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September 10, 2020 8:00 am
God is no sympathy for your life, and Dr. Tony Evans says anything or anyone that can teach for your ultimate loyalty is an idol because this is the alternative with Dr. Tony have author, speaker, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas Texas and president of the alternative from a golden idol in a pagan temple to a Hollywood celebrity, Dr. Evans, his idols come in all shapes and sizes to give us some surprising examples today as he begins a brand-new series called American idols. Let's join him. Perhaps you remember the story of the mouse went to the bar and told to advocate in the cow, we had to talk will so most all the children the pig and cow. I just want to tell y'all that father Brown just bought a mousetrap. This got you know you know from the ground just bought a mousetrap checking the pig and the cowslip. I will know what you told is that mousetrap is your problem you do mouse. So, why you telling us about father Brown by mousetrap. Mao said I just want to tell you from Brown just bought a mousetrap, just let me know on the ground that mousetrap a few days later, a poisonous snake got caught in the mousetrap poisonous snake slithered across the mousetrap. The mousetrap flip caught the snake a few minutes after the snake and McCall about a mousetrap. Mrs. Brown was walkabout a mousetrap in the snag when I get better so now Mrs. Brown is been poisoned by the poisonous snake that's been caught in the mousetrap. The poison is going to Mrs. Brown's body. She goes to lay down because you begin to feel sick. Probably comes in and says a single cyclic ideal for you.
She says I think I need me some chicken soup, Brown goes to the bar just to check chicken cattle plucks a chicken chicken in the water and make some chicken soup for his wife poison snake McCall in the mousetrap, Brown got a work guideline to follow.
So we get some of the ladies in the neighborhood, when the morning to check on is why we gotta feed them breakfast so he goes to pay so that you have some bacon, sausage, from a chicken but unfortunately now my guys got to her body and she dies. So to have a few people go to the bone.
He killed the cow you have the me to serve all the folks who come to the funeral of his wife. I tried to tell her father, Brown get the message as we begin our series.
Satan is mousetrap, but because we don't think it relates to us. We don't pay attention to.
We think this mousetrap is what is not us until we see the repercussions of something we thought didn't really we find ourselves caught up. Down the line, such as the case of idolatry in the Bible there is no other soon spoken of as much and one sin in all of the Bible and on the Bible saying that it is addressed and everything else is the sin of idolatry. Idolatry worship of false gods, other gods not God's is the dream of Scripture commonly spoken and always condemn. We want to westernize the subject because many in the West don't think it applies.
That's why we will talk about American idols that I want you to see how relevant the subject is to us today when we gotta do is the final terms what we mean by idle idolatry simply said an idol is authorized now, person, place, thing for that. You look to as your ultimate source for me repeat that again and I is any authorized now on now is a person, place, thing will fall any unauthorized mount person placing a thought that you look to your source so that can be anything that becomes the subject of your ultimate focus when God gave the 10 Commandments in Exodus 20 versus 16. The first commandment with this thing about idolatry.
Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Thou shalt not make any graven image of me, for I am a jealous God. One of the reasons that God despises idolatry is because of his jealousy exclusivity clause on you know competition allowed no competing deities. God says I don't body sit beside me think about equal to me because that is a false God and having a legitimate competitor to me. Idolatry is in the creation on that competes with our loyalty to re-create said again the creation on that competes with our loyalty to the create tour is called a fatal attraction is being to a legitimate competitor. Exodus 3414 God says my name is jealous jealous is my name is you call me by my name is my name is jealous.
That is, I am jealous for you and I am jealous about you and therefore I don't want any competition from this is God's call to be the only God in your life is true even to try to duplicate me by creating an image of me.
I don't about pictures of me because every picture you take up me will be a distortion of me. You can take a good color picture of me because it'll all be wrong. No images of me you'll carve anything of me. You can photograph me when I want to show me out of the selfie click click Jesus Christ as my point here is the image of the invisible God you'll get the make images of make any old photograph moves used to be in the ball you going to close the curtain behind the curtain and they take these pictures and it comes out after you pay your money goes on about pictures of ugly pictures.
Those pictures don't do you justice. God says anything.
You make me don't do me justice so no images are to be made of me.
I am a jealous God. Anything or anyone that competes for your ultimate loyalty is neither anything or anyone that competes with your ultimate loyalty is your item bad things that you depend on idolatry.
You depend on drugs. The drug is an island because it is become the source of your ultimate well-being. People can become an idol because well-being is locked up in them and not in God so people can have people addictions and I however do not be so bad it can be so good that you make God so it is right place is good money is good, but you can make it materialism. God success is good, but you can make success God. We live in a day taken from Michelle American Idol celebrity worship, appreciating people, valuing them for their skills and abilities. The moment they become the source of how you while you were doing. That's become a God education can be a God. You put so much weight on your degree that is competing with God. The Bible says they are ever learning but never coming into the knowledge of the truth that got information that it made more than they want to make when he continues her message in just a moment to tell us about a group of people who claim to be searching for truth doing everything they can to deny it. But first, this the only constant in life is change and currently we live in a nation where change is shifting for the worse, morally, culturally, economically and politically. So how do you find balance and peace through all the chaos Dr. Tony Evans brand-new message series called American idols. In his book America turning a nation to God will give you solid answers to what is really happening to our nation. God is calling you to return to him how you respond to both resources@tonyevans.org and we hear from you right away. They're both yours is or thank you gift your contribution to make this listener supported ministry possible 20s current American idols series contains eight full-length messages and get them to review on both CD and digital download along with his popular book America turning a nation to God. Just visit Tony Evans.org to get the details and make the arrangements. Again, that's Tony Evans.org or call us at 1-800-800-3222 and speak with one of our friendly resource team members there ready to help you around the clock again.
