Powerful Prayer to Resist False Idols

Powerful Prayer to Resist False Idols–Psalm 16

“Keep me safe, O God;
    in You I take refuge.
I say to the Lord,
    You are My Lord,
    You are My only good.
As for the holy ones who are in the land,
    they are noble,
    in whom is all my delight.
They multiply their sorrows
    who court other gods.
Blood libations to them I will not pour out,
    nor will I take their names upon my lips.
Lord, my allotted portion and My cup,
    You have made my destiny secure.
Pleasant places were measured out for me;
    fair to me indeed is my inheritance.

I bless the Lord Who counsels me;
    even at night my heart exhorts me.
I keep the Lord always before me;
    with Him at my right hand, I shall never be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, my soul rejoices;
    my body also dwells secure,
For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
    nor let Your devout one see the pit [Hell].
You will show me the path to life,
    abounding joy in Your presence,
    the delights at Your right hand forever.
Amen.”

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Powerful Prayer to Resist False Idols — Psalm 16

In the first section of Psalm 16, the psalmist rejects the futile worship of false gods (v 2-5), preferring Israel’s God (v 1), the Giver of the land (v 6). The second section reflects on the wise and life-giving presence of God (v 7-11).

God is infinite goodness and, therefore, the Source of everlasting life and of all that is good. False idols, especially riches (i.e. money, power, false worship and gospel’s) and sensuality (sins against the flesh), deceptively give the allure of happiness — but are, in actuality, fleeting, short-lived and dangerous to the soul and her salvation. In reality, God is the only good that can satisfy the human person — genuinely, to the core, and for all time.

This psalm closes with an important (and time-sensitive) commitment to remain close to the Lord, the true Gospel of Christ, and the perseverance to endure in resisting temptation so as to enjoy always the joy and goodness that only the Lord can provide.

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What is Idolatry?

Idolatry does not only refer to false pagan worship. Man also commits idolatry whenever he/she reveres or honors creation — a person, creature or thing (such as other gods or satan (i.e. satanism), false doctrine, power, pleasure, politics, money, race, ancestry, country, etc.– in place of or above that of the Creator, God. *See First Commandment

Is loving money a sin?

The love of money is condemned as a sin (see exemplary texts Ecclesiastes 5:10 and 1 Timothy 6:10). Christian teaching warns that the love of money can oftentimes lead to vice (sin) by way of avarice and greed (rather than the money itself).