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THE PRINCIPLE SIN: IDOLATRY
Clearly, the principle sin of man is idolatry.
Man desires to be God. This, by definition, is a usurping of His Majesty and His
Authority. HE alone is God, and there is none else. Therefore man’s basic
sinful act is idolatry.
It must be noted immediately that it is
idolatry which is spoken against in the First Commandment.
“Thou shalt have no other Gods before Me.”
In other words, there shall be no other gods
before the face of God. None shall be looked to for deliverance nor ought they
be trusted. Thus God begins His instruction with a warning against worship of,
or service to any conflicting authority.
The Second commandment, like the First, warns
against the consequence of all idolatry, which is the setting up of any image to
worship and serve.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image,
or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the
earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth: Thou
shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God
[am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children
unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me;
(Exodus 20:4-5 AV)
There are a number of important dynamics which
must be observed in this verse. Firstly, God identifies the sinful
progression of all those that fall prey to idolatry. Idolatry begets the setting
up of a graven image. This image can come in the form of philosophies, material
things, health, knowledge, social status, economic stability, and a host of
other things that mankind sets up as their confidence and hope. One simple way
to check to see if we are guilty of setting up any graven image is to examine
where our confidence lies, and where our authority structure is based. We must
candidly ask, “what is our standard of trust and to whom do we obey?” If
our standard is God’s Word, the Law of Holy Scripture, and God alone is the
final authority on all life and faith, then we are on a sure foundation.
However, it must be stated that many speak “fair words” and yet live
quite differently. Another way to examine our position is to examine our
interpretation of the world. “Is it a Biblical interpretation or is our
world view drawn from secular wisdom? Do we set up man’s understanding,
knowledge, power or strategies as “divine”, or is God’s Word the only
Standard and Rule of Authority?”
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