- Samuel 15 (AMP)
19 Why did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but [instead] swooped down on the plunder [with shouts of victory] and did evil in the sight of the Lord?”
20 Saul said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and have brought back Agag the king of Amalek, and have completely destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took some of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things [that were] to be totally destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” 22 Samuel said,
“Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
As in obedience to the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed [is better] than the fat of rams.
23
“For rebellion is as [serious as] the sin of divination (fortune-telling),
And disobedience is as [serious as] false religion and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
He also has rejected you as king.”
Here we see that a rebellious nature and pride as a character trait is reprehensible in God’s eyes, coupled with disobedience or only partial obedience. Thank God that we can become free of it through the grace and forgiveness of Jesus.
Exodus 20 Then God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship]. 5 You shall not worship them nor serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous (impassioned) God ]demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine], visiting (avenging) the iniquity (sin, guilt) of the fathers on the children [that is, calling the children to account for the sins of their fathers], to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing graciousness and steadfast lovingkindness to thousands [of generations] of those who love Me and keep My commandments.
In idolatry, the invisible God is replaced by visible representations in human and animal form, which have their origin in demonic powers. Explore your house to see if you find anything that is like other gods or gives them honor. Even if you do not consciously serve them, they are a personal threat. With the many tourist activities of the last decades, some souvenirs may have accumulated. As a Christian you should not buy, keep or accept them as gifts.
In the New Testament, this sin brings with it exclusion from the Kingdom of God – see 1 Corinthians 6, verses 9-10. In Ephesians 5:5 and Colossians 3:5, avarice is called idolatry.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)