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you to keep your finger there. We are going to come back to Psalm 115. Please go to Exodus chapter 20. Please go to Exodus chapter 20. So tonight I'll be continuing our series on the Ten Commandments. I'll be preaching through commandment number two. And let me just read to you commandment number two. Please go to Exodus chapter 20 and verse number four. Exodus chapter 20 and verse number four. And the Bible reads, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image nor any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth. And so the title for the sermon tonight is graven images, statues, and idolatry. Graven images, statues, and idolatry. And this is commandment number two. God instructs us not to make any of these graven images. All right. Now let's continue there in verse number five. It says thou shalt not bow down thyself to them nor serve them for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me. And then it says in verse number six and shown mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. So let's break down this second commandment here. And God instructs us like basically there are two major parts in this commandment. Number one, don't make these graven images. Don't make these idols. Okay. Don't make them at all. But the second point of this commandment is don't bow down. Don't serve yourself to these idols. Now, when we think of, you know, Christendom, when you think of Christianity, you know, there are certain churches under that umbrella that practice idolatry, that have their statues, that have their graven images, and they reverence such things. And of course, the probably the first church that you think about is the Roman Catholic Church. The second church we probably think about is the Orthodox Orthodox Church. Right. And of course, there are not just within Christendom, but outside of Christianity, there are there are religions, such as Hinduism, such as Buddhist Buddhism, that have their statues, they've got their little figures that they pray toward, you know, that they believe is given them good luck, etc. And so God makes it very clear we're not to have any such things. All right, not only not to make them, but especially not to bow down or serve them. Now notice what it says in verse number five, this is the reason for I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God. You see, all our praise, all our worship ought to be directed toward the God of the Bible. All right, you know, you start to bow yourself down to figures and images. You're sending worship, but it's not being received by God. He is a jealous God. It belongs to him. You see, jealousy points to the fact that something belongs to you. And you don't want that to be taken for someone else. For example, I'm jealous for my wife. What does that mean? Does that mean I don't let my wife have any freedoms? Doesn't mean that what it means is I don't want my wife to spend time with another man. You know, I don't want my wife to have a best friend who's some high school guy that she was hanging around with. I want to be her best friend. I'm her husband. She married me. Wear one flesh. All right, so I'm jealous for my wife. And it's right for my wife to be jealous for me. I'm sure my wife would not want me just hanging around with some girls. All right, just, oh, honey, I'm just going to hang around, going to have coffee with some lady at church. You know, you know, of course, that's going to cause my wife to be jealous. You know, these are righteous feelings for the things that belong to you. My wife belongs to me and I belong to my wife. Well, our worship and praise belongs to the Lord God. God wants it directed to him and not to some idol, statue, or graven image. So let's just show you a few things. You know, because, you know, you have your Catholics and you have your Orthodox churches where they've got their images, their icons, their idols, and they say, well, we're worshiping God through these images. You know, they bow themselves down to some long-haired Jesus, you know, some saints or whatever, and they believe through this process their worship has been received by God. But God says, no, he's a jealous God. The reason he does not want this worship is because it belongs to him, meaning that when you do bow down and worship these images and idols, it's not going toward the Lord God. Okay. Now, the Catholic will say, well, we just love God. You know, having these images, it just helps us worshiping God, being able to see some tangibleness of who God is and what he represents, it helps us to worship. But brethren, look what God says in continuation there of verse number five. He says, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation, look at this, of them that hates me. So what is God saying? God says, if you make idols, you hate God. Okay. And you got your Catholics saying, no, we love God. We just want to serve him. It helps us worship him. No, you set up these idols. God says, you hate him. The worship that you give to those idols does not go toward the Lord God. It says visiting the iniquity. So we know that these false religions, usually the children are going to grow up in that false religion. You know, parents have idols, you know, the most common thing is that the children grow up thinking that's what God is. That's who, you know, that's how I worship God. And they're going to continue, you know, the first, second, third generation, etc. And God's going to make sure that these people are punished for their sins, for worshiping these false idols, even the consequences will carry down generation after generation. Now, here's the good thing about this, though, what we read in verse number six, it says, and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me. So who hates God? Those that worship idols. Who loves God? The one that doesn't worship the idols, the ones that give worship to the one true God. So you know, you may have grown up, you know, you may be part of a generation where your parents worshiped false gods. You know, my wife was a former Roman Catholic, when I first met my wife, she was Roman Catholic, she was not saved on that one, my wife, and in her bedroom, she was, her bedroom was full of statues, pictures, icons, images, right? I mean, the rosary beads, she had all that nonsense. All right. But when she got saved, she got rid of that rubbish. And look, I understand how easy it is to be attached to these things. Because even when my wife got, when Christina got rid of all the statues, she kept on to one picture of Jesus, right? There was one picture that she just felt very close to, because she would pray to this Jesus, asking, can you reveal yourself to me? And so she had this attachment. So I understand that getting rid of idols and images is not easy for someone that has grown up in this religion. But Jesus Christ, or the Lord God makes very clear that if you hold on to these things, you hate Him. And thankfully, eventually, my wife, she got rid of that image of Jesus Christ as well. And she understood and today, of course, understands God for the light of His Word. All right. So you have statues, you have images of God, or you think it represents God. God says you actually hate Him for doing that. But God loves, you know, there are those that love God, those that will worship Him in the correct ways, those that keep His commandments, those that read His Word, read the scriptures, and live out our life thereby, we show therefore, by that practice that we love Him, but by the statues, it shows that we hate the Lord God. And so, you know, if you've grown up again, in one of these false religions, praise God, if you pulled yourself out of that you've got saved, okay, the iniquity of your Father is not going to be passed down to you, because you've broken out of that system. And as God said, showing mercy out to thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. If you've been saved, brethren, you've been pulled out of false religion like this, then God has shown you mercy. Okay. Now, let's go back to Psalm 115. Let's go back to Psalm 115, where we had a read from, and verse number one, Psalm 115, and verse number one. This is a really great psalm, you know, that just, you know, admonishes, you know, that just completely destroys, I should say, you know, the idea of having idols. And I love what it says in verse number one, it says, Psalm 115, verse one, it says, not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name, give glory for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake. So