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I recently attended a Community Block Watch meeting in which a plainclothes narcotics detective gave a very interesting presentation on a variety of different topics related to drug abuse and law enforcement. One of the drugs he talked about was heroin since this is a particular problem in Western Pennsylvania. He cited a number of statistics in order to make the point that the overwhelming majority of people who use heroin will never be completely clean of the drug for the rest of their lives. In his words, heroin “robs them of their humanity” to the extent that they are willing to do whatever they need to do in order to get enough money to fund their addiction.

Hearing this reminded me of something that’s true about all idols (an idol is anything and everything we worship besides the true God). Idols enslave us. The idol of heroin may be particularly obvious in the way it takes over people’s lives, but other idols work in way that’s nearly identical.

For example, the businessman who makes his life all about money will never have enough money. In his all-consuming desire for more money, he may neglect his family and other important relationships in order to stay late at work just about every night and get that next raise or promotion. His idol will enslave and consume him. Or think about the woman who makes her life all about finding intimacy in relationships apart from God. She will give herself to countless men who mistreat and abuse her. Nevertheless, she will have a tendency to maintain these relationships because her desire for emotional and relational intimacy is that great.

Here’s the point: idols enslave us. The more we worship them, the more they rob us of our humanity and destroy our lives.

Obviously, it’s possible to earn money and enjoy relationships in a way that honors God. As long as we’re worshipping God and putting him above everything else in our lives, we’re able to enjoy money, relationships, and countless other things as gifts that God gives. However, when we begin to pursue the gifts above the Giver, those gifts become idols. And the more we make our lives about them, the more they dominate our lives and hold us in a kind of invisible bondage.

God invites us to delight in him and worship him. He’s the only one we can worship without finding ourselves in bondage. As the psalmist states so eloquently: “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).