Don’t worship an Image

I remember as a kid, I learned the second commandment as “don’t make a graven image.”  I never really understood what that was or why I shouldn’t have one, but I knew it was bad.

The thing ancient people did where they often messed up was that they would try to understand God better by making an image of him.  Like Aaron out in the desert they would make a statue and proclaim “this is your God!”

Its always easier to worship something you can see.  When you have a statue to bow down before it is something you can conceive of, understand, see, and touch.

I wish I had a nickel for every person who has told me “I just wish I could see God.”

The point of this commandment is that anything in the human imagination is going to fall far short of capturing everything God is.  Some people struggle with movies based on the life of Jesus for just this reason.  Some show his humanity to much, others show no humanity or personality, only perfection and divinity.

In order to understand God better, God says “come to me, talk to me, know me. Stop trying to take a snapshot of me and turn it into God.  I am so much more than that.”

Come to Jesus and know him, come to the father in prayer.  Don’t single out one part of him, know him better everyday.