The human heart, as John Calvin observed, is an idol factory. We constantly manufacture things to place in God’s rightful position, exchanging worship of the Creator for worship of created things. This tendency towards idolatry isn’t merely an ancient problem confined to pagan civilisations—it remains a deeply personal struggle for every believer today.

When we think of idolatry, we often picture stone statues and foreign temples. Yet idolatry is far more subtle and pervasive than this. An idol is anything we put in the place of God and treat as if it were God. It is trusting in anything within creation instead of trusting the Creator himself.

The apostle Paul encountered this problem vividly when he walked through Athens. Acts 17:16 tells us, “Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.” The city was saturated with altars, temples, and statues devoted to false gods. Yet Paul’s response teaches us how to deal with the idolatry in our own hearts and in the world around us.

Paul didn’t ignore the idolatry he witnessed—he confronted it directly. Similarly, we must learn to identify the idols in our own lives. Common idols in contemporary culture include materialism (finding security in money and possessions), success and achievement (valuing career and reputation above God), relationships (seeking ultimate fulfilment in other people rather than Christ), pleasure and comfort (making entertainment our source of joy instead of God), and even religion itself (when good works replace genuine faith in Christ).

To identify our idols, we must ask diagnostic questions: What dominates my thoughts and affections? Where do I find my identity? What would I be most devastated to lose? Where do I turn in times of trouble? What am I willing to fight for at any cost? James 4:1–2 reveals this connection: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.”

The things we are prepared to lay down our lives for reveal what we truly worship. These idols show themselves in conflicts within our marriages, workplaces, and churches.

If the gospel is the solution to our idolatry problem, it cannot be based on what we can do. Our actions and achievements are the very things that lead us to trust in created things rather than the Creator. When Jesus was asked, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” (John 6:28), he replied, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:29).

The Christian life doesn’t begin with doing—it begins with believing in what has been done. Ephesians 2:8–10 makes this clear: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Every sin is, at root, a breaking of the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). Underneath every external sin lies a heart idol—something eclipsing the glory of God in our affections. The key to gospel transformation is learning to repent of the deeply rooted idolatry and unbelief that drive our more visible sins.

Paul confronted the Athenians by declaring, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you” (Acts 17:22-23). He then preached about the true God—the Creator, Sustainer, and ultimate Judge of all.

To confront our idols effectively, we must acknowledge the sin of idolatry. Taking God out of his place in our hearts and replacing him with something else is not merely a mistake—it is rebellion. We must replace lies with truth: God alone is God, and nothing in his creation can satisfy us the way he can.

Psalm 115 describes idols as powerless—they cannot speak, hear, or save. Yet those who worship idols become like them, shaped and dominated by what they worship. The Athenians worshipped Athena, the goddess of wisdom, and Acts 17:21 reveals how this shaped their culture: “Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.” Their worship fundamentally shaped their way of life.

We cannot remove our idols through our own strength—we need God to do this work in us through the gospel. Paul’s message to Athens was urgent: “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30–31).

The resurrection of Jesus Christ proves that God will judge the world. We cannot serve two masters—our idols and the living God. The gospel restores our relationship with God, which is pivotal to our existence. The Holy Spirit gives us power to overcome idolatry. As Colossians 3:5 commands, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”

Hebrews 12:2 reminds us to fix our eyes “on Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.” The same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead is now at work in us. This gospel frees us from the slavery of idolatry. As Paul declared, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

When God takes his rightful place in our hearts, we are finally fulfilled. Work, relationships, and achievements no longer dominate us with crushing weight—we can enjoy them as gifts rather than serving them as gods. Our identity, security, and satisfaction are found in Christ alone. The power to destroy idols comes from the cross of Christ, and the gospel calls us to repent and put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Today, like the Athenians in Acts 17, we face a choice. Some mocked Paul’s message, but others believed. Will we hold on to our idols, or will we turn to Christ? The gospel is freely available to everyone. We can come as we are and receive the many gifts found only in Christ—gifts that no created thing can provide.