Take Your Stand for True Worship, Chapter Sixteen

SUPPOSE you found out that your whole neighborhood has been contaminated.  Someone has secretly been dumping poisonous waste in the area, and now the situation is life threatening.  What would you do? No doubt,, you would move away if you could. But after doing that, you would still face this serious question,  'Have I been poisoned?'

A similar situation arises with regard to false religion.  The Bible teaches that such worship is contaminated with unclean teachings  and practices.  (2 Corinthians 6:17) That is why it is important for you to get out of "Babylon the Great,"  the world empire of false religion. (Revelation 18:2, 4) Have you done this?  If so, you are to be commended. But more is involved  than just separating yourself or resigning from a false religion. Afterward, you must ask yourself,   'Do any traces of false worship remain in me?' Consider some examples. 

IMAGES AND ANCESTOR WORSHIP 

 Some have had images or shrines in their home for years. Is that true of you?  If so, you might feel that it is strange or wrong to pray to God without such a visible aid.  You may even feel attached to some of these items.  But God is the one who says how he should be worshiped, and the Bible teaches that he does not want us  to use images.  (Exodus 20:4, 5; Psalm 115:4-8; Isaiah 42:8; 1 John 5:21)  So you can take a stand for true worship  by destroying any items you own that are connected with  false worship.  By all means, come to view them as Jehovah does-as something "detestable." -Deuteronomy 27:15. 

Ancestor worship is also common in many false religions.  Before learning Bible truth, some believed that the dead are conscious in an invisible realm and that they can help or harm the living. Perhaps you used to go to great lengths  to appease your dead ancestors.  But as you learned in Chapter 6 of this book, the dead have no conscious existence anywhere.  Thus, attempts to communicate with them are of no use. Any messages that seem  to come from  a dead loved one really originate with the demons.  Therefore, Jehovah  forbade the Israelites to try to talk with the dead or to participate in any other form of spiritism. -Deuteronomy 18:10-12.

If the use of images or the practice of an ancestor worship was part of your former way of worship, what can you do? Read and ponder over Bible passages that show you how God views these things.  Pray to Jehovah daily about your desire to help you to think as he does. - Isaiah 55:9. 

Next time: CHRISTMAS - NOT CELEBRATED BY EARLY CHRISTIANS

From the Book: What Does the Bible Really Teach? 2005 and 2006