What Exactly is Idolatry?

What does it mean to be an idolater? Idolatry may seem like a sin that modern people do not commit. But idolatry is not just bowing down to idols; it is trusting in what one has made, and therefore, in one’s own power as creator or sustainer. If we say we worship God but put our trust in bank accounts, homes, businesses, and organizations, then we are idolaters.

“Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshipping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.” Romans 1: 21-25


How could intelligent people turn to idolatry? My NLT Commentary says that idolatry begins when people reject what they know about God. Instead of looking to Him as Creator and Sustainer of all life, they see themselves as the center of the universe. They soon invent “gods” that are convenient projections of their own selfish desires. These gods may be wooden figures, or they may also be goals or things we pursue, such as money, power, or possessions. They may even be misrepresentations of God Himself—making God in our image, instead of the reverse. The common denominator is this: Idolaters worship the things God made rather than God himself. Is there anything you feel you can’t live without? Is there any priority greater than God? Do you have a dream you would sacrifice everything to realize? Does God take first place in your life? Do you trust God more than you trust what your hands have made?