WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.580 Well, good evening, everyone. So glad to see you here. If we've not yet met personally, 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:11.300 perhaps we might have a chance to do that after the service. My name is Tommy. I'm a 00:00:11.300 --> 00:00:16.539 pastor here at Church of the Advent. For those of you who are returning, you know that at 00:00:16.539 --> 00:00:21.400 this part of our service every week, we turn our attention collectively to God's Word. 00:00:22.199 --> 00:00:27.400 We do this as a part of one of the ways that we expect to hear from God. We believe that 00:00:27.399 --> 00:00:31.699 He speaks through His Word. And for those of you who are just joining us for the first 00:00:31.699 --> 00:00:38.460 time, we have been in a series the last couple of weeks looking at this fascinating book in 00:00:38.460 --> 00:00:45.619 the Old Testament, the book of Daniel. And Daniel may be familiar to some of you. If you know 00:00:45.619 --> 00:00:52.539 anything about it, it's a sort of a crazy, wild book that has beasts and cosmic warfare 00:00:52.539 --> 00:00:59.420 and visions and dreams and all kinds of things going on. And you may be tempted to ask, what 00:00:59.420 --> 00:01:06.200 would such a book have to do with us? It dates back to the 6th century B.C. It takes place 00:01:06.200 --> 00:01:12.620 in Babylon. That's a bit of a distant reality compared to where we are today. But what I 00:01:12.620 --> 00:01:16.159 think that we've been discovering over the last couple of weeks is actually this ancient 00:01:16.159 --> 00:01:21.640 document is incredibly relevant for us here in our lives, especially those of us who live 00:01:21.640 --> 00:01:26.579 in a place like Washington, D.C. Because ultimately this book is about a group of friends, 00:01:27.379 --> 00:01:33.680 young friends. They're young professionals. They all went to college together. They're very well 00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:39.480 educated, well trained. And now they've moved together into this sort of what is at this time 00:01:39.480 --> 00:01:46.439 the biggest city in the world. And they've all gotten government jobs. And they're trying to build 00:01:46.439 --> 00:01:50.920 a life for themselves. And they're asking this question again and again. And this is sort of the 00:01:50.920 --> 00:01:56.400 drumbeat of Daniel underneath all the fantastic things that are happening. There's this very 00:01:56.400 --> 00:02:04.859 practical question. How is it possible to live faithfully, to follow God faithfully, and to thrive 00:02:04.859 --> 00:02:11.939 in a culture that is either indifferent or hostile to your faith? How is it possible to follow God 00:02:11.939 --> 00:02:19.080 faithfully and to thrive in your job and family and friends? How is it possible to do those things if you 00:02:19.080 --> 00:02:24.020 live in a culture and a society that is either indifferent or largely hostile to your beliefs? 00:02:24.100 --> 00:02:29.340 So they're asking that again and again and again. And today what we're going to see is this. As we look 00:02:29.340 --> 00:02:38.260 at chapter 3, we're going to see that it is impossible to answer that question unless we understand 00:02:38.260 --> 00:02:45.720 idolatry and the role that idolatry plays in our lives. You'll never understand the culture around you. 00:02:45.719 --> 00:02:49.599 You'll never understand the city that you live in. You'll never even understand your own heart 00:02:49.599 --> 00:02:59.840 unless you understand idolatry and the impact of idolatry on everyone. So chapter 3 is all about 00:02:59.840 --> 00:03:05.860 idolatry. And we're going to ask three things from this passage about idols. Where do they come from? 00:03:05.860 --> 00:03:16.100 How do we acquire them? In other words, what leads us to become attached to certain things as idols? 00:03:16.360 --> 00:03:23.260 What's involved there? And then thirdly, how can we resist them? Where do they come from? How do we 00:03:23.260 --> 00:03:26.780 acquire them? How can we resist them? Let's pray together. 00:03:26.780 --> 00:03:40.500 Our Heavenly Father, our great temptation now as we open your Word, our great temptation is to rely 00:03:40.500 --> 00:03:47.180 now only on human wisdom and insight. Our great temptation is to believe that we somehow have 00:03:47.180 --> 00:03:56.599 what it takes. Lord, we know better. We know that unless you speak, unless your Holy Spirit works 00:03:56.599 --> 00:04:05.919 in us. There is no hope. And so we pray for you to speak, to illuminate your Word for us, to reveal 00:04:05.919 --> 00:04:13.199 through this written Word, the living Word, your Son, Jesus Christ. We pray this in His name. Amen. 00:04:14.620 --> 00:04:21.740 So first of all, idols, where do they come from? The answer seems pretty obvious in Daniel chapter 3 00:04:21.740 --> 00:04:26.180 at face value. It says in verse 1, King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, 00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:34.319 whose height was 60 cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura in the 00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:44.759 province of Babylon. So imagine a 90-foot tall, nine feet wide version of the Washington Monument 00:04:44.759 --> 00:04:49.920 only plated in gold. And that's essentially what he built. And he put it on the plain of 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:56.480 Dura for everybody to see. And then what does he do? He gathers all the who's who of Babylon, 00:04:57.000 --> 00:05:01.579 right? You read that list of all the officials who he called. He called all the leaders, 00:05:01.719 --> 00:05:09.039 all the who's who of Babylon, and he issues a decree. Whenever you hear the music, I want you to bow to 00:05:09.040 --> 00:05:16.400 and worship this idol. And anyone who doesn't is going to be cast into a burning, fiery furnace, 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:21.580 most likely the furnace that was used to create this giant statue in the first place. 