“Who but a fool would make his own god -” (Isa 44:10 NLT)
Isaiah goes on to describe how a man makes his god. He hunts for just the right materials or situation. He’s sure he has an eye for what would work best. Once he finds what he’s looking for, he conquers; he cuts down the tree or fashions a mold for the metal, or buys the property, and then he creates a template to reproduce what he’s imagined. Then he applies his skills to defeat any obstacles in the process. After a time of single-minded focus and hard work, out comes the idol. The image. The deal. And he’s proud of it because he gave all his time and attention to bringing it “to life.” He has given shape and form to his god.
Self-made Man
He doesn’t recognize that he has made himself the creator. He has imagined the the way this thing, this deal, this effort will look, and how others might perceive it. He sees the skill of his own hands, his own ingenuity, as having produced it and given it form. I can see this guy going about his daily work, sometimes smiling, sometimes grimacing, but always focused on “the goal,” on himself – and maybe on his family – and congratulating himself at the end of a good days’ work. Maybe even calling his wife and kids to a celebratory dinner at which to show off the thing he created and to which he unknowingly bowed down in worship. But nobody answers; he’s alone because his wife couldn’t tolerate his mistress, his job.
This guy could be me. He might be you. And Isaiah nailed it nearly 3,000 years ago. We may call ourselves Christians, or men of faith, even “a follower of Jesus.” But how do the daily decisions of our lives stack up? Isaiah asks again, “Who but a fool would make his own god?”
““What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’”
Isaiah 45:9 NLT
“All craftsmen who make idols will be humiliated. They will all be disgraced together.”
Isaiah 45:16 NLT
As I have read through the Old Testament, I have found a continuing theme that the people of Israel continued to do. They prospered, pat themselves on the back for their accomplishments, created their own idols to worship, worshiped them, then God took everything away from them because of their ignorant pride. They turned their backs on the ONE who gave them everything they needed. This cycle has continued throughout history….even today. Our gods may look different, but we still create them and worship them in our lives. Have we not learned anything as Christians from history? God was very clear about creating idols to worship.
““You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me.”
Exodus 20:4-5 NLT
Why worship “the created” when you can worship the “Creator” of ALL things? Cast aside anything that keeps you from worshipping the One True God…….
Wow, Steve! Maybe you should have written this post!
Yet He made us in His image – He is The Creator, and we thus have ‘creator’ in our DNA. He has also given us proper limited dominion over part of His creation to care for. Creating is part of what He calls us to do, and He blesses those activities. But, as you say, the ‘blessed’ line is crossed when we begin to worship or even glory in what we create. We men can unconsciously worship what we make or do. Women can worship the humans they create. The line between what we are called to do/be, and what we do with what we ‘accomplish’ can be a pretty fine one…. That’s sort of a ‘duh.’ I hope your headed toward how we negotiate that minefield.
– a fool at times –
Amen, Kim!