Worshipping Idols

Someone posted the following message:

i am a christan. and i was wondering.
I have been reading my bible alot lately and i have come across this passage which seems confusing.

what is meant by the idea of worshiping "Idols" ???
and how does it pertain what we do today

please some explain to me what this means .....



Here is my reply:

By definition, "idol" means a representation or symbol of an object of worship

Whatever you worship is an idol.

This leads to the question: "what is worship?"

The word worship has two roots

weorth (worth) + scipe

worship means giving "worth" to someone or some thing.

In essence, the first commandment

"You shall have no other gods before me"

and the second commandment

You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments

are really the same commandment.

How does it apply today?

It applies everywhere. Every time you make a decision, you have to place priorities on all your options. Whatever you place as a higher priority than God you are placing greater worth than God, i.e., giving greater worship than to God: making he/she/it an idol.

If one decides that "going to a football game" is more important than worshiping God, then it is for that person an idol. If one makes budgetary decisions in which God does not get the "first fruit", then whatever came before God is an idol.

If one truly want to know if one is worshiping idols, all one has to do is list all his/her resources (time, money, energy, position, opportunities, etc.) and evaluate how one is using those resources. Did God come first?