00:05:22.900 --> 00:05:29.740 So it's clear that he is wanting this statue, something like an obelisk perhaps, to represent 00:05:29.740 --> 00:05:35.340 a deity of some kind. And so he builds a statue, and then what does he do? He ascribes to it 00:05:35.339 --> 00:05:42.839 divine significance. So idol worship is essentially that. Idol worship happens when somebody takes 00:05:42.839 --> 00:05:48.699 something, in this case a statue, but it could be anything, and they take this thing and then 00:05:48.699 --> 00:05:57.799 they ascribe divine significance to it. They set their whole heart on it. They imbue it. They begin 00:05:57.800 --> 00:06:10.139 to treat it as though it can offer them things that only God can offer them. We see this happening 00:06:10.139 --> 00:06:18.759 sometimes slowly, sometimes very quickly, often unconsciously. But this thing we allow to become 00:06:18.759 --> 00:06:25.480 more important than anything else, more important than God himself. Now it's easy to look at this 00:06:25.480 --> 00:06:30.680 ancient document and this statue and think about our modern culture and think, well, this is back 00:06:30.680 --> 00:06:36.280 then, but this doesn't really happen today. But it's interesting if we begin to penetrate into 00:06:36.280 --> 00:06:43.920 even the Babylonian pantheon and begin to understand these gods and goddesses that we read about in the 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:49.280 ancient Near East, gods like Marduk or Ishtar or Anu. What do they represent? 00:06:49.279 --> 00:07:06.359 These are personifications of what? Love, fertility, wisdom, power, wealth, right? Agricultural success. 00:07:07.419 --> 00:07:12.679 So these are personifications of things that existed then that still exist today. They were 00:07:12.680 --> 00:07:21.019 personifications that were then ascribed divine significance. They're created things that hold 00:07:21.019 --> 00:07:26.259 divine significance. Which tells us what about our first question? I mean, our first question is this, 00:07:26.480 --> 00:07:31.280 where do idols come from? What this shows us is this, that idols don't actually come from anywhere 00:07:31.280 --> 00:07:38.360 out here, right? The statue that Nebuchadnezzar builds isn't automatically, when the workmen forge it 00:07:38.360 --> 00:07:43.819 and build it and assemble it and it's laying there, it's not automatically an idol, it's just a statue. 00:07:45.319 --> 00:07:50.180 When does it become an idol? It becomes an idol when Nebuchadnezzar ascribes divine significance. 00:07:52.580 --> 00:07:58.240 Right? So in other words, idols don't actually come from anywhere out there, they come from in here. 00:07:58.400 --> 00:08:05.280 The source of idols is actually the human heart. That's where they come from. The human heart has the 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:10.759 ability to turn anything into an idol. This is why John Calvin, the reformer, famously said that 00:08:10.759 --> 00:08:16.919 the human heart is an idol factory. Right? It's continually cranking out idols. 00:08:20.419 --> 00:08:29.139 Human beings, by nature, are worshipers. We are, by nature, worshipers. And that's something that's 00:08:29.139 --> 00:08:34.639 very important for us to understand. In other words, we don't get to choose whether or not to worship. 00:08:34.639 --> 00:08:39.860 The only choice we get, because we're human, is what we worship. 00:08:42.139 --> 00:08:47.080 Father Alexander Schmemann, who's an orthodox priest and writer and thinker, brilliant, 00:08:48.819 --> 00:08:54.319 he says this, and I think he's spot on, he says, secularism is not ultimately about a rejection of 00:08:54.319 --> 00:08:59.419 God or the transcendent. You know, we think the secular age, secular culture, that ultimately what 00:08:59.419 --> 00:09:04.259 secularism is about is a rejection of the transcendent, rejection of God. He says, no, no, no, 00:09:04.259 --> 00:09:10.819 no, that's part of it. But here's what he says, secularism, I submit, is above all a negation of 00:09:10.819 --> 00:09:19.360 worship. If secularism in theological terms is a heresy, it is primarily a heresy about man. It is 00:09:19.360 --> 00:09:27.580 the negation of man as a worshiping being. So he says the great lie at the heart of secularism is 00:09:27.580 --> 00:09:33.340 that we, as human beings, choose whether or not to worship, that it's like a switch that we can flip. 00:09:34.460 --> 00:09:41.820 But if what he's saying is true, then saying that a human being can choose whether or not to worship 00:09:41.820 --> 00:09:45.740 is like saying that water gets to choose whether or not to be wet. 00:09:45.740 --> 00:09:58.080 Right? So believers, atheists, we all worship someone or something. That's what hearts do. That's part of what it means to be human on an ontological level. 00:09:59.100 --> 00:10:07.259 And the Apostle Paul in Romans 1 lays out the reality of idolatry and the fact that it's not just one sin among many, 00:10:07.259 --> 00:10:14.460 but rather that idolatry is actually the core problem of the human heart. This is the reason why we do the bad things that we do. 00:10:15.720 --> 00:10:22.120 Right? All of you have integrity. All of you want to live a good life. All of you have values and principles and morals. 00:10:22.299 --> 00:10:27.819 Right? All of us, nobody thinks of themselves as a bad person. I don't know anybody personally who wakes up and says, 00:10:27.919 --> 00:10:34.059 I want to do a lot of bad things today. Nobody does that. So think about it. You don't wake up one day and say, 00:10:34.059 --> 00:10:38.699 I'm going to find a really good opportunity to lie to somebody today. You don't do that. 