Idolatry in the American Church

Christians in America are overrun with idols. And we are clueless. The god of this world has made the American dream so attractive, so comfortable, so convenient that we refuse to turn our back on it. It doesn’t help that the church in America condones it, even promotes it.

Aaron made a golden calf for the Israelites at the base of Mount Sinai (Ex 32). When it was unveiled, he told them “This is your God, who brought you out of Egypt.” That golden calf did not represent an Egyptian god, it represented God Yahweh. The Israelites did not replace God, they crafted God into a god of their own liking. Idolatry usually happens in this manner; we manipulate and massage the one true God into an image that we like. Our faith in God is so intermingled and adulterated with the American dream that we don’t even know that we are worshipping a golden calf. The bride of Christ has one foot in the kingdom of God and one foot mired in the culture of this world. Just like the multitudes, Christians are ensnared by the idolatry of the Great Babylon, and swept away by the lustful wiles of the Mother of Prostitutes.

The American church has not crafted a golden calf, as such, but we have amalgamated our view of God with the idols of security, wealth, convenience, the good life, stylishness, success, and power. And we are not the least bit convicted or repentant, in fact we are proud. This is what I hear from the lips of my sincere Christian friends: “God has blessed America, and we should enjoy those blessings. I think God wants me to enjoy nice things, like my Corvette. Don’t tell me you would rather live in a third world country.” Our love, joy, peace, and hope are woefully askew.

American Christians do not look to God for their security. They trust their 401K, and the greatest economy and military complex the world has ever known. When it comes to wealth, we build bigger houses, we buy RVs, boats, timeshares, and nice cars. Jesus told the rich young man to sell his possessions and give to the poor. But we conveniently write that off as hyperbole, not really something to take seriously. The lure of wealth hinders us from divesting our possessions and giving to the poor, the downtrodden, the broken-hearted, the fatherless, the widows. Jesus asked his followers to forsake family, even business ventures, to follow Him and do His calling.

We worship the god of convenience – fast food, maid service, lawn service, laundry service. Why? Not so that we can spend more time with God, or important relationships, or humanitarian causes, but so that we can earn more money and not be bothered with the mundane. How about the good life? Does anyone want to give up fine dining, cruises, overseas vacations, and season tickets? It may be unusual to consider stylishness as an idol. Many Christians, though, are obsessed with working out at the gym to look good (not just to be healthy), wearing stylish clothes, and generally impressing others with their lifestyle. Christians are no different -- we want to be successful and highly respected. Like the Pharisees, we like wealth, and we like the praise of men, all the while thinking that our moral checklist makes God happy.

We pose the question, “What would Jesus do?” Jesus never owned a house, a boat, a timeshare, a Ferrari, or even a car. He walked and He knelt for his exercise. He never wore stylish clothes to impress others. He never had a retirement account, or even a savings account. He did not have a refrigerator, a pantry, or McDonalds. He never owned gold, silver, or collectibles – His treasure was truly in heaven. He never owned a gun or a sword. He never complained about Roman rule. Count the cost? Take up your cross? Suffer like Jesus did? No, we prefer the American dream more than the footsteps of Jesus.

God said very clearly in the first of the Ten Commandments, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” God is a jealous God -- He wants His people to worship and trust Him, and Him alone. Throughout history, God has dealt harshly with idolatry, and He will do it again. But the American Church is arrogant and naïve, thinking we are ready to be caught up into the holy presence of God without going through the refining fire. At the end of the age, the tares will be separated from the wheat and burned, at harvest time (Matt. 13:24-43). Many who think they worship and serve God as He desires will find their faithless idolatry addressed with the shocking statement, “depart from me, I never knew you” (Matt. 7:23). God will not stand for it, a bride for His son, whose heart is attracted to the allure of this world, rather than intimately committed to Jesus. “My little children, keep yourselves from idols.” (I John 5:21).

The Seven Bowl Judgments

 

The seven bowl judgments are the same events as the seven trumpet warnings. The reason they are repeated is that the bowls look at the events as God’s judgment, while the trumpets view the events as a result of man’s own doing. They have been unfolding before our very eyes, in current events, over the last 100 years. History has a way of interpreting prophecy accurately, and dispelling speculation and conjecture.

Historically, the seven bowl judgments of Revelation have been considered to be the final outpouring of God’s wrath and judgment. First there are the seven seals (Rev 6 and 8), then there are the seven trumpets (Rev 9-11), and then wham, bam, God lets go with his heavy artillery, the seven bowls, in rapid fire (Rev 16). I was always taught that the seven trumpets and the seven bowls were God’s judgment meted out on mankind during the Great Tribulation, after all the saints were raptured. And the bowl judgments would be after the trumpets, at the very end of the Tribulation. That may be what you believe.

If you were to lay out, side by side, the seven trumpet warnings and the seven bowl judgments you discover that they are not just similar, but they unmistakably mirror each other. The first judgment is World War I, when vast tracts of land were burned, aircraft were used in warfare for the first time, and chemical warfare was deployed, causing painful, ugly sores. The second judgment is World War II. Much of that war was fought on the Pacific front, and as many as one-third of all ships in the war were destroyed. It was also the first deployment of the atomic bomb. The third judgment is Chernobyl, the largest nuclear meltdown in history. The very word Chernobyl means wormwood. Radiation rained down upon eastern Europe killing people and polluting the rivers and streams. The fourth judgment is climate change. In one vision the sun and moon are blocked, while in the other vision the sun scorches and sears with intense heat. You can disagree about climate change all you want. God said it, though, not me. The fifth judgment is the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein, envisioned by the dark black cloud from burning 600 oil wells. Thousands of Iraqi soldiers were killed on the “highway of death”, many so burned and maimed they could only wish that they could die. The sixth warning-judgment is next on the horizon, the build up to the battle of Armageddon.

You probably ask the question, why would God prophesy two sets of judgments that are the same? The reason is rather strategic, actually. The seven trumpets are actually warnings, more so than judgments. Like shots across the bow of a ship, the trumpets warn mankind of impending judgment. The seven bowls repeat the same events, but from God’s perspective. They are a sequence of His judgment meted out on mankind for their evil, lawlessness, rebellion, and refusal to repent.

The reason to present the series of events from man’s perspective, and then God’s perspective is to demonstrate that this final descent of mankind into judgment is not just self-inflicted, but also brought about by God’s design and purpose. The final judgments are yet another playing out of the interplay between man’s free-will and God’s sovereignty.

We as Christians will not escape the first six trumpets and bowls. They are not for someone else who is stuck on earth during the Tribulation. No, we are in the midst of them. Turmoil, violence, and persecution are likely to ramp up as we approach the very end of the age. Are you ready? Is your faith and trust in Jesus deep enough that you will stand strong until the end?