Idolatry in the American Church

“My little children, keep yourselves from idols.” (I John 5:21).

 

Christians in America are overrun with idols. And we are clueless. Partly because the church in America condones it, even promotes it. But more so because 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. We ignore the teachings of Jesus to count the cost of following Him. We like the little phrase, “What would Jesus do?”, but we don’t even scratch the surface in committing to look at His life and follow in His footsteps.

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 some idol god form Egypt, it represented God Yahweh. The Israelites did not replace God with an idol, 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 worshiping 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.  

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.”

American Christians do not look to the one true God for their security, they trust in their 401K, and in 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 said to 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. 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 with important relationships, or humanitarian causes, but so that we can earn more money and not be bothered with the mundane. How about worshiping the good life? Does anyone want to give up fine dining, cruises, overseas vacations, and other forms of revelry and indulgence? It is amazing to consider stylishness as an idol. We Christians are obsessed with working out at the gym to look good (not just to be healthy), wearing stylish clothes, and generally impressing others with our lifestyle. We Christians pursue success and power like every other American. We want to be highly respected, we want others to know our position, and we want our opinion to dominate.

Jesus never owned a house, a boat, a timeshare, a Ferrari, or even a car. He walked and He kneeled 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. And He never indulged in revelry or worldly pleasures for his own satisfaction, that we know of, but he did celebrate with others – their joy, their wedding, their healing, their repentance.

The New Testament makes it clear that Christians should expect to suffer as Jesus did, to count the cost and take up their cross, as Jesus did. The scriptures speak much about the lure of wealth, and repeatedly tells us to divest our possessions and give to the poor, the needy, the downtrodden, the broken-hearted. Jesus asked his followers to forsake family, and even business ventures to follow after Him and to do His calling.

But that all gets ignored when we worship a God crafted more like the American dream than the words of Jesus.

Why is this important? Because we as Christians will find our greatest joy not in the allure of this world, but in a close, intimate, committed relationship with God. He wants us to follow Him, and Him alone, so that our love, joy, peace, and hope are found in Him.

Unfortunately, there will be many who will hear God tell them on that day, “depart from me, I never knew you” (Mt 7:23).  Might that be because they worshiped and trusted a god of their own making, the American dream, not the one true God, and Him alone.