Do You Have a Golden Calf?
John Newton, author of that well known hymn “Amazing Grace”, once made this statement, “Lord, save us from our golden calves.” Knowing the background to the “golden calves” will help us understand his plea. After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, he brought them to Mount Sinai where God delivered unto them the ten commandments. While Moses was delayed in the mount receiving instruction concerning the building of tabernacle and its furnishings, the Israelites below grew impatient. They “gathered themselves together unto Aaron and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him” (Exodus 32:1). They made their own gods.
Newton’s lament makes perfect sense. Lord, deliver us from making our own gods. This cry for deliverance is well founded, for we are given to do this very thing routinely. It is not likely in our day that we will fashion an idol out of stone or wood that we may bow down before it and worship it. But anything that comes between us and worshipping the true God is idolatry.
Paul taught that covetousness is idolatry (Colossians 3:5). The word covet means to “yearn to possess or have.” Therefore, when we yearn for or desire something or someone more than God, that is idolatry. That person or thing becomes our golden calf.
Some covet wealth and it becomes their singular pursuit. Yet Jesus asserted that “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24).
Some bow to the god of entertainment. Their schedules are controlled by Netflix, Disney, YouTube, etc. They find no time for the Scriptures or prayer or God’s house.
Even family can come between us and worshipping God. The Lord’s Day becomes used more and more for family gatherings, recreation, and other extracurricular activities rather than seeking the Lord in his house and his word. Listen to Jesus’ admonition as he attests to the relative love we should hold toward God and family. “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:37).
Golden calves come in various shapes and sizes. Anything that consumes my time, energy, and resources in a way that hinders, limits, or impairs my worship of God is a golden calf. The list is seemingly limitless. Do you have a golden calf? The Lord must be first in every relationship and venue of life, or he is not Lord at all.
Randy Livingston serves as a chaplain for a local police department. He writes devotionals for his ministry which also appear at his blog, From the Chaplain. We republish this post by permission.
Image by ian kelsall from Pixabay