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:44.119 You wake up assuming that you're going to be honest and have integrity. And then what happens? A few hours into your day, 00:10:44.419 --> 00:10:49.779 you're standing with a group of people and it's people that you really admire and you want to be a part of that group. 00:10:50.199 --> 00:10:55.399 And they're all in on the fact that they all read the same article in The Atlantic. Right? 00:10:55.659 --> 00:11:00.519 And they're all talking and discussing about and kind of laughing and then they turn and they look at you and they say, 00:11:00.519 --> 00:11:05.579 well, did you read it? And just in that instant, you don't know why, you say, yeah. 00:11:06.679 --> 00:11:10.299 That's amazing. Oh, I totally read it. Yeah, I totally read it. The day it came out. Right? 00:11:10.500 --> 00:11:14.720 And then like five minutes later, you're sitting there like, why in the world did I lie about that? 00:11:14.799 --> 00:11:20.519 What a stupid thing to lie about. And you're like Googling it so that you can read it so that nobody will find out that you're 00:11:21.039 --> 00:11:26.279 lying your pants off. Why do you do that? It's not because you woke up and said, I want to lie. 00:11:26.279 --> 00:11:34.120 You do it because in that moment, the acceptance and approval of those people mattered more to you than your values. 00:11:34.620 --> 00:11:38.500 Mattered more to you than your integrity. Mattered more to you even than God. 00:11:38.559 --> 00:11:43.860 In that moment, for five minutes, it became an idol. Right? 00:11:44.019 --> 00:11:50.299 Or if a friend of yours is in a destructive dating relationship and, you know, a lot of us know people in situations 00:11:50.299 --> 00:11:55.219 where they're dating somebody, living with somebody, sleeping with somebody, and it's an unhealthy relationship 00:11:55.219 --> 00:12:01.359 and it's destructive and you have a lot of red flags and a lot of concerns that this is not leading to a good place. 00:12:01.759 --> 00:12:07.839 And yet, every opportunity that you might have to share your concerns, you don't say anything. 00:12:07.899 --> 00:12:10.599 And the only thing that you say is, I'm so happy for you. 00:12:11.740 --> 00:12:13.059 I'm so happy for you. 00:12:13.159 --> 00:12:16.039 Well, if you're happy, that's all that matters to me as long as you're happy. 00:12:16.899 --> 00:12:18.139 Now, why do we do that? Right? 00:12:18.139 --> 00:12:21.279 Nobody wakes up in the morning and says, I want to be an enabler today. 00:12:22.439 --> 00:12:27.220 You know, nobody wakes up and says, I'm going to put my friend at risk for lasting harm and regret. 00:12:28.620 --> 00:12:29.659 We don't do that. 00:12:29.819 --> 00:12:37.580 You find yourself in this situation and then keeping the peace is more important than your friend, 00:12:38.080 --> 00:12:41.319 more important than your values, more important even than God. 00:12:41.500 --> 00:12:43.319 For five minutes, that becomes your idol. 00:12:44.500 --> 00:12:46.439 Right? So this is how idols actually work. 00:12:46.440 --> 00:12:51.640 So the reason that I'm not more generous is not because I need to be told to be more generous. 00:12:51.840 --> 00:12:53.600 Everybody tells me I need to be more generous. 00:12:53.920 --> 00:12:59.520 I'm not more generous because maybe, maybe I've made an idol out of financial security. 00:13:00.340 --> 00:13:01.380 I don't want to risk it. 00:13:01.760 --> 00:13:04.080 If I gave sacrificially, then I might not have enough. 00:13:04.500 --> 00:13:04.660 Right? 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:10.520 The reason I nag my spouse to death is not because I want to be that way. 00:13:10.600 --> 00:13:13.380 It's because I maybe made an idol out of control. 00:13:13.379 --> 00:13:19.139 And it terrifies me to love somebody and to be connected to somebody and to not be able to control them. 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:19.840 I'm at their mercy. 00:13:21.519 --> 00:13:21.679 Right? 00:13:21.820 --> 00:13:25.980 The reason that I never ask for help, even when it's obvious that I need it, 00:13:26.639 --> 00:13:30.779 and the reason that I will just flame out by myself rather than ask somebody for help, 00:13:31.039 --> 00:13:33.500 maybe I've made an idol out of competence. 00:13:33.500 --> 00:13:38.000 I don't want anybody to know that I need anything. 00:13:38.279 --> 00:13:38.399 Right? 00:13:39.059 --> 00:13:40.700 The list goes on and on and on. 00:13:41.000 --> 00:13:43.159 So the question, where do idols come from? 00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:44.299 They come from the human heart. 00:13:44.519 --> 00:13:46.440 They're continually coming out of the human heart. 00:13:46.820 --> 00:13:49.580 And here's the point, sort of the first point I want to make. 00:13:50.059 --> 00:13:56.340 If we deny our nature as worshipers, right, if you persist in thinking that you have a choice, 00:13:57.600 --> 00:13:59.460 that you can decide whether or not to be religious, 00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:02.000 that you can decide whether or not to have a God, 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:07.460 you're going to be blind to the role that idolatry plays in determining your behavior. 00:14:08.279 --> 00:14:09.360 You're going to be controlled. 00:14:11.039 --> 00:14:14.059 And we will never change, never grow, never become free 00:14:14.059 --> 00:14:17.379 until we begin to recognize and reject the idols in our lives, 00:14:17.440 --> 00:14:18.960 these things of ultimate importance. 00:14:19.259 --> 00:14:20.080 But here's the problem. 00:14:20.539 --> 00:14:22.679 Idols are very, very, very hard to resist. 00:14:22.820 --> 00:14:24.159 They're very hard to remove. 00:14:24.639 --> 00:14:25.559 We'll talk about that in a minute. 00:14:26.899 --> 00:14:30.320 On the flip side, they're quite easy to acquire. 00:14:30.320 --> 00:14:34.300 And this is what we see as we enter our second point, the second question. 