Hello Everyone! …Again! It’s been about 2 weeks or so since the last blog, which let me say this:
Blogs come out 2nd & 4th Friday of the month!
So be on the look out! If you’re looking for other week by week content, head over to Heart of Preacher’s Kid podcast on any platform or just click here.
Since the end of last year, I have been studying the book of Ezekiel; not only because I had never fully read it, but I was called out for ministry from this book. As I was reading, God had brought chapter 23, titled in my NIV bible “The Two Adulterous Sisters”. The first time He brought me across chapter I was filled with so much conviction. This second time around as I was reading in succession I was filled with this deep desire to warn.
Let’s break this down, shall we?
The older was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They were mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 23:4 nIV
The two sisters symbolize the cities that reside in Israel and Judah (the 10 tribes and the 2 tribes) which are God’s people. These sisters or cities had committed the sin of idolatry against God and by basically “sleeping with the enemy” as depicted in this chapter. God, whom we call a jealous God (Exodus 20:5), did not like this and allowed punishment to befall them. It is a clear commandment in Exodus 20:4 NIV, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.” Yet, we often find in the Old Testament this same pattern, this same SIN happening often.
So what is idolatry anyways?
Easton’s Bible Dictionary defines idolatry as: image-worship or divine honour paid to any created object. In others words, anything that has been made by man that is worshipped or revered in the same way or above God. What stood out to me was that specifically, God made it a point to mention graven images, things crafted by man’s hands.
Any. Created. Object. That means literally anything can be considered an idol if you give it too much attention. From our phones, to food, to our beds! These things that were meant for good can have evil potential when we celebrate them before God. In the same vein, we have to think, these things are temporary, but God is eternal. Why celebrate something that gives you temporary satisfaction, when you can have eternal gain?
This makes me think of Isaiah 40:18-20 NIV:
18 With whom, then, will you compare God?
To what image will you liken him?
19 As for an idol, a metalworker casts it,
and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
and fashions silver chains for it.
20 A person too poor to present such an offering
selects wood that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
to set up an idol that will not topple.
Yet, these sisters willingly lusted after what their enemies had given them; not hope, but chaos. This chaos didn’t just affect them, but their children too. However, before the punishment on both sisters, God makes it evident how idolatry is a form of adultery.
In Jeremiah 3:14 NKJV it says, ““Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” God had told the children of Israel that He is their husband and they are connected to Him, in the best way through covenant established way back when. So get this, when the Israelites continued to go back to idol worship or explore pagan idols, it is as if they are cheating on God. Let me make this clear, these idols are no match for God nor are they even in comparison to Him. Verse 18 above highlights that for us very clearly. However, when we flirt with idolatry, we entertain the lesser when we’re married to greater. It’s like that age-old 80/20 rule of relationships according to marriage.com: “when a person cheats, they tend to be attracted to the 20 percent in another person that is missing from the spouse.”
Wait. Why are we chasing idols when nothing is missing from God?
Oholah and Oholibah cheated for what reason? Gifts, jewelry, crowns. Is turning your back on your true love and its promise worth the consequences? In the same way, is our temporary happiness in 6 hours of screen time or TV worth our relationship suffering with God?
At the end of the day Isaiah 44:9-20 explains idolatry as useless or foolishness in some versions of the scripture. Paraphrasing here: how can an idol help or rescue any human when it’s made from the same material we can shape, use, or destroy? So then it makes sense why God gave Ezekiel a charge in chapter 23:36b saying, “ “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then confront them with their detestable practices,” “.
God wanted his prophet to hold his people accountable for their actions. It’s our responsibility to look out for one another in Christ, even when we sin. Ezekiel 3:20 NIV notes, “Again, when a righteous person turns from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.” We have been given a task as watchman to our brothers and sisters, not only because they are part of the family, but because how can we allow them to fall?
You have to think: Would I willingly let my brother or sister cheat on our best friend? ISSA NO !
So what must we do when we see our family falling? Ezekiel 3:21 says to warn them so that they do not sin. So here’s my warning to you: Hold your sister and your brother accountable now more than ever. We can no longer be slaves to sin or go willingly to flirt with the enemy and his devices. We. Are. Better. Greater. Stronger. Than that! You should not want to see the body of Christ be punished for unrighteousness, especially since Christ already endured one time for all sin. So now, hear this word, and warn a brother/sister! Let them know it’s time to act right or get left! Because anything that you follow after man for that is not of God, will fail.
Heart of a Preacher's Kid 
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