“Set forth your case, says the Lord; bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob. Let them bring them, and tell us what is to happen. Tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them” (Isaiah 41:21-22 ESV).
The idolatry of today is not unlike that of Isaiah’s day. Explanations of origins were offered by the prophets of Baal. They offered materialistic creation stories and led the people to “exchange the truth about God for a lie, so that they worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25). They built idols made in the image of bulls, birds and other created things and led the people to bow down to them as gods. The people of Israel exchanged their worship of the LORD and put their faith in idols that were made with human hands.
Sounds pretty superstitious and archaic doesn’t it. Surely we know better than to bow down to such silliness. Yet, we have fallen for the similar materialistic explanations for origins today. The prophets of the philosophy of naturalism have clothed themselves in the robes of science and convinced us that there is no need for a supernatural God. For all things can be explained through natural processes. They attempt to “tell us the former things” by inserting the name “evolution” or “nature” in the place where the name “God” belongs. We’re really just as idolatrous as those in Isaiah’s day. Our idols and “proofs” are just more complex and insidious than theirs were.
Yet we have been given more than God’s natural revelation through His creation. We have been given His specific revelation through His Word. And we don’t have to read far into His book to know the truth of our origin. For it opens with the words: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Any explanation that varies from this is idolatry. Those who consider the natural evidence in light of this revealed truth will be convinced and finally worship the Lord as our Creator.
PRAYER: Dear Father, forgive us for lowering our eyes to worship created things rather than lifting them up to You, our Creator. We ask that You open the eyes of our people that they might recognize the false philosophy of naturalism that masquerades as science for the lie that it is. We are broken hearted for the idolatry in our land. Bring us to repentance and reveal Yourself to us afresh by Your Holy Spirit. In Jesus’ name, amen.