00:14:36.400 --> 00:14:38.580 If idols come from the heart, then how do we acquire them? 00:14:38.640 --> 00:14:42.360 And what determines which idols take hold in our hearts? 00:14:44.180 --> 00:14:46.840 King Nebuchadnezzar, you've got to give it to him. 00:14:47.560 --> 00:14:49.140 Not very spiritually insightful. 00:14:49.900 --> 00:14:52.120 Again and again and again, he kind of misses the point. 00:14:53.180 --> 00:14:53.340 Right? 00:14:53.340 --> 00:14:58.620 I mean, for example, in chapter 2, he has a great dream about a big golden statue 00:14:58.620 --> 00:15:00.379 that God brings crashing to the ground. 00:15:00.480 --> 00:15:01.800 And then in chapter 3, what does he do? 00:15:02.040 --> 00:15:04.740 He builds a great, big, giant golden statue. 00:15:04.840 --> 00:15:06.259 So not very spiritually insightful, 00:15:07.120 --> 00:15:12.040 but brilliant when it comes to strategy and understanding human nature. 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:18.320 He understands that coming to worship an idol isn't an intellectual choice that we make. 00:15:18.320 --> 00:15:21.920 He understands that if he sets this statue up, commands everybody to worship it, 00:15:21.940 --> 00:15:24.480 that they might fake it, they might bow when they're supposed to, 00:15:24.680 --> 00:15:27.580 but they're not actually going to worship this thing in their hearts. 00:15:29.200 --> 00:15:30.140 Unless, what? 00:15:31.080 --> 00:15:33.340 He employs a two-pronged strategy. 00:15:34.440 --> 00:15:37.520 He uses seduction and fear. 00:15:38.980 --> 00:15:40.840 Seduction and fear. 00:15:41.140 --> 00:15:45.280 The first thing he does brilliantly is to seduce them. 00:15:45.279 --> 00:15:47.059 How does he do it? 00:15:47.360 --> 00:15:48.299 Where do you see it in the chapter? 00:15:50.980 --> 00:15:51.819 The music. 00:15:53.120 --> 00:15:53.819 The music. 00:15:55.079 --> 00:15:57.339 He could have just said, bow five times a day. 00:15:58.120 --> 00:16:00.639 He could have said, bow whenever you hear the gong. 00:16:01.779 --> 00:16:03.519 You know, he could have said, bow when I bow. 00:16:04.279 --> 00:16:06.500 He could have said any number of things, but he says, no. 00:16:07.360 --> 00:16:09.899 It repeats again and again throughout the passage. 00:16:09.899 --> 00:16:15.100 When you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, 00:16:15.480 --> 00:16:18.559 you are to fall down and worship the golden image. 00:16:18.699 --> 00:16:19.419 Why the music? 00:16:20.819 --> 00:16:21.819 Behavioral conditioning. 00:16:22.879 --> 00:16:23.079 Right? 00:16:23.720 --> 00:16:26.259 The association that is forged in the heart. 00:16:26.659 --> 00:16:28.639 Music has a very seductive power. 00:16:29.740 --> 00:16:31.079 And here's the thing we need to understand. 00:16:31.159 --> 00:16:34.759 A lot of idols become idols not because we chose them. 00:16:34.939 --> 00:16:35.960 We don't even know what's happening. 00:16:35.960 --> 00:16:41.300 They become idols because we're seduced, because our hearts and imaginations are captured. 00:16:42.160 --> 00:16:44.940 And music is one great way to do just that. 00:16:45.139 --> 00:16:51.259 But imagine if Nebuchadnezzar lived today and he had all of the various forms of media at his disposal that we have. 00:16:52.920 --> 00:16:53.220 Right? 00:16:53.300 --> 00:16:54.759 Look at popular music today. 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:56.019 Look at video games. 00:16:56.400 --> 00:16:57.460 Look at popular books. 00:16:57.780 --> 00:16:58.600 Look at movies. 00:16:59.960 --> 00:17:00.440 Right? 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:04.000 All of them are filled with idolatrous content. 00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:04.480 Right? 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:13.660 So if I watch two dozen films, half of which are probably made by Disney, where the story is essentially this, 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:17.759 that you have somebody who's sort of oppressed by societal norms and expectations, 00:17:18.119 --> 00:17:22.319 and they fight the good fight to cast all of those things off, 00:17:22.359 --> 00:17:28.380 and their character arc is essentially to discover that the secret to happiness and fulfillment is being true to themselves, 00:17:28.559 --> 00:17:30.319 regardless of what anybody says. 00:17:30.759 --> 00:17:32.740 And I watch that again and again and again. 00:17:32.740 --> 00:17:33.180 Right? 00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:38.200 Nobody has to tell me to bow to the idol of individualism. 00:17:38.539 --> 00:17:38.640 Right? 00:17:39.720 --> 00:17:42.559 Nobody has to tell me that expressive individualism is something. 00:17:42.819 --> 00:17:45.240 I'm just going to, my heart is captured by that idea. 00:17:45.319 --> 00:17:49.720 I begin to assume that this is just the way the world is, that this is what I should be doing. 00:17:50.779 --> 00:17:51.039 Right? 00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:55.779 But if you look at today, you know, people say that individualism is sort of tearing the West apart. 00:17:55.859 --> 00:17:56.000 Right? 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:57.559 The atomization of society. 00:17:57.720 --> 00:17:59.759 People's attitude, I come first. 00:17:59.759 --> 00:18:00.019 Right? 00:18:00.140 --> 00:18:01.380 My kid comes first. 00:18:01.799 --> 00:18:08.980 And only, and rejecting the idea that we're an interconnected web of relationships who depend on each other. 00:18:08.980 --> 00:18:11.779 Another example. 00:18:11.860 --> 00:18:21.720 If I watch a couple of dozen movies where people meet, and they fall in love, and there's this deep passion, but the odds are stacked against them. 00:18:22.240 --> 00:18:22.380 Right? 00:18:22.380 --> 00:18:28.060 But over time, they courageously risk everything to overcome the odds, and they end up together. 