“You shall not make for yourself an idol.”
That’s the second of the Ten Commandments, just in case you’re thinking, “I’ve heard that somewhere before.”
What’s the big deal—why not make an idol? The problem is that it reduces God to an imaginary friend. Picking up a piece of wood, carving an image and calling it “my god” is simple make-believe! But, it’s also not very common today, right? At least not in the United States.
Well, we are more subtle, but we still make idols. Have you ever heard someone say (or said yourself), “I believe God is…” or “I don’t like to think of God as…” then fill in the “…” with their own preferences and ideas? How they wish God to be? But hold on. Ask yourself this question:
Is God real?
If God is real, we don’t get to mold Him into a form we prefer. Imagine trying to do this with another human. You wish your friend Napolean had 100 eyes, was able to fly and could pull golden eggs out of his pockets — you really, really, really “want” him to be that kind of a being. Could your “wanting” him to be such a being make it so? Of course not. Either Napolean is such a being or he is not. Your “wanting” has nothing to do with it.
The same is true of God.
It’s insulting to God and incredibly self-destructive for us to reject reality. Either God is real or He is not. If He is real—and the evidence says He is — we must discover what God is like and accept Him as He is. The Bible provides numerous answers about what God is like. Let’s look specifically at Proverbs.
Proverbs was written to provide the way of wisdom — as opposed to the way of foolishness. It’s an incredibly practical book that is critical to the character development of those who seek to follow the God of the Bible. The best way to study Proverbs is to categorize it. You won’t find an outline there. It’s a collection that can be categorized into numerous subjects identifying how one leading a wise (literally, skillful) life should live. Here are six major categories that most other proverbs will fit into:
- Fear and trust the Lord
- Develops character intentionally
- Has a good work ethic
- Is committed to family
- Develops good people skills
- Is a good citizen of her/his communities
So, let’s start with that first category. From a study of Proverbs, asking the question “What does Proverbs say about God?” we can identify several important principles.
One leading a wise/skillful life should…
- Fear and respect the Lord as a beneficial refuge (1:7, 29; 2:5; 8:13; 9:10; 10:27, 29; 14:2, 16, 26, 27, 31; 15:33; 16:6, 7, 20; 18:10; 19:3, 23; 22:4, 14; 23:17; 24:21; 29:25; 30:5; 31:30).
- Understand that wisdom itself is God’s creation (8:22-23; 21:30) and for this reason alone we should love and pursue wisdom (8:22-36).
- Understand that the name YHWH (the most frequently used name for the Lord in Proverbs (e.g., 1:7)), is a reminder of the fact that the Lord is personal. His very nature — a personal, moral being — is the basis for righteousness and righteous living.
- Live with the awareness that YHWH is completely aware of the affairs of men. His eyes see all (5:21; 15:3), He knows the hearts of men (11:20; 15:11; 16:2; 17:3; 19:3; 20:27; 21:1-2; 24:17-18) and He knows the thoughts of men (15:26; 16:2, 9).
- Love — and seek to know — righteousness because YHWH is not neutral between good and evil. He strongly detests wickedness, but delights in and loves righteousness (6:16-19; 11:1, 20; 12:22; 15:8-9, 26; 16:4-5, 11; 17:15; 20:10, 23; 21:3).
- Not only seek righteousness, but also live a lifestyle of righteousness because YHWH is active. He not only delights in, but actively supports the righteous. He not only detests wickedness, but actively opposes the wicked (10:3, 22, 27; 12:2; 15:25-26; 16:7, 33; 17:5; 18:22; 19:14, 17; 20;22; 21:12, 31; 22:12, 14; 29:13).
- Believe that YHWH is in complete control. He sovereignly determines outcomes in the real world. The righteous should rejoice and the wicked should fear and repent (3:32-35; 16:1, 4, 9, 11,33; 19:21; 20:12, 22, 24; 21:1, 30-31; 22:2, 12, 23; 29:26).
- Remember that YHWH disciplines those whom He loves — like a good father disciplines his son (3:11-12); should not “despise” the Lord’s discipline by thinking God is unjust, by ignoring it or by refusing to learn from it. Instead, he should receive the correction — even love it (12:1) — viewing it as one of the ways God shows His love.
- Believe that s/he will be blessed by YHWH if s/he trusts and acknowledges Him in all his ways (3:5-6; 26; 16:20; 18:22; 19:14; 22:4, 17-19; 28:25; 29:25; 30:7-9), honors Him with his wealth (3:9-10), commits his works and plans to the Lord (16:3), is gracious to the poor (19:17), waits for the Lord’s justice (20:22), extends kindness to his enemies (25:21-22) and seeks the Lord’s wisdom (28:5).
I hope you’ll look up those verses for yourself. Better yet, I hope you’ll do your own study — even check my work. More importantly, I hope you’ll not make for yourself an idol — a god you prefer, a god who makes you more comfortable and agrees with your politics.
I hope you’ll accept reality — reality as God has revealed it to us, reality about God Himself as He has revealed it — and believe in, trust in, walk with the one, true God.
