Day 219

Jeremiah 7:1-8:3; Daniel 2-3.  “Idols and Images”

         The image of Daniel two is that of a statue with various layers representing various world empires.  However, a rock representing God’s kingdom crushed the entire statue.  King Nebuchadnezzar concludes that if his portion of the image in the dream was the head of gold which represented a limited time period then why not make an entire statue of gold representing a timeless empire.  He then commanded the people to bow to that.  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not bow down to the image or what the image represented—a defiance against God’s plan.
         God frequently commands us not to surrender to idols.  Why?  What harm is there in bowing to a golden image?  Daniels friends knew the whole picture.  We tend to think of an image, but it’s much larger than that.  If we surrender to anything other than God, we have made a statement about our lack of trust or faith in His plan and power.  Other than an image (idol), what do you have the potential of surrendering to? (e.g. complacency, greed, a desire for status—popularity in the community, wealth, the one people listen to, etc.)

General Questions for each day:
Summarize the day’s Bible passage in your own words.
What thoughts, actions, attitudes or beliefs are addressed in the passage?
How is the Holy Spirit leading you to apply this passage to your life today?