00:18:28.420 --> 00:18:28.600 Right? 00:18:28.720 --> 00:18:35.200 And the message that comes through loud and clear is that passionate desire is the strongest force in the world. 00:18:35.500 --> 00:18:38.580 And passionate desire allows you to overcome anything. 00:18:39.580 --> 00:18:39.760 Right? 00:18:39.759 --> 00:18:41.759 I'll watch a couple of dozen movies like that, and what? 00:18:41.940 --> 00:18:45.500 I don't have to be told to bow to the idol of romanticism. 00:18:45.599 --> 00:18:48.440 My heart has already been taken away by that. 00:18:50.299 --> 00:18:53.900 So then what happens when I sort of look around at my real life? 00:18:55.000 --> 00:18:56.299 You know, I look at my family. 00:18:56.440 --> 00:18:58.359 I look at my husband or my wife. 00:18:58.440 --> 00:18:59.839 I look at my kids. 00:18:59.960 --> 00:19:00.140 Right? 00:19:00.480 --> 00:19:06.440 You look around, and you sort of look at the movies and this idea that sort of captured your imagination of what things should be like. 00:19:07.079 --> 00:19:07.259 Right? 00:19:07.259 --> 00:19:08.900 And then you look at your life, and you think, you know what? 00:19:08.900 --> 00:19:10.160 This passionate desire. 00:19:10.400 --> 00:19:14.200 Man, they were really crazy about each other, and we just don't seem to be that way. 00:19:14.400 --> 00:19:17.360 And sometimes I feel the desire, and sometimes I don't. 00:19:17.460 --> 00:19:20.580 And sometimes I feel in love, but sometimes I don't. 00:19:20.640 --> 00:19:23.460 And sometimes I'm not even sure if I like this person. 00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:25.920 And we're so different in so many ways. 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:31.700 And I don't really see us on this adventure overcoming obstacles against all odds. 00:19:31.780 --> 00:19:35.480 And unless by obstacles you mean, you know, vacuuming Cheerios out of the backseat of the car. 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:39.799 This is really what our life is constituted by, and it's just not. 00:19:40.200 --> 00:19:41.460 And or you're dating, right? 00:19:41.519 --> 00:19:47.839 And you're looking at the person that is asking you out or the person that you've been hanging out with. 00:19:47.839 --> 00:19:53.039 And we have these unbelievably high expectations, right? 00:19:53.299 --> 00:19:55.299 That they have to be Photoshopped perfect. 00:19:56.559 --> 00:19:56.939 Right? 00:19:57.019 --> 00:20:02.899 And if they're not, if I don't feel that passionate desire like I see up here, if I don't feel that, then something must be missing. 00:20:02.980 --> 00:20:04.559 And we're terrified of settling. 00:20:04.559 --> 00:20:07.639 And so what do we do? 00:20:07.679 --> 00:20:09.399 We begin to pick it all apart in our brains. 00:20:09.559 --> 00:20:11.119 We criticize our spouse. 00:20:11.319 --> 00:20:13.559 We begin to criticize the people that we're dating. 00:20:13.759 --> 00:20:18.339 We look at the dating pool, and we say that there's nobody out there. 00:20:18.379 --> 00:20:23.319 And yet there's, you know, three dozen people that we're completely ignoring because they don't kind of meet that standard. 00:20:23.759 --> 00:20:26.259 And we get, and what are we doing when all that is happening? 00:20:26.980 --> 00:20:28.119 What are we actually doing? 00:20:28.119 --> 00:20:36.899 Well, every time we went to the theater, we heard the sound of the horn, the pipe, the lyre, the trigon, the harp, and the bagpipe. 00:20:37.059 --> 00:20:38.039 And we're bowing. 00:20:39.079 --> 00:20:39.479 Right? 00:20:39.539 --> 00:20:40.259 We're bowing. 00:20:41.579 --> 00:20:45.959 The music and the movies and the ads of our culture are not spiritually neutral. 00:20:46.679 --> 00:20:47.059 Right? 00:20:47.319 --> 00:20:48.619 They're not spiritually neutral. 00:20:48.719 --> 00:20:50.199 They're full of idolatrous content. 00:20:50.559 --> 00:20:52.019 Now, does this mean that we should avoid it all? 00:20:52.119 --> 00:20:52.779 Absolutely not. 00:20:52.839 --> 00:20:53.519 That's not the point. 00:20:54.159 --> 00:20:55.719 But don't be blind to it. 00:20:56.599 --> 00:20:56.799 Right? 00:20:56.799 --> 00:20:57.659 Question it. 00:20:58.799 --> 00:21:04.119 If you're going to criticize somebody, don't criticize the person that you're dating or your poor spouse. 00:21:04.579 --> 00:21:06.539 Criticize the content that you're consuming. 00:21:07.019 --> 00:21:08.019 Always filter it. 00:21:08.319 --> 00:21:09.299 Always critique it. 00:21:09.599 --> 00:21:10.699 Always ask questions. 00:21:10.979 --> 00:21:12.539 What are the assumptions behind this? 00:21:12.719 --> 00:21:14.839 What are the values that are being put forth in this? 00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:17.719 What does this tell me about human nature and human flourishing? 00:21:17.959 --> 00:21:21.059 What's the implicit statement about what it means to be me? 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:27.699 We don't have anybody these days, you know, nobody like Nebuchadnezzar, 00:21:27.700 --> 00:21:31.000 would ever say in our country, I want you to bow to this idol now. 00:21:31.039 --> 00:21:32.400 Nobody would say that overtly. 00:21:32.660 --> 00:21:36.680 But listen, our economy is driven by idolatry. 00:21:37.680 --> 00:21:39.440 Our economy is driven by it. 00:21:39.480 --> 00:21:39.600 Right? 00:21:39.819 --> 00:21:43.960 Our economy relies on us being worshipers of consumerism. 00:21:44.759 --> 00:21:44.960 Right? 00:21:45.039 --> 00:21:49.340 Our idolatry regarding individualism. 00:21:49.339 --> 00:21:51.500 That's necessary for our society to function. 00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:58.179 It would be bad for the economy if we began depending more on each other so that we didn't have to buy as much stuff. 00:21:58.779 --> 00:22:00.279 That would be bad for the economy. 