For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. (Luke 8:17, NIV)

 

To try to live in secrecy before God, man, and yourself is to live in darkness. That is not how God made us. We were made to be fully known. We were made to be open and vulnerable. It’s only in the place of living fully known that we can truly receive the depths of God’s love for us. It’s only in being fully known that we discover who we really are and the extent of our need for God.

 

Reading the title of this article, you’re probably thinking you don’t need an article like this. After all, you probably don’t have a carved stone statue in your house, and you’ve never traveled to Asia and purchased a totem or some other representation of a false god. So why would a conversation about idolatry be of any importance to you, right? However, believe it or not, the most common warning about sin in Scripture does not deal with lying, gossip, adultery, stealing or murder. The most common sin in all of Scripture that we’re told to avoid, reject and move away from is idolatry. And that’s not just Asherah poles in the Old Testament. In fact, in the New Testament, 1John 5:21 says, “Little children, guard yourselves from idols.” So apparently idolatry is still trying to work its way into our lives and distract us from worshipping and obeying God.

 

In Jesus’ discourse in the sermon on the mount (Matt 5:3-12), He gives a picture of the characteristics that should embody each child of God. We call these “the beatitudes.”

 

Each of the “Beatitudes” begin with the word “blessed.” The basic meaning of “blessed” is happy. However, blessed in a Biblical sense, has a much deeper meaning than what we tend to give the word in our English language. You see, “happiness” comes from the Old English word “hap” which means “chance or luck.” Therefore, happiness happens when happen-stances happen to be happy. In other words, happiness as we know it, only exists when the circumstances surrounding our lives are in our favor. But when we use the word “blessed” as the Bible speaks of it, we are speaking of a spiritual joy and a satisfaction that lasts regardless of conditions, which carries one through pain, sorrow, loss, and grief. The word “blessed” is the source of the word “beatitude,” and it means “a privileged recipient of divine favor and spiritual prosperity.”