1 John 5:21 (NKJV) — 21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.
What is an idol? An idol is anything we put in our lives in place of God.
Who is John writing to? He is writing to those who profess Jesus as the
Savior of their lives. Those who do not have Jesus as the Lord and Savior of
their lives do not have to worry about idols. They already serve Satan.
What is it that takes us away from God? What thoughts come into our minds
in place of God? Think about a Sunday morning worship service. We enter
into a sanctuary dedicated to the worship of God. Do we truly worship God?
Do we prepare our hearts to worship before going into the sanctuary? Have
we cleared our minds of the worldly things that hinder our worship? I’ve
heard people say, “I got nothing out of the worship service.” When our
hearts are not prepared for worship, we will not receive the blessing of
Worship. Idol worship can take place inside the sanctuary of God.
Sin is anything we say, do, or think that is displeasing to God. Whatever I
place in my life that keeps me from focusing on God is sin. It has become
my God. When the idols of this world take over my life, I have a battle, a
war brewing, an emptiness that is yearning to be filled. Life outside of God
leaves us with an insatiable appetite. Idol worship is never satisfied. It pulls
its worshipers further and further from God.
Paul writes in Romans 6:12–14, “12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your
mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your
members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves
to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of
righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you
are not under law but under grace.”
Whatever sin is reigning in our lives has become our god. It leaves our spirit
empty.
Three things John writes about knowing Christ are found in 1 John 5:
- Jesus gives us the knowledge of God. To know that God is true.
- Jesus gives us the knowledge that we are in God and in His Son, Jesus
Christ. We have been born of God. - Jesus gives us the knowledge that we know the true God who lives
eternally and because we are in Him we have eternal life.