00:22:01.859 --> 00:22:02.299 Right? 00:22:02.299 --> 00:22:05.059 So idols can be very, very seductive. 00:22:08.440 --> 00:22:09.519 That's the first point. 00:22:09.740 --> 00:22:15.000 That's the first way that we see Nebuchadnezzar sort of enacting and bringing this idol into the culture. 00:22:15.119 --> 00:22:17.359 The next thing he does is he uses fear. 00:22:18.639 --> 00:22:26.539 Along with seduction, not quite as effective, but fear can be an effective way to drive idols into people's hearts. 00:22:27.139 --> 00:22:27.480 Right? 00:22:27.480 --> 00:22:31.640 And if you think about your life, you know, Nebuchadnezzar uses fear by very blatantly saying, 00:22:31.759 --> 00:22:34.400 if you don't bow to this idol, I'm going to throw you in the furnace and you're going to die. 00:22:34.519 --> 00:22:35.200 A horrible death. 00:22:35.799 --> 00:22:35.960 Right? 00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:36.740 So there's your incentive. 00:22:38.500 --> 00:22:41.660 But we have idols that are driven by fear just as much. 00:22:42.400 --> 00:22:42.660 Right? 00:22:42.900 --> 00:22:47.360 If I'm perfectionistic, I don't know if anybody else struggles with perfectionism. 00:22:48.660 --> 00:22:56.039 If I'm perfectionistic, maybe it's because, maybe it's because perfectionism has become an idol. 00:22:56.039 --> 00:22:59.599 And maybe that's because, maybe it could be any number of reasons. 00:22:59.720 --> 00:23:01.299 Maybe I'm terrified of falling short. 00:23:02.159 --> 00:23:02.500 I don't know. 00:23:02.559 --> 00:23:08.059 Maybe I grew up with parents who always made me feel like I was just almost, it was never quite good enough. 00:23:08.240 --> 00:23:12.019 And that instilled in me this deep, deep, deep fear that I will fall short. 00:23:12.440 --> 00:23:15.200 And so maybe that fear drives my perfectionism. 00:23:15.200 --> 00:23:19.819 Or if my job has become an idolatrous obsession. 00:23:19.980 --> 00:23:24.700 Or if my kids and having a perfect family has become an idolatrous obsession. 00:23:24.840 --> 00:23:29.140 Maybe it's because I'm terrified that my life won't mean anything without those things. 00:23:30.019 --> 00:23:30.140 Right? 00:23:30.200 --> 00:23:35.819 Maybe it's the dread fear of meaninglessness, of purposelessness, that drives me to do that. 00:23:37.539 --> 00:23:39.460 So how do we acquire idols? 00:23:39.620 --> 00:23:41.220 Well, it's kind of a trick question. 00:23:41.360 --> 00:23:43.140 They actually kind of acquire us. 00:23:43.140 --> 00:23:43.580 Right? 00:23:44.259 --> 00:23:45.340 They capture our hearts. 00:23:45.460 --> 00:23:47.060 They capture our imaginations. 00:23:49.300 --> 00:23:51.280 They play off our longings. 00:23:51.940 --> 00:23:53.840 They play off our fears. 00:23:54.540 --> 00:23:56.720 Most of the time in ways we're not even aware of. 00:23:57.700 --> 00:24:02.640 So this leads us to the third and obviously the most important question. 00:24:02.820 --> 00:24:04.860 How do we then resist idols? 00:24:04.859 --> 00:24:16.099 If they're generated in the heart and if they're acquired by capturing our hearts and imaginations. 00:24:16.339 --> 00:24:18.479 Playing off our longings and our fears. 00:24:18.599 --> 00:24:20.099 Then how do we actually resist them? 00:24:20.299 --> 00:24:22.179 This brings us to the climax of the story. 00:24:22.659 --> 00:24:27.379 Daniel's three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow to the idol. 00:24:27.380 --> 00:24:33.120 And of course we have some jealous officials over here who resent the fact that they've been promoted. 00:24:33.840 --> 00:24:35.800 Who rat them out to the king. 00:24:35.920 --> 00:24:38.080 And so they're immediately brought before Nebuchadnezzar. 00:24:38.160 --> 00:24:41.280 And Nebuchadnezzar says, we're going to play the music and I want you to bow. 00:24:41.600 --> 00:24:42.480 And if you bow, great. 00:24:42.660 --> 00:24:45.480 If you don't bow, then we're going to cast you into this furnace. 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:49.320 And listen to what they say. 00:24:49.319 --> 00:24:52.740 Well first I'll point out this. 00:24:52.980 --> 00:24:53.819 Look at what he says. 00:24:53.899 --> 00:24:56.740 I think this is actually a key verse in the passage. 00:24:56.919 --> 00:24:57.799 He then asks this. 00:24:58.240 --> 00:25:01.700 Who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands? 00:25:02.519 --> 00:25:04.179 Who is the God who will deliver you? 00:25:04.740 --> 00:25:12.720 And I think that's significant because I think that's the core kind of jab that lies at the very heart of idolatry. 00:25:12.859 --> 00:25:15.359 And the way it plays off our fears. 00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:18.899 The belief that without this or that idol there is no hope. 00:25:19.319 --> 00:25:19.500 Right? 00:25:19.679 --> 00:25:21.399 That's what our idols tell us. 00:25:21.939 --> 00:25:22.099 Right? 00:25:22.339 --> 00:25:24.899 Without this thing, my life is not worth living. 00:25:25.179 --> 00:25:28.019 Without this thing, I can't imagine going on. 00:25:28.059 --> 00:25:28.179 Right? 00:25:28.200 --> 00:25:29.599 If I don't get this thing. 00:25:29.679 --> 00:25:31.859 If I can't be with this person. 00:25:31.960 --> 00:25:34.639 If I can't have this kind of credential. 00:25:34.879 --> 00:25:35.839 Or get this job. 00:25:35.919 --> 00:25:38.259 Or if I'm not able to live at this standard. 00:25:38.359 --> 00:25:41.480 Or if I have to face this, then my life isn't worth living. 00:25:41.659 --> 00:25:42.460 I can't handle it. 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:43.119 It's too much. 00:25:43.679 --> 00:25:43.879 Right? 00:25:43.879 --> 00:25:44.419 That's the idol. 00:25:44.419 --> 00:25:46.740 What God will deliver you from that? 00:25:46.740 --> 00:25:50.720 If you have to do without this idol, what God can possibly deliver you? 00:25:51.460 --> 00:25:53.759 It's the lie that without this thing, there is no hope. 00:25:55.519 --> 00:25:56.460 And then look what they say. 00:25:56.539 --> 00:25:56.819 They say, 00:25:56.980 --> 00:25:57.900 Oh, Nebuchadnezzar. 