ODJ: sacred scarecrows
August 12, 2011
Their gods are like helpless scarecrows (v.5).
READ: Jeremiah 10:1-16
As I wandered around at the annual Scarecrow Festival in a neighboring town, the smell of fried dough, popcorn, and hot dogs filled the air. Multitudes of scarecrows masquerading as different characters—athletes, pirates, farmers, cheerleaders—were arranged on platforms for everyone to admire. I thought of Jeremiah as he commanded the Israelites not to admire the gods of the surrounding nations. He said, “Their gods [were] like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field” (Jeremiah 10:5). He went on to build a case against idol worship, and here are a few of his main points:
Idols are helpless. They can’t harm us or do us any good (v.5). We should worship God because “the Lord is the only true God” (v.10).
Idols are not alive. “They cannot speak” and they “have no breath or power” (Jeremiah 10:5,14). We should worship God because He is “the living God” (v.10) who “is the Creator of everything that exists” (v.16). Idols are destructible. They “will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens” (Jeremiah 10:11). “They will all be destroyed” (v.15). We should worship God because He is “the everlasting King” (v.10).
Nothing should compete with our devotion to God. Still, just like the people who outfitted their idols in “royal blue and purple robes made by expert tailors” (v.9), we decorate our houses, follow celebrities, and polish our vehicles with enough dedication to make them into “so-called gods” (v.11).
The remedy for our struggle with “sacred scarecrows” is to remember that God is the only One worthy of our devotion and praise. Meditating on His power, eternal nature, and desire to know us personally will help us follow the first of the Ten Commandments: “You must not have any other god but Me” (Exodus 20:3). —Jennifer Benson Schuldt
Why is idolatry harder to spot in our modern world than it was in Jeremiah’s day? How can we ensure that God has His rightful place in our lives?
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