Idols | The Religion Trap
About this series:
To follow Jesus as Lord means putting nothing before Him. This is not only right but logical: no one is greater, no one satisfies more. Yet the daily struggle of discipleship is the pressure—both within and around us—to live as though something else is more worthy.
Christians have long understood this in terms of idols. Tim Keller defines an idol as “anything more important to you than God…anything you seek to give you what only God can give.” Martin Luther said, “Whatever your heart clings to and relies upon, that is your God.” John Piper calls it “anything we rely on for blessing or guidance in place of wholehearted trust in the living God.”
Scripture is clear from the start:
“You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3; Deut. 5:7).
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind” (Matt. 22:37).
The danger is profound. Idols dishonor God, deceive us with false promises, and deform us into their image: “Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them” (Ps. 115:8). Humanity is wired to ascribe worth to something beyond itself, but this longing finds fulfillment only in the Creator: “Trust in the Lord—he is their help and shield” (Ps. 115:11). Only He truly satisfies, only He is worthy, only He is “the way, the truth, and the life” (Jn. 14:6).
Identifying idols is not always simple. Good gifts from God can quietly become an idol that replaces him. However, questions like these can help us begin to probe our hearts and minds:
What consumes most of my time and thoughts?
What stirs my emotions most deeply?
What do I feel I cannot live without?
Where do I place my hope for meaning and worth?
About this talk:
It is the nature of religion to focus on what we can do - whether for God, gods or other people - in order to put ourselves in a place of divine favour and to avoid divine wrath. Religion can have the appearance of being positive and healthy, particularly depending on its cultural setting, yet it often has a self-centred focus: protecting self and seeking good for self.
It is in this sense that we might speak of much of the world’s religions - as attempts to gain the favour of the god / gods or of nature or whichever higher power is considered to influence events in the world and the fortunes of individuals. Plenty of examples could be given.
And with that understanding of religion, we agree with Dane Ortlund who wrote, ‘Christianity is the unreligion. It turns all our religious instincts on their head.’ How can that be so? Because the Christian faith states that we bring nothing positive to God and instead receive from him all the blessings he has provided. As Tim Keller said, ‘Traditional religion says, ‘I give God a good moral record, so he has to bless me.’ The gospel says, ‘God gives me a good moral record through Christ, so I want to bless him’...Religion says, ‘If I obey, then God will love and accept me.’ The gospel says, ‘God loves and accepts me, therefore I want to obey.’’
So it is not that the Christian faith has no regard for obeying and serving God. But it is a response to God’s blessing, not a means of gaining it. The story in Luke 18 provides a stark contrast between one man, a Pharisee, who was conscious of what he believed gave him merit with God, and another man, a tax collector, who knew only that he had nothing positive with which to come before God. The first could distinguish himself from “other people” generally and from “this tax collector” specifically, highlighting his meritorious life by listing his good deeds. His assumption was that God must therefore be pleased with him and pleased to bless him. The tax collector’s actions, however, are described in four ways that show how little good he knows he has in his account: he stood at a distance, kept his head down, beat his chest in mourning and called out for mercy (v 13).
The language of Isaiah 1 is very shocking! Among other things, God speaks of “meaningless offerings...worthless assemblies...your feasts and festivals...I hate with all my being...I am not listening.” God’s reaction is the result of the people’s lack of love for him and for people, even though they continue to obey many of the sacrificial commands. Which is further evidence that religion ignores the intent of God’s law in favour of the details. It is entirely possible to keep laws, yet for one’s heart to be far from the sort of life that the law was intended to produce.
Doing good things is, of course, a good thing! But trusting in our own goodness is both arrogant and pitiful. In contrast, giving up any trust in our own goodness in order to have a right standing before God is the counterintuitive route to a right relationship with God both now and for eternity. Peace with God is not a position to be worked towards, but a gift to be received.
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Dive in a little more…
What are you placing your hope in?
by Sam Priest
A few months ago, I ruptured my Achilles tendon.
It happened in the least dignified way possible — halfway up a ninja wall, trying to prove to my kids that Dad’s still got it. For the record, I was winning. Until there was a loud snap and suddenly I wasn’t.
Now I’m wearing a very stylish medical boot (no, not part of NASA’s new astronaut program). Surgery went well, and I’m on the mend — but it’s been a forced pause, one that’s made me think about where I put my hope.
Because here’s the truth: everyone is hoping in something.
We might not say it out loud, but each of us has that one thing we believe will make life okay. Maybe it’s career success, financial security, a relationship, a house, our health, or simply feeling good about how we look.
We tell ourselves, once I have that, then I’ll be happy.
But what happens when we lose it?
The false promises of our modern idols
Walk into any newsagent and you’ll see it plastered across the magazine rack: the modern gospel of hope.
“Get the body you’ve always wanted.”
“Make your first million.”
“Redesign your dream home.”
“Unlock your potential.”
Every cover promises the same thing — identity, purpose, happiness — if only we buy what they’re selling.
But these promises don’t last.
Bodies age. Minds fade. Markets crash. Homes disappoint. Relationships break.
We build our lives around things that can’t bear the weight of our hopes — and when they crumble, we crumble with them.
The Bible calls this idolatry: putting ultimate trust in things that were never meant to carry it.
The hope that holds when everything else fails
So where do we turn when everything we hoped in fails?
The Christian answer isn’t “try harder” or “be better.” In fact, the story Jesus told in Luke 18 — about a proud Pharisee and a humble tax collector — shows the opposite.
The Pharisee bragged about his good deeds. The tax collector could only whisper, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
And Jesus said it was the tax collector, not the Pharisee, who went home right with God.
Why?
Because hope isn’t found in what we do — it’s found in what God has done.
The heart of Christianity isn’t moral improvement; it’s divine rescue.
We couldn’t reach up to God, so God came down to us — in Jesus.
Jesus lived the life we couldn’t, died the death we deserved, and rose again to give us new life.
That means our worth isn’t based on our performance, our success, or our achievements. It’s based on his love — constant, unchanging, enough.
Real hope has a name
Every false hope eventually collapses.
But Jesus doesn’t.
He’s not another self-help plan or moral checklist. He’s the only one who can give us an identity that can’t be stolen, security that can’t be shaken, and joy that doesn’t fade.
If you’re exhausted from chasing things that never quite satisfy, maybe it’s time to shift your hope.
Not in what you can do — but in what he has already done.
Because real hope has a name.
And his name is Jesus.