00:25:58.400 --> 00:26:00.519 We have no need to answer you in this matter. 00:26:01.380 --> 00:26:06.680 If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace. 00:26:06.799 --> 00:26:09.000 And he will deliver us out of your hand, oh king. 00:26:09.660 --> 00:26:10.259 Verse 18. 00:26:10.359 --> 00:26:11.579 Most important verse in the passage. 00:26:11.579 --> 00:26:13.659 But if not. 00:26:15.960 --> 00:26:17.199 Two most important words. 00:26:17.359 --> 00:26:18.099 But if not. 00:26:19.079 --> 00:26:24.879 Be it known to you, oh king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. 00:26:25.839 --> 00:26:26.519 If not. 00:26:26.559 --> 00:26:29.119 In other words, they have no idea if God's going to deliver them. 00:26:29.299 --> 00:26:30.259 They have no idea. 00:26:31.419 --> 00:26:35.119 But they say, whether God saves us or even if not. 00:26:35.179 --> 00:26:36.619 Even if he doesn't save us. 00:26:37.259 --> 00:26:38.419 We're not bowing to your idol. 00:26:38.420 --> 00:26:41.000 And of course they're thrown into the furnace. 00:26:41.140 --> 00:26:41.740 And what happens? 00:26:42.180 --> 00:26:43.120 Nebuchadnezzar looks in. 00:26:43.320 --> 00:26:44.000 It's so hot. 00:26:44.060 --> 00:26:46.000 It's seven times hotter than normal. 00:26:46.140 --> 00:26:49.180 The people that throw them in are killed by the flames. 00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:52.620 But Nebuchadnezzar looks in and sees them walking around. 00:26:52.700 --> 00:26:55.039 But not just three people walking around unharmed. 00:26:55.120 --> 00:26:56.620 But he sees a fourth man with them. 00:26:56.920 --> 00:26:59.700 One who looks, quote, like a son of the gods. 00:27:01.080 --> 00:27:05.180 And it's easy to make a big deal out of the fact that God saved them from the furnace. 00:27:05.259 --> 00:27:07.940 But we need to remember, they had no idea they were going to be saved. 00:27:08.420 --> 00:27:10.080 They had no idea they would be spared. 00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:12.900 And yet they were still willing to refuse. 00:27:13.240 --> 00:27:17.660 So the question becomes, how are they able to resist the idol like this? 00:27:17.720 --> 00:27:20.140 How are they able to resist in the face of certain death? 00:27:22.140 --> 00:27:25.440 It's because they understand the truth about idols. 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:28.120 That idols ultimately are empty. 00:27:28.680 --> 00:27:29.519 They're bankrupt. 00:27:30.420 --> 00:27:30.519 Right? 00:27:30.660 --> 00:27:33.900 Idols promise, but they can never, ever, ever deliver. 00:27:33.900 --> 00:27:38.640 They seduce us by promising to fulfill our longings. 00:27:39.420 --> 00:27:42.440 But they only ever leave us wanting more. 00:27:42.840 --> 00:27:43.000 Right? 00:27:43.259 --> 00:27:45.960 They promise to allay our fears. 00:27:46.480 --> 00:27:49.680 But they only leave us more and more and more afraid. 00:27:52.560 --> 00:28:00.300 Idols promise that all they do is foster a greater and greater and greater dependence. 00:28:00.299 --> 00:28:02.440 They take. 00:28:03.799 --> 00:28:05.839 And the situation is fascinating. 00:28:06.019 --> 00:28:09.539 These men could have bowed and spared themselves the furnace. 00:28:10.180 --> 00:28:14.419 But in that attempt to save their lives, they would have forfeited their souls. 00:28:15.559 --> 00:28:16.639 And what does that sound like? 00:28:16.680 --> 00:28:17.700 What does that remind you of? 00:28:17.759 --> 00:28:19.299 What does this situation remind you of? 00:28:19.299 --> 00:28:21.259 Matthew chapter 16. 00:28:21.639 --> 00:28:22.919 Jesus tells his disciples, 00:28:23.319 --> 00:28:27.500 If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 00:28:27.940 --> 00:28:30.200 For whoever would save his life will lose it. 00:28:30.399 --> 00:28:33.159 But whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 00:28:33.819 --> 00:28:37.799 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? 00:28:38.079 --> 00:28:41.200 Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 00:28:42.460 --> 00:28:43.379 What's he saying? 00:28:44.579 --> 00:28:45.539 Refusing idols? 00:28:46.419 --> 00:28:48.240 Resisting the idols that have taken hold? 00:28:48.240 --> 00:28:53.799 That can very often feel like we are walking right into a blazing furnace of suffering. 00:28:54.099 --> 00:28:55.779 This thing that you've been holding on to. 00:28:55.900 --> 00:28:57.259 That you've been putting your hope on. 00:28:57.460 --> 00:28:58.539 That has sparked your imagination. 00:28:58.940 --> 00:29:00.620 The idea that you might have to live without it. 00:29:02.059 --> 00:29:05.339 It seems to guarantee fiery suffering. 00:29:06.460 --> 00:29:09.620 I cannot possibly imagine life without this person. 00:29:10.279 --> 00:29:13.960 I cannot imagine life if I'm not able to get this job. 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:15.680 If I'm not able to do this thing. 00:29:15.720 --> 00:29:17.180 If I'm not accepted into this program. 00:29:17.180 --> 00:29:17.640 I can't. 00:29:17.799 --> 00:29:19.259 That's going to be a furnace of suffering. 00:29:19.580 --> 00:29:20.400 What will I be worth? 00:29:23.060 --> 00:29:25.320 But the profound spiritual truth is this. 00:29:25.380 --> 00:29:26.660 Is that in doing that. 00:29:26.740 --> 00:29:28.660 In giving in to that idol. 00:29:29.039 --> 00:29:33.060 In saying yes and bowing to spare that furnace. 00:29:34.180 --> 00:29:36.100 We may win the day. 00:29:36.580 --> 00:29:37.720 But we lose the war. 00:29:38.660 --> 00:29:38.880 Right? 00:29:38.920 --> 00:29:40.180 We lose our souls. 00:29:40.180 --> 00:29:43.900 We're ultimately given over into a spiritual slavery. 