Scripture: Psalm 135:15-16 – The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; they have eyes, but they do not see…”
Have you ever known a yippy dog? It seems like the small dogs tend to be much more aggressive than bigger ones, like they do not realize that they are small or need to bluster to make them seem bigger than they are. I take this same idea when I joke with my children about birds: they still think they are dinosaurs and act that way even when they only weigh a few ounces.
In some ways, comparing the brashness of humans with that of dogs or birds feels unfair – to the dog or bird. Because humans should know better. Hamlet describes humans as “the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals!” Genesis speaks of humanity made in the image of God. Psalm 8 says, “Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.” It seems that humans continually waste their potential by selling themselves short or by puffing themselves up to make them feel bigger than they are. We never seem to get our relationship quite right.
In a perfect, Kingdom of God type world, everyone would know that God’s love would be the end of all their desires. Instead, we put our faith in the things that we create to provide us with joy and meaning, but they never do. Psalm 135 celebrates the favor that God shows to the people of Israel, and contrasts them with the nations who instead make idols of silver and gold, the work of human hands. Such images have eyes and mouths and ears, but do not see or speak or hear. They are ultimately impotent to change lives or make the world a better place.
When we put our faith in silver and gold rather than in faith and love, we actually end up blinding ourselves to the misery of others, deafening ourselves to the word of God, and speaking nothing of value. There is no truth in inflating our importance, and neither is there in wallowing in self-loathing. But through our faith in God, we realize that we can turn aside from the empty idols of our lives, and remember that we are chosen to be God’s people, to be a little lower than the gods, and to be God’s image for ourselves and the world. What will you do today to speak not the soundless words of an idol of your own creation, but God’s truth?
Prayer: God of majesty, I thank you for your blessings and love. Help me to seek you first above all other things. Amen.
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