Josiah’s action was the effect that hearing the Lord’s view of idolatry has on someone whose heart is fully devoted to Yahweh. Those who love God and whose hearts are completely His cannot abide any idols in their hearts—no matter how longstanding the idols might be or who built them.

When Josiah realized that seeking the Lord was incompatible with the idolatry around him, he purged Judah and Jerusalem of idols with amazing zeal. Josiah’s men tore down Baal’s altars in his presence, and he personally traveled to destroy idols. Destroying idols not only requires us to take a stand, but it forces us to pursue things that will protect us from future attacks.

There are three things Christians must pursue if we would, like Josiah, purge and protect the kingdom of our hearts from idolatry.

First, we must pursue Christ-centered relationships.

People we choose to share our lives with have a dramatic impact on us. We see this effect throughout the scriptures. The Apostle Paul warned that spending time with wicked people will corrupt us. When we make friends with those who are not pursuing holiness and godliness, it will always shape our lives away from godly pursuits, as our standards and morals begin to change.

Christians may be tempted to think we are impervious to such influences. We sometimes believe that we are strong enough not to be influenced by others, that we can stand on our own, and that we have our own minds, thoughts, and opinions. Our enemy wants us to think that we will never be influenced by godless people, but that we can surely withstand such idolatrous influences. However, it is foolish to think that we can pursue relationships devoid of the truth of God’s Word, and that these relationships will not end up being to our spiritual detriment.

King Solomon is the clearest example in Scripture of the folly of surrounding ourselves with people who are not pursuing Christ as the greatest desire in their lives (1 Kings 11). Solomon, when he should have been wisest, played the fool because he pursued relationships with idolaters. His wives horrific influence led him to build high places for false gods, provoking God’s anger toward him. If the wisest man in the world could not avoid the destructive influence of idolatrous people, then neither can we. Allowing idolatrous people to have a seat of influence in our lives will certainly drag our hearts away from Christ.

That’s why Paul commanded Timothy to flee the idolatrous youthful lusts that can so easily tempt a man in ministry, and to instead pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace (2 Timothy 2:22). However, Timothy was not to pursue godliness alone, but with those who sincerely call on the Lord. Believers are to pursue relationships that will shape us into Christ’s image, not into the image of the world and the devil.

Second, we must pursue Christ-centered contentment.

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