Our idols will affirm our belief that because we are at the center, then anyone who doesn’t align with our desires or opinions is simply wrong or out of touch. Further, our idols will bolster our belief that because we are central, it’s perfectly fine for us to see others as a means to our own ends. They will support our “use” of other people to gain whatever they can offer us.

John Calvin once wrote that the human heart is an idol factory, and that is indeed true. Now when we think about idols, we might be tempted to picture actual, physical idols – something made of wood or metal that we bow down and worship. And while that might be the case, idolatry can be much more subtle.

In fact, many times we might have an idol we aren’t even aware of. It could be anything – money, power, notoriety, or a vision for our own lives. What’s more, it can actually be a shrunken down version of God we have fabricated in our own minds. This is potentially the most dangerous kind of idolatry because while we are still paying lip service to the God of the Bible, we are actually bowing down before a version of God that meets our own ends. But how do you know if you have done that? How do you know if you have manufactured that kind of image in your own heart? Let me give you three diagnostic questions to ask.

1. How Do You Approach the Bible?

As Christians, we believe this is God’s Word. We believe it is inspired by God, and it is the source of all truth because it reveals the nature and ways of God to us. So what attitude do you have when you come to God’s Word? If you find yourself opening God’s Word looking for ammunition to back up the opinions you’ve already formed, then you very well may have manufactured an image of God.

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