Exposition:
According to the English Dictionary, an idol is a graven image or a representation of anything that is revered or believed to convey some spiritual power. It may also be a person or an icon who is
popularly known for a feat. Most idols are kept in sanctuaries where they offer sacrifices in expectation of some good fortune. Idolatry is putting your whole trust in something or somebody more than depending on God.
The account is told of Rachel who stole her father’s idols without the knowledge of Jacob. She did this, even though the Lord had blessed them with a large flock of sheep and goats. One can postulate that she stole the idols because she thought they could bring them better blessing or fertility. Jealousy could even lead to idolatry. Since they were leaving their home, it is possible that she wanted to have some kind of protection on the journey they were embarking on. The consequences were that Jacob was travelling with idols without his knowledge, their journey was delayed, Laban’s accusation caused much embarrassment to Jacob and his retinue and Rachel died at childbirth.
In contemporary times, it’s so common for people to look for protection against their enemies rather than obeying God and following his precepts. They have more faith in beholding physical objects than believing in God for the supernatural. Apart from these, some have made their superiors, pastors, elders, bosses etc. idols, worshipping them in their hearts more than they would accord to God. Some people tend to please men more than please God.
In the second text we read, Ezekiel, who was among the exiles to Babylon received some elders from Jerusalem and it’s possible they weren’t part of the exiles. They were not ordinary people but those entrusted with a divine assignment to herald the coming of the Messiah but left that calling aside and built their faith in idols. By their appearance, they were elders but inwardly, God saw them as idolaters. Other forms of idols that one can keep in their hearts are occupation, family, money, phones or their belly (Philippians 3:19) How does God see us today? Do we have any idols in our hearts?
Keeping idols in the heart breaks the relationship between us and God. They block us from hearing or inquiring from Him. They can lead us to untimely death as it happened to Rachel in Genesis 35:17-19 and Achan in Joshua 7. To ensure that we have free flow of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we must deal with the idols that are hampering our spiritual growth.