Idol worship in Hosea 8

v.5 ‘Throw out your calf-idol, O Samaria! My anger burns against them.
How long will they be incapable of purity?’

Israel’s idolatry has made righteousness impossible for them. They
can go to the temple and have their feasts and sacrifices, but it does
no good-the idols are still in place. I want to see what Jesus said
about idolatry…

4432 Pleonexia from pleion, more and echo, to have….term which
includes love of money, avarice, stealing, the longing of those who have
forsaken God to satisfy themselves by means of the lower objects of
nature.

—says my Hebrew Geek study bible.

Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly
nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which
is idolatry.

Matthew 6:5 And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be
seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.

These men practice idolatry by praying [really] to the people that
would see them in the streets. They may be saying ‘God, God’ but they
are only seeking the favor of their onlookers. Jesus says don’t do it
you big fakes! Pray in secret. Don’t seek the favor of men for being
eloquent or pious.

Matthew 7:22 “many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not
prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform
many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away
from me, you evildoers!”
These people were basing their relationship with Christ on magical
powers, not on intimacy and obedience with and to Him. The opposite
extreme would be those that Paul talked about in 2 Timothy 3.5 “having a
form of godliness but denying its power”

Once again it al comes back to relationship with THE MAN Jesus
Christ. Not about religious acts done in the sight of man, not about
miraculous powers to get people excited, not even about knowing the
Bible well. (John 5.39-40: the pharisees had even turned Bible study
into idolatry)

Let us draw close to Christ. Let us throw away our idols and our
greed. (I didn’t even go into all the stuff Jesus says about
greed.)Let’s even throw away our pre-conceptions about what religion
looks like, and simply befriend Jesus. That seems like the most
wonderful and meaningful way of life to me.

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