00:29:45.460 --> 00:29:48.680 And the way we know that is by looking at Jesus. 00:29:50.200 --> 00:29:52.299 Because unlike the idols of the world. 00:29:52.600 --> 00:29:55.420 Jesus Christ does not make empty promises. 00:29:55.420 --> 00:29:58.460 And the way we know that is because what he did. 00:29:59.420 --> 00:30:00.660 Because when you look at Jesus. 00:30:00.980 --> 00:30:02.480 And you look at the good news of the gospel. 00:30:02.980 --> 00:30:05.680 Jesus Christ actually plunged into the furnace. 00:30:06.120 --> 00:30:06.279 Right? 00:30:06.400 --> 00:30:08.279 He went into the furnace of God's wrath. 00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:09.420 But unlike Daniel 3. 00:30:09.620 --> 00:30:10.700 Nobody rescued him. 00:30:12.060 --> 00:30:12.460 Right? 00:30:12.539 --> 00:30:14.259 Nobody preserved him. 00:30:15.360 --> 00:30:17.060 He was consumed by it. 00:30:18.660 --> 00:30:19.060 Right? 00:30:19.119 --> 00:30:20.379 But because he did that. 00:30:20.839 --> 00:30:22.059 He's able to save us. 00:30:22.119 --> 00:30:22.759 And more than that. 00:30:22.799 --> 00:30:23.779 He's able to ensure. 00:30:24.019 --> 00:30:25.980 That one day all of those longings. 00:30:26.099 --> 00:30:27.539 Will actually be met. 00:30:28.299 --> 00:30:30.099 And one day all of those fears. 00:30:30.319 --> 00:30:32.019 Will actually be overcome. 00:30:33.919 --> 00:30:34.779 So the question. 00:30:36.419 --> 00:30:37.480 The question is this. 00:30:37.559 --> 00:30:38.619 How do we resist idols? 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:40.839 Well very practically I'll tell you this. 00:30:41.279 --> 00:30:42.200 Search your heart. 00:30:43.460 --> 00:30:45.119 Follow your longings and your fears. 00:30:45.480 --> 00:30:47.279 Begin to figure out and identify. 00:30:47.279 --> 00:30:49.779 What the idols are that hold sway in your life. 00:30:50.119 --> 00:30:50.980 And then take those idols. 00:30:51.259 --> 00:30:52.319 And hold them up to the light. 00:30:52.940 --> 00:30:53.920 Hold them up to the light. 00:30:54.879 --> 00:30:57.500 And compare them to Jesus Christ. 00:30:58.460 --> 00:31:00.119 Look at the idols that have taken hold. 00:31:00.200 --> 00:31:00.940 And ask them. 00:31:01.139 --> 00:31:02.599 What have you ever done for me? 00:31:03.420 --> 00:31:04.839 What have you ever done for me? 00:31:05.460 --> 00:31:06.119 You've promised. 00:31:06.259 --> 00:31:06.500 Promised. 00:31:06.639 --> 00:31:06.879 Promised. 00:31:07.019 --> 00:31:07.200 Promised. 00:31:07.680 --> 00:31:09.379 You've promised that if I just do this. 00:31:09.599 --> 00:31:11.440 Then I'll meet this standard. 00:31:11.519 --> 00:31:13.119 You've promised that if I just get this. 00:31:13.220 --> 00:31:13.839 Then I'll be happy. 00:31:13.960 --> 00:31:14.859 You've promised that I get. 00:31:15.000 --> 00:31:16.200 And you've promised and you've promised. 00:31:16.200 --> 00:31:17.259 But have you ever delivered? 00:31:18.099 --> 00:31:19.839 Is my longing any less? 00:31:20.440 --> 00:31:20.599 Right? 00:31:20.639 --> 00:31:22.059 Or my fears any less? 00:31:24.079 --> 00:31:25.740 All you've done is take from me. 00:31:25.859 --> 00:31:26.180 Take. 00:31:26.319 --> 00:31:26.539 Take. 00:31:26.700 --> 00:31:27.000 Take. 00:31:28.579 --> 00:31:31.220 And hold them up and then compare them to Jesus Christ. 00:31:32.539 --> 00:31:34.700 See all other idols say this. 00:31:35.500 --> 00:31:36.220 Idols say this. 00:31:36.480 --> 00:31:38.619 Bow to me or it's the furnace for you. 00:31:39.759 --> 00:31:41.740 Bow to me or it's the furnace for you. 00:31:42.139 --> 00:31:42.899 You don't want that. 00:31:43.900 --> 00:31:46.360 Only Jesus Christ says I love you so much. 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:48.600 That I went into the furnace. 00:31:49.680 --> 00:31:51.140 I went into the furnace for you. 00:31:51.480 --> 00:31:52.519 Before you even asked. 00:31:53.360 --> 00:31:54.519 So that you don't have to. 00:31:56.060 --> 00:32:00.200 So that you'll know that the flames will never overcome and consume you. 00:32:00.200 --> 00:32:02.120 That they'll only refine you. 00:32:02.759 --> 00:32:03.819 They'll only cleanse you. 00:32:04.220 --> 00:32:05.539 They'll only mature you. 00:32:07.160 --> 00:32:09.240 In the face of that kind of love. 00:32:09.340 --> 00:32:12.220 Jesus plunging himself into the furnace of God's wrath. 00:32:12.299 --> 00:32:14.440 In the face of that kind of sacrifice. 00:32:14.440 --> 00:32:18.120 All the idols of the world will simply melt away. 00:32:19.019 --> 00:32:19.940 They'll melt away. 00:32:20.259 --> 00:32:20.680 Let's pray. 00:32:21.960 --> 00:32:29.019 Our Father we do realize again that the things that hold sway in our hearts are deep. 00:32:29.360 --> 00:32:30.000 They're spiritual. 00:32:32.680 --> 00:32:34.539 They're not easily removed. 00:32:34.539 --> 00:32:39.920 We know that we can't simply yank them out without replacing them. 00:32:40.079 --> 00:32:42.359 That the more we pull them up by their roots. 00:32:42.460 --> 00:32:44.460 The more others will grow up to take their place. 00:32:44.559 --> 00:32:47.440 We know that the only way that we can be free from idols. 00:32:47.579 --> 00:32:50.960 Is if you plant life in us. 00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:52.960 That leaves no room for idols to grow. 00:32:53.480 --> 00:32:55.420 And so Lord we pray even as we are gathered here. 00:32:55.559 --> 00:32:57.759 Even as we join together in prayer and praise. 00:32:57.859 --> 00:33:00.480 Even as we receive your meal. 00:33:00.619 --> 00:33:02.759 Your feast of bread and wine a little bit later on. 00:33:02.759 --> 00:33:07.119 That in all these ways you would be planting and growing your life in us. 00:33:07.240 --> 00:33:09.519 So that no idols have room to grow. 00:33:09.700 --> 00:33:11.299 That they would starve and die. 00:33:11.839 --> 00:33:13.500 We pray this in your son's holy name. 00:33:13.740 --> 00:33:13.940 Amen.