Oct
29
Worshipping Scarecrows
Filed Under Devotional
“This is what the LORD says:
‘Do not learn the ways of the nations
or be terrified by signs in the sky,
though the nations are terrified by them.’” Jeremiah 10:2
Don’t be distracted by national tradition or cultural history. Do not try to merge the pursuit of God with some other spirituality or mysticism. Just because it’s old and interesting, it doesn’t make it right.
“For the customs of the peoples are worthless;
they cut a tree out of the forest,
and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel.
They adorn it with silver and gold;
they fasten it with hammer and nails
so it will not totter.
Like a scarecrow in a melon patch,
their idols cannot speak;
they must be carried
because they cannot walk.
Do not fear them;
they can do no harm
nor can they do any good.” Jeremiah 10:3-5
Are you worshipping scarecrows? It sounds silly when it’s stated that way, but how is it any different? Are you pursuing riches, fame, or power? Are you pursuing something other than God? Then you’re bowing down to a scarecrow in a melon patch.
Let us not be distracted by ancient traditions from other cultures that offer something other than God and Jesus. They are just wrong. Let us not be distracted by modern idols made from our own hands. It may not be a gold-plated totem that has to be nailed down, but it’s something just as tacky and gauche when the light of truth hits it.
Speaking of which, when the light of truth hits these scarecrows, they won’t last a second:
“Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
His images are a fraud;
they have no breath in them.
They are worthless, the objects of mockery;
when their judgment comes, they will perish.” Jeremiah 10:14-15
Ignore the scarecrows. Worship the one true God.