That's at 1-800-800-3222. I'll have the contact information for you again after part two of today's message and this year, like most Christians, there are going your life. Who knows, you may not know Jesus do something about that feeling. Share your faith effectively.
In other words that's with Tony Evans training comes in an online Bible school class is taking the most core concepts of thing start with our free introductory course on evangelism move on the subjects like spiritual warfare. Maturing in the faith, and many more. Content is challenging to own pace.
Anytime you is also lots of custom content from Tony online form specific Tony Evans training.org and start your free intro course today Tony Evans training center you can explore the kingdom anytime, anywhere, God is because science has grown to the place where it wants to prove God does not exist with the theory of evolution that nothing to do something. Evolution is basically fairytales for adults because the educators free to mount teaching generations, not an evolutionary theory, but the evolutionary fact and has all this data and all these various casting and the carbon testing all that and training the generation to be educated because you got to be a fool to dismiss non-science education in the West has become an I job can be an idol can be an idol career is a good thing were commanded to work but it is your source of identity.
See the politics as you can make being a Democrat, your God, you can make being Republican, your God, you think your answers are going to land on Air Force One. So what we've done is we've divided society even among Christians because they begun to wash their political identity or racial identity or gender identity and bus walking idolatrous who'd been Western sophisticated it's been painted over. It looks good smells good to wear a suit be and I don't drive a fancy car on me and I don't idolatry is that has not been authorized by the create tour is a man-made representation of God. God complained first Kings chapter 17 versus 33 in verse 21 he says they worship me while they served their idols which means that with the church that came to church they worship me, but women went right back. Today I went right back to worshiping people or places of money or prestige or career educational knowledge or whatever they worship, they came to church on Saturdays at that came but when they worship they serve the idols so let's be clear what idolatry is. It is with a false image of God being a jealous God commands exclusivity over your life in my life. I know we like to say what God is first in my life. Sounds good, sounds good, but there's only one way that you really know if God is first in your life and that is by the decisions you make, if you first in my decision not is the first in my feelings if you get whipped up with the right song. While the city and it was where people going to get whipped up to feelings first when it comes to making your choice. If he's not influencing the dominant influence in your decision. He's not therefore he's not dark because remember something God can do. God can't lie.
God can't sin all about away God can be second to be seconds a repeat, not first in our decision and action. He's not God in our lives.
So God, but I got no reasons that we are drawn to idols. We don't recognize them as idols until the series is is because we have a down view of God, God and made him so small that idols look pretty big. We have reduced we have made him a sophisticated man so let me set this because God says at the University I will choose to know I am the Lord whenever he talked about idolatry is jealousy. He says about this because I want you to know there's nobody like me. I am one-of-a-kind I'm in a class by myself. I demanded exclusivity clause. You can find nobody who can compete with me if you have a small God will come up with a bunch idols looked all these items to be your ultimate source, but if you can grow the size of your God, then you will find out you can keep those so-called idols in their place, I don't idol of luck luck is the most non-Christian word Christian could ever use because casually, bleeding and look in the reason why it's the most non-Christian words, you can't have a sovereign God and have a look.
God controls the world and have luck.
Know the biblical concept is Providence that he orchestrates things next time you took the safe lucky know I was providentially can no such thing as luck comes in a colleague little bit ago. The end lucky rabbit foot hanging from his his rearview mirror. Lucky for the sale of my lucky rabbit foot up. I said well let Raven for one lucky minute about God because if I can roll the size about God, then we will be less need for idols.
He says I want you to know I am the Lord God says that saith the Lord God. Verse four that they may know that the Lord verse eight to who is visible mixed up on the definition of God. The definition the true God is the tri-you create sustainer, and sovereign ruler of all things, just using the name God we need to know who you talking about the word of God to be very generic because the God of the Bible is Trinitarian in nature is three and one is God the father, God the son God the Holy Spirit is God and we are happy no way with is only one true God. That is the God of the Bible we talking about the God of the Bible is sin that is separate from what he made no why is that important because all goals are determined by what is been made to Liz.
It was created.
You cannot craft God in the image of our preferences, how you think and how you will raise what your friends think of what the TV says is secondary.
The question is, did God say amen not did you say amen God didn't say a man is not legitimate, no matter how positive you feel about, you know, we whip up these things in our minds and that's when we make ourselves idols. We will say what God said, I think what you make yourself Dr. Tony Evans thing is to recognize the idols that seek to push God out of our lives. As I mentioned earlier, today's lesson is the first and Tony's brand-new series American idols right now for a limited time you can get all eight messages in this powerful collection is our gift along with his popular book America turning a nation to God all that appreciation for your contribution to help us keep this program coming your way, resource Center at 1-800-800-3222 to make the arrangements it's open around the clock again, dial 1-800-800-3222 or visit us at Tony have a stock or to make your donation and instantly download all the messages in this series admiration is one thing. Idolatry is another, but where do we draw the line between the two and how can we tell if we crossed it. Those are the questions. Dr. Evans will answer tomorrow sure to join us for the alternative with Dr. Tony have an alternative is made possible by the generous Confucian of listeners like