Idolatry?

Author: art rogers

Thursday, October 13th, 2005 @ 12:26 pm

Solid Rock Church just north of Monroe, Ohio commissioned this Styrofoam and Fiberglass rendering of Christ in front of their church building. It cost about $250,000 and has become quite an eye catcher. What can I say? It caught my eye.

While it is certainly not to my taste, they say that people in the area really enjoy it and that it has brought in new members for their congregation. The thing that bothers me about it is the claim that the statue has brought safety to a particularly dangerous part of I-75.

Now I don’t usually get my nose out of joint over pictures, statues or other renderings of Jesus. The subject, however, is brought to light here in a way that just made me want to say something. The second commandment given to Moses reads like this:

You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Exodus 20:4-6 (NIV)

Most of the time we read this and think that God was saying not to make a god to worship. What He said, though, was that we should not make any image at all and worship it. Now the good folks over in Ohio are claiming that this statue’s placement is doing something supernatural to save lives on I-75. Not to sound anti-Christian - because I obviously am not - but I would like to suggest that there is some worship of an image going on over there.

God didn’t say no images of false gods, He said no images at all. Why? What image could you produce that could bear the fullness of His glory? None. Therefore, any image will LESSEN our concept of Him. And look at what is happening among Christians around Monroe. They are claiming that the statue is protecting people. Now I know that they think they are giving the glory to God, but diverting glory through a statue is idolatry. Moreover, that statue is bringing the church, and not God, glory. They are basking in their own cornered market of glory, a reflection of the glory given to their god.