JU16-15: Although We Shouldn’t Make Idols Out Of Divine Symbols, We Shouldn’t Belittle Them Either

Yesterday I talked about how it is NOT good to attach our faith to some outward symbol like the Star of David or a crucifix for example.

However, there’s another side to that coin.

Just because we shouldn’t make idols out of God-ordained symbols doesn’t mean we should take them lightly either.

Again, a perfect example is Samson and his long hair.

Samson’s long hair was the symbol of his status as a NAZIR and represented the great strength he had.

But, it was NOT the source of his strength.

I’m not sure if Samson quite understood that.

When his hair was cut, remember the Scripture says the Lord departed from him.

It was the Lord who was the source of his strength and not his hair.

Yet Samson abused this God-given symbol of his.

He used his hair in a frivolous game with a Philistine prostitute.

And then he lost it.

I think one could make a good argument that because Samson treated this symbol of his faithfulness (his long hair) with such derision, that was the reason why it was taken from him.

So fellow brothers and sisters, that’s a warning to all of us.

We cannot ignore or misuse the symbols of our faith to the God of Israel and expect His divine blessings and power to stay with us.

If we are to have the power to deliver the Gospel to a dying world, heal diseases and get our prayers answered, we must respect and pay proper heed to the divine symbols the Lord has placed in our life.

What would be some of these symbols?

Well, how about this one?

“‘Say to the Israelites,
‘You must observe my Sabbaths.
This will be a sign between me
and you for the generations to come,
so you may know that I am the Lord,
who makes you holy.'”
-Exodus 31:13

And the consequences for abusing this symbol can be dire indeed.

Look at what it says in the next verse:

“‘Observe the Sabbath,
because it is holy to you.
Anyone who desecrates it
is to be put to death;
those who do any work
on that day must be
cut off from their people.”
-Exodus 31:14

Yikes!!!

I dunno about you but I’ve just received a fresh resolve to make sure to keep the Lord’s Shabbat.

Also, I’m reminded that Yeshua connected himself to Sabbath observance as well when he said “The son of man is Lord of Shabbat”.

Now don’t take the ridiculous Christian interpretation that says this means Yeshua was saying he has given his followers the authority to make the Sabbath day any old day they want.

He was stressing just how important it is.

Here’s another key symbol of our faith we believers should be keen to heed.

“If you declare with your mouth,
‘Yeshua is Lord,’ 
and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.”
-Romans 10:9

Your confession of your allegiance to God’s son, his chosen Messiah, is also an important symbol, wouldn’t you think?

And just as with the Shabbat, the consequences for belittling this symbol can be dangerous.

“How much more severely
do you think someone
deserves to be punished
who has trampled the
Son of God underfoot,
who has treated as an
unholy thing the blood
of the covenant that
sanctified them,
and who has insulted
the Spirit of grace?”
-Hebrews 10:29

I think I’ve made my point.

However, before I close, one thing I need to say to those who might be shaking and quaking in their boots because of what they’ve just read and worry if their relationship with God might be terminated or something because of not keeping the Sabbath or whatever.

Remember, those symbols I just mentioned, they’re still just symbols.

In and of themselves they do NOT bring redemption or salvation.

It is only your enduring faith in Yeshua as God’s only way to the Father that saves you and keeps you saved.

But observing the Shabbat and confessing your faith to those who have ears to hear is something to be expected of anyone who would call him or herself a believer in the God of Israel and His Son.