For the past couple of Sundays, we have been in the text of 1 Corinthians 8. The issue in Corinth was eating meat sacrificed to idols. Perhaps the most difficult interpretive question is this: “What is today’s cultural equivalent to eating meat sacrificed to idols?” There are actual equivalents in parts of the world where pagan worship is still prevalent. But in twenty-first century America, there are not a lot of idol temples.

But let’s say a new religion came to town. The proponents built a beautiful temple in Greenacres. The local news did feature stories on this new temple. They even advertised on local TV and the internet.

In the news accounts and their online advertising, they were very open that they worshiped a new god, and invited people to worship with them. Part of their worship included the ritual slaughter of cows, sheep, and chickens, offering their blood and flesh as sacrifices to their god.

They also had a team of highly-trained chefs who then cooked gourmet dishes for the public. “Come and worship, then dine in one of our private dining rooms. An experience like no other.”

Would you go? Probably not. I’m confident the people of VBC would not go to a temple dining room and eat such food. Why not? It’s obvious. Any faithful Christian would recognize that associating with the worship of false gods would be sin.

But such things are not part of our culture. Such things are, well, pagan. It’s wrong. We are enlightened. Our western minds are secularized to easily dismiss pagan religions as backward and wrong.

As Christians, we recoil at the idea because we know there is only One God and Father and One Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor 9:6). We would never worship idols. The thought of worshiping some false god is abhorrent to us as we recognize the demonic forces behind it.

But does what we worship make idolatry any less offensive to God? Because of our Western sensibilities, we are lulled into a falsehood that we don’t have to worry about idols. We may not have a direct cultural equivalent to eating meat sacrificed to idols, but that doesn’t mean idol worship no longer exists.

That’s the insidious nature of idolatry in the twenty-first century. We have been duped into thinking it couldn’t happen to us because we’re too smart to bow down to an idol of wood or stone.

But what about an idol of glass, steel, or aluminum? What about an idol you plug in to charge its lithium-ion battery? What about an idol of an ever-increasing bank account? What about an idol of flesh and blood, the person you just can’t live without? What about an idol of success, appearance, health, and beauty? What about an idol that tastes good, is satisfying, and you can’t get enough of? What about an idol of an obsessive hobby, gaming, or me-time? What about an idol of self?

For the Corinthians, idolatry was the frontal assault of pagan worship. It had worked for millennia. People always fell for it. But the enemy has a different tactic for us.

The brazen temptation of Jesus by Satan should be a sober warning. None are immune to the temptation to idolatry.

Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’ ” Then the devil left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him. (Matthew 4:8-11)

Even Jesus was tempted to worship someone or something besides God. We all worship something. Either we worship God, or we do not. If not, we replace Him with something else. Nancy Pearcey explains in Total Truth, 

“As Romans 1 puts it, we either worship and serve the true God or we worship and serve created things (idols). Humans are inherently religious beings, created to be in relationship with God—and if they reject God, they don’t stop being religious; they simply find some other ultimate principle upon which to base their lives.”

The list of possible idols is long. We must be wary of them and dispatch them as Jesus did. We must worship the Lord our God and serve Him only.

The idols in your life? They are not statues of a false god in a pagan temple. But they are idols nonetheless.

Creator God of heaven and earth, give me eyes to see the idols in my life. Forgive me for allowing them to compete for and crowd out my worship and service to you. You are to be treasured above all else. You alone are the fulfillment and satisfaction of the deepest longings of my soul. Give me eyes to see the insidious nature of idolatry in this generation and the things I am easily drawn to, replacing my love, devotion, and obedience to You. May I not be “led astray to mute idols.” In this, I will praise you through Jesus Christ my Lord, through Whom I exist and for Whom I live. Amen