Heart idols. Comfort.

I've heard it said several times that our hearts are idol factory's. Our hearts are naturally prone to wander from the Lord and replace Him with idols. Romans 1 says we have a natural bent to do this- we suppress the Lord in unrighteousness because we think the things we replace Him with will satisfy us more. I've also heard it said that for every idol we make in place of the Lord, there is an underlying "heart idol" manifesting itself.

If you wanted to go down as deep as you could go, a question you'd ask yourself is this one- why do I do the things I do? Many theologians would say there are four reasons why you do the things you do.

A desire for power, comfort, control, and approval.

For whatever reason it may be, my heart idol is conditioned toward comfort. And what ties closely to this is the idea of pleasure. I do what comforts me because it makes me feel good. Or, you could say, I do what gives me pleasure because it comforts me.

Because then, this heart idol exists, I go all other places to give me comfort and pleasure. This heart idol manifests itself in any number of ways. Let's use lust- a common sin struggle for men.

I am most tempted to turn to lust for comfort when I'm down.

Now, it would be a lie to say that turning to lust doesn't offer some amount of pleasure. Truth be told, it does offer pleasure. There is pleasure to be had in sexual things. If I turn to that sin, I turn to it because it's quick and easy and self satisfying.

Lust however, is selfish. It's a distortion of what God intended for good. It's rebellion against Him. These things are evident.

But even if I were to turn to sex in marriage, which is God's healthy and good outlet for desires such as these- If I turned to sex in marriage when I needed to be filled, it would still be an idol.

Is it wrong to desire comfort or pleasure? Not at all.

On the contrary-

The Lord says

"I am He that comforts you." (Isa 51:12)

One of the Holy Spirt's names is The Comforter.

2 Cor. 7:6 says - "God comforts the downcast"

Even more then these references, there are these in the Psalms.

"You give them drink from your river of delights"

"Better is one day in your courts than thousands elsewhere"

"Your steadfast love is better than life"

"There are pleasures at your right hand forevermore"

Clearly, Comfort and pleasure are things that God possesses. They are things found in His character. They are things that God cares about. In fact, these things are so important to God, He asks us this question.

"Why do you... spend your labor for that which does not satisfy?" (Isa 55:2)

The question in effect says, Why in the world are you wasting your time with all of this junk? Why are you spending so much of your time and hard work, looking towards these things which do not satisfy?

Perhaps the entire summation of these great evils could go like this-

Jeremiah 2:13

For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out for themselves broken cisterns that hold no water.

This is the hideous nature of sin- of our heart idols manifesting themselves- God says you've traded my glory for crap. You've traded fullness for nothing.

If only we'd see that God's commands are for our good. Take for example, the command to love your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This explicitly commands us to not love our own comfort more than God. And what's interesting about all of this is, God says "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." (psalm 37:4)

Loving the Lord will bring comfort to your soul. Loving the Lord will bring your pleasure. "He satisfies the longing soul." And God does this through Jesus.

"I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall never hunger and whoever believes in me shall never thirst."

Jesus is the end of our search for comfort and pleasure. He gives us rest. He satisfies us with His steadfast love. God's glory shines in His face for us to see. And He has died to make sinners right with God- to give us more than we can ever imagine and all that He gives is in Himself. Eternal life is knowing God the Father and Jesus Christ.

I know what God has in store for me- It is the fullness of Himself. But I'll never be able to imagine what that is like. You'll never be able to imagine what it's like. Taste and see that He is good.