What is the definition of idolatry?

How apposite then the closing words, "Children [the word meaning all the family of God] keep yourselves from idols." An idol is anything which usurps in our hearts that supreme place which belongs to God alone. If we live in the reality and power of verse 20, we shall certainly say like Ephraim, "What have I to do any more with idols?" (Hosea 14:8).

Once let the Son of God, and all that He has done and brought, fill our hearts, and the idols, that charmed us once, will charm us no more.

Here we learn, in the plainest manner, that there is no depth of sin and folly, no form of moral pravity into which we are not capable of plunging, at any moment, if not kept by the mighty power of God. There is no security for us save in the moral shelter of the divine presence. We know that the Spirit of God does not warn us against things to which we are not liable. He would not say to us, "Neither be ye idolaters," if we were not capable of being such. Idolatry takes various shapes. It is not therefore a question of the shape of the thing, but of the thing itself; not the outward form, but the root or principle of the thing. We read that, "covetousness is idolatry;" and that a covetous man is an idolater. That is, a man desiring to possess himself of more than God has given him is an idolater — is actually guilty of the sin of Israel when they made the golden calf and worshipped it. Well might the blessed apostle say to the Corinthians — say to us, "Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry." Why be warned to flee from a thing to which we are not liable? Are there any idle words in the volume of God? What mean those closing words of the first epistle of John, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols"? Do they not tell us that we are in danger of worshipping idols? Assuredly they do. Our treacherous hearts are capable of departing from the living God, and setting up, some other object beside Him; and what is this but idolatry? Whatever commands the heart is the heart's idol, be it what it may, money, pleasure, power or ought else; so that we may well see the urgent need for the many warnings given us by the Holy Ghost against the sin of idolatry.

In the pathway of Christ as the perfect Man, He would allow nothing to come in between His soul and God. He would pay no homage to the objects which men worship, nor take up their names upon His lips. An idol is not necessarily an actual image that is worshipped in place of the true God. It is anything that is allowed to come, as an object of the heart's affections between the soul and God; hence, even to believers, the Apostle can write, "Little children keep yourselves from idols." Alas how often we turn aside to pursue objects that come between our souls and God, only to find the truth of the Psalmist's words, "Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another." It has been said that an innocent man had no object, he simply had to enjoy God's goodness: a fallen man has many objects which separate the heart from God; but the new man has one Object, "For me to live is Christ," and again, "The life which I now live … I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Before God gives the ten commandments, He makes is abundantly clear that Israel's obedience to law had nothing to do with God's previous grace toward them in delivering them from the bondage of Egypt, just as today obedience to law has no part in the salvation of souls out from the bondage of sin. Yet Israel must not regard these laws as merely abstract principles, but laws of “the Lord thy God,” indicating another relationship to God on the basis of their obedience. Solemn consideration!

The language of these laws is absolute and peremptory. “You shall” or “you shall not.” No allowance is made for any deviation. First, no other god could be allowed to take God's place. Nothing must in any way be used even to represent God, no image, no likeness of anything in creation must have any place of spiritual honor in people's minds. This is idolatry. Even pictures of this kind were forbidden (Num. 33:52)

I think we have now the materials which will enable us to answer the question, What then is the idolatry that we have before us here? If it is not the absolute setting up of a false god in the place of the true; if it is not serving Baal and Ashtaroth, what is it then? It is simply, as to its root, allowing the activities of divine life in the soul to alienate one from the truth of God, and thus service brings in pride, pride brings in self-will, and self-will in its turn fashions its god to answer to its own desires, instead of fashioning itself to answer to the desire of God.

For instance, I may worship a God of power as revealed in Scripture, but if I do not add His holiness to it, I am worshipping an idol. I may worship a God of wisdom and knowledge as He is revealed in Scripture, but if I do not add to that His love and His righteousness, I have put elements in which make it idolatry for me. And so I conceive idolatry to be, not as you might say a total plunge into the darkness out of the full light, but the introduction into the light of elements of darkness. You find in one of the Psalms a description of the idols of the heathen, which is very instructive. They have everything outwardly that speaks of wisdom and power and intelligence without reality. They have eyes but they see not, they have ears but they hear not, hands but they handle not, neither speak they through their mouth. In other words, there is much outward resemblance to that which is suggestive of power, wisdom and all that, but it has been robbed of its reality. So to serve idols, is to have the heart and the conscience under the power of that which is not a divinely revealed reality to the soul. It is not the God of Scripture, it is not the God revealed by the Holy Ghost. It has some of man's thoughts added to it, and this becomes a Baal or an idol.

How can people make use of principles which are evil in themselves? How can they make them tributary and expect to keep clear of them? If I make use of an evil thing I am going to be linked with evil. It is absolutely necessary that if I am linked with evil I am going to be brought into bondage to it, and I will be brought, alas, into that idolatry of which we have been seeing instances from time to time. For idolatry means the setting up of our own thoughts, instead of bowing to what God has put before us as His will.

Let us consider the unclean thing as scripture treats it. The deluge left mankind with the strongest impression of the living God's hand. But they soon ceased to glorify Him as God and were unthankful. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and, changing the truth of God into falsehood, they worshipped the creature more than the Creator Who is blessed for ever. Amen. When idolatry began, or by whom is not said, but that Terah and his sons were involved in it. Now in 1 Cor. 10:20 the apostle, citing Deut. 32:17, pronounces on what it really is, though the form may differ. The worship of the heavens and all its host, of the earth and the sea and their denizens, the serpent especially, or again of heroes and departed ancestors, or of fabulous beings and their images, soon laid hold of men's imagination, not only to shut out God but to debase their votaries to the uttermost. And no wonder. For both O.T. and New, as we have seen, declare that what they sacrificed they sacrificed to demons, not to God. Demons were in effect behind the idols. If the idols were nothing in themselves, the demons were an awful reality of subtle and malignant evil to the ruin of such as paid the idols reverence.

Idols are the many things, often trifling in themselves, which men pursue as objects of desire and which consequently usurp in their souls that place of supremacy which properly belongs to God alone. By means of idols Belial maintains his sway over the minds of unbelievers, blinding them to the "light of the glorious gospel of Christ" (2 Cor. 4:4), keeping them in darkness and in unrighteousness as regards their relations with God.

That is a good description of idolatry — something which displaces God in our affections — and that is what covetousness leads to.