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A STUDY OF 1 JOHN (34)
Keep Yourselves from Idols
1 John 5:21
Victor M. Eskew
John concludes his first epistle with an admonition to his readers. “Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen” (1 John 5:21). The address comes from an older man who loves his readers as if they were his on children. Some of these individuals may have been converted by John. Therefore, he feels like a spiritual father to these individuals. His counsel springs from love and from deep concern for his readers’ spiritual well-being.
This sentence contains his last words to his readers. Last words are often important words. Too, they are the words that individuals remember the most. These words would stick with John’s readers when some of his other words would be forgotten. The words involve the practice of idolatry. Four words sum up the command: “Keep yourselves from idols.” Many of John’s readers were Gentiles. They had left the practice of idolatry. However, there could have been numerous enticements presented to them that might lure them back to that old lifestyle. Jews, too, were not immune from idolatry. This was one of the sins that led both the Northern Kingdom and Southern Kingdom into captivity. Judah appeared to have learned her lesson as a whole, but some individual Jews might have been tempted by various idolatrous practices. In other words, the backgrounds of John’s readers made idolatry a real threat. Thus, John commands: “Keep yourselves from idols.”
It is difficult to imagine any human being being tempted to worship an idol. First, idols were not real. The truth is that there are no false gods. They are fictitious. They are the figments of man’s imagination. Paul affirmed this when he wrote to the Corinthians regarding “the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols” (1 Cor. 8:4a). He wrote: “…we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him” (1 Cor. 8:4b-6). It is similar to a person affirming there is a Santa Clause. Individuals act like he is real. Children may believe that such a being exists. However, he is not real. He is just a product of the imaginations of human beings.
Second, idols were not living beings. Men would fashion them with their hands out of trees and stones. Once they were formed, they could do absolutely nothing. The prophets often set forth these ideas in their writings in the Old Testament. The psalmist is one example of a man of God showing the helplessness of idols. “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not: they have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: they have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them” (Ps. 115:4-8). Isaiah is another example of an Old Testament prophet who exposed the silliness of idolatry. In Isaiah 44:15-17, he writes about the word used to make idols. “Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshipeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto. He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eatheth flesh; he roasteth roast and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire: and the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he falleth down unto it, and worshipeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god.”
Even though idols were fake, helpless, and silly, they had an attraction to some. Therefore, John told his readers to keep themselves from idols. The word “keep” begins with the idea of isolation. These Christians were to isolate themselves from idols. The word also means “to watch and to be on guard.” They were to guard themselves in order to keep themselves safe. In addition, the word “keep” carries the idea of avoiding, shunning, and fleeing from something. God does not miraculous protect his children from all evils. He does not put up fences around them so they will be tempted. God expects man to put forth the effort to flee from idolatry. The object or individual a person bows before reveals where the individual’s heart is. Those loyal and committed to Jehovah would run as fast as possible from idols.
We live in the twenty-first century. Too, we live in the United States of America, an intelligent and civilize society. How can John’s command be relevant to our lives? We do not see idols on street corners. We do not carry idols in our pockets. Houses in the U.S. do not contain shrines to the gods. So, we again ask: How can John’s command be relevant to our lives? The answer is simple. There are many objects in our world today, that call for our loyalty, a loyalty that oftentimes comes before a person’s commitment to God. In Colossians 3:5, Paul refers to covetousness as idolatry. All kinds of objects can be coveted. This was made clear in the Ten Commandments. The tenth commandment states: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s” (Exo. 20:17). There are some who have made their jobs their gods. Others have made their favorite sports team their idol. Entertainers, politicians, and religious leaders can become objects of worship. With all of these avenues of idolatry open to us, John’s command is just as pertinent today as when it was written. He would counsel us to “keep yourselves from idols.”
When Elijah challenged the false prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel, he manifested the vanity of idols to the world. The false prophets cried to their gods all day long (1 Kings 18:29). There was not even a whisper of a response from them. On the other hand, as soon as Elijah called upon the living God, there was a response. “Then the fire of the Lord, fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench” (1 Kings 18:38). God is real. Idols are not. God can save. Idols cannot. God will judge men the last day. Idols will not. All men ought to be able to see the ridiculousness of serving an idol. Dear readers, keep yourselves from idols. Hold on to the true and living God and serve Him alone.