“So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.” – Colossians 3:5
I want to ask you a very serious question today. It is one we might or might not think about often, but make no mistake, it is highly important. The question I would like to ask you is this: who has your heart? Or maybe, what has your heart? What is it that is the most important thing in your life? Who has your heart?
We may not be surrounded by false deities in the form of golden statues or pagan sanctuaries today, but we are still surrounded by things that draw our attention and our affections away from God. We are still surrounded by idols that we choose to make sacrifices to and choose to give our best to every single day.
But that is the thing. We don’t typically think of these things as idols. The truth, though, is that if we are giving our first and giving our best to something other than God, that thing is an idol.
John Piper said this about idolatry: “It starts in the heart: craving, wanting, enjoying, and being satisfied by anything that you treasure more than God.” If that defines something in your life, you can call it whatever you want, but God calls it an idol. Paul called it ‘covetousness’ which is defined as a disordered love or desire, loving more than God what ought to be loved less than God.’
Covetousness is idolatry, and God calls idolatry a SIN. You can call it whatever you choose, but God identifies anything deemed more important or of a higher priority than Him as a sin. Ask yourself today, “WHO or WHAT has my heart? Is God most important or is it something else?”
If the answer isn’t God, it might be time to do some priority shifting. Make sure God is your ultimate priority, and the rest of your life will be better for it!