....it’s seen in particular ways to end the service

Prayer benches or altars for example. There’s nothing sinful with them obviously....UNLESS they become seen as necessary for worship…or to remove them would be a hindrance to what God would want to do.

They are never talked about in Scripture. So the only way we can deem them as necessary for worship of God, is if we teach the “traditions of men as the commands of God.”

There are many more ways:

Bible translations (not paraphrases)

Particular song books

Some of these things are worthwhile discussions to have…in the area of “what is most wise?” But none of them are areas over which we should divide…unless....we are worshipping traditions and not God.

Traditionalism is pervasive....we must not give in to its convincing call. Because it is NOT a call of the Holy Spirit to worship the Father, in light of the truth of Christ....it is a call to worship man.

That’s traditionalism....next...

The Idol of Emotionalism

Traditionalism replaces God with man, by replacing God’s Word with man’s word…God’s truth, with man’s truth

Emotionalism does as well…but also.....

Emotionalism replaces the Holy Spirit, with human emotions…or an inner sensation of sorts that can be fully described

In the same way that traditions themselves are not bad…but traditionalism is.

It’s obvious that emotions themselves are not bad, emotionalism is.

God has made us emotional creatures. We will be emotional. Joy, peace, righteous anger....are all things which are descriptors of the Christian life.

And there will also probably be many times in your Christian walk, that God’s truth will overwhelm you to such a degree, you will respond emotionally. And that’s all well and good…

But emotionalism, is not. The idea that a particular emotional feeling is necessary to prove whether or not God’s Spirit is at work....that is not found in God’s Word.

If your test for whether or not a church is a good church or a bad church can be summed up by a question like this, “Can I FEEL the Holy Spirit there?” Then I think it’s safe to say, you are worshipping at the altar of emotionalism.

Because there is not one passage that teaches us to make that our standard. And if it’s not God’s Word guiding us....whose is?

Emotionalism, often comes about, as a response to decades of dead, cold, religious externalism. Where the doctrine is right on paper, but no one seems to actually believe it. They’re just going through the motions.

They show up…they know the right answers to say....but their heart just isn’t in it.

This is definitely not right. And it should be shunned. It should be fled away from.

Dead, cold, externalism is definitely ungodly

But the answer, cannot be, emotionalism.

Jerry Wragg has a great article introducing us to the rise of emotionalism in the church. In it, he has these words:

“I agree that we must ferociously guard against a passionless orthodoxy. We must violently flee externalism. Self-righteousness is a prime weapon of hell, persuading the dead that he’s alive. But obsessing over what we “sense” and “feel” is not a clear way forward because it merely turns a person further inward instead of truth-ward. There is a very real danger in reducing spiritual change primarily to talk of the presence or absence of emotional affection and experience. And more to the heart of my concern is that the contemporary emphasis on aesthetics and emotions is leading many toward a fatal attraction as hellish as legalism: a people full of passion but false faith!”

This is what was true of the Samaritans. Their sincerity in worship was never questioned. It was the object of their worship.

And in reality, the Jews after Christ’s death and ascension, who did not accept Christ....were in a similar place.

Romans 10:1–4 ESV

1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

Romans 10:1–2 ESV

1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

Romans 10:3 ESV

3 For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.

Emotionalism....is deadly.

When the god of emotionalism is allowed into the church, it takes over the whole of the Christian experience. We begin to answer basic questions much differently.

How do you know you’re saved?

With emotionalism, the answer is no longer based upon whether or not you trust your life into the hands of God, by trusting the promises of God found in Christ

The answer is based upon whether or not you FELT something at some point

How’s your walk with God going?

The answer is not based upon whether or not you’re growing in your knowledge of God’s Word, and your confidence in His truth

It’s based instead upon, whether or not you’re sensing God’s presence in your life (which is never given an objective standard to help you test it anyways)

We stop asking, “How do we grow strong in faith?” Or, “How can we grow in grace and knowledge?” As God’s Word says....

Romans 4:20 ESV

20 No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God,

2 Peter 3:18 ESV

18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Jude 20 ESV

20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,

Instead of, “How do I grow in faith?” or, “how do I grow in grace and knowledge?” We ask questions like, “How can we experience more of His presence?”

And God’s Word, never calls us, to ask that

And again....if it isn’t God’s Word that we are obeying, and calling others to obey....whose is it?

And again....if it isn’t God’s Word that we are obeying, and calling others to obey....whose is it?

The god of emotionalism, much like the god of traditionalism, has its own set of standards.

If you know what’s going to happen before you get there…that’s a dead church.

1- Your emotions must be affected, in order for it to be genuine worship

If you know you’ll probably be surprised by what happens, that’s an alive church.

2- Corporate worship can never be predictable

3- The Spirit can take over at any time causing you to get lost in your emotions.

Yet....God has had orderly, predictable worship throughout the Bible; throughout the history of the church as they interpreted the Bible....and yet now, we’re supposed to believe WHOSE word exactly on the standard for death and life?

The Spirit does indeed comfort us....He does minister to us in ways that affects us emotionally…but never disconnected from the truth of God’s Word.

The Holy Spirit also actually transforms our emotions (joy, peace, patience, etc.)

But worship in spirit and truth are two inseparable characteristics....not two pieces that needed to be added together to equal worship.

Needing emotional effect; unpredictability; and overwhelmed emotions by the Spirit, are all rules of emotionalism.

You will find many who believe those things in Christianity....but you will not find anywhere in Scripture that teaches it.

And if it’s not God’s Word that’s guiding us.....then whose is?

Ultimately, it’s man’s words/thoughts guiding us....and since that’s true, God is not the primary object of our worship…man is.

Just a quick example from the OT:

During the reign of Ahab, God’s people were greatly persecuted

Baal worship became prominent

So, in , Elijah calls for a showdown upon the mountain, saying that they will prepare sacrifices to each deity. Baal’s prophets can prepare their sacrifice for Baal, and Elijah will prepare the sacrifice for God.

As Baal’s prophets begin to call upon Baal, it becomes apparent who isn’t listening

1 Kings 18:26–29 ESV

26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made. 27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” 28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.

Heightened emotions didn’t help the false god answer....and heightened emotions aren’t needed for the true God to answer.

How does Elijah pray? After pouring water on the sacrifice to eliminate all possibility of man receiving credit....

1 Kings 18:36–37 ESV

36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. 37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

I cannot imagine the mix of emotions inside Elijah at this moment.....but there was no need for something unpredictable, or getting lost in the presence, or the need to feel a burning sensation to know God was present.

God does not respond to His people because they become emotional. Nor does He take them over and overwhelm their emotions to prove He’s at work.

He has always worked in the lives of His children, by them trusting in Him.

Elijah trusted....Elijah simply prayed.....God responded by fire.

Don’t feel pressured by the rules of emotionalism....trust God....pray to God, and do so passionately....obey God, and do so passionately.....and God will move, when and how He chooses.

Conclusion

So then…what do we do in response to all of this?

Study it yourselves

I encourage you to be Bereans and study God’s Word…and see if anything I’ve said today doesn’t line up.

If so…be courageous enough to bring it up. I’ll either change my stance, or I’ll talk with you about what the Bible says.

Examine yourselves

I have worshipped at the altars of these false gods

I have been their evangelists, calling people to give into emotionalism…calling people to follow traditionalism

I know what it’s like to have those nagging doubts as you’re leaving those things behind…but…I also know we can only go with God’s Word

So search your hearts, and where you see remnants of influence of these false gods....put it to death by God’s Spirit

Pray for others

Realize, we all are producing idols in our hearts at warp speed.

If we recognize these two idols and work to destroy them, don’t allow that to produce pride in your heart to look down on those still possessing these idols.

Pray that God would be merciful to them, and open their eyes, as He has yours.

To set them free of the frustration, of what is essentially self-worship

Belief and preach the truth

As you take everything back to God’s Word....embrace God’s Word alone; believe God’s Word alone; preach God’s Word alone.

Practice those traditions that lead you back to God’s Word

Understand emotions as they are explained by God’s Word

And don’t give into the pressure of other movements, that has standards, that are not God’s Word.

Let’s destroy the idols God’s Word exposes…and pray He exposes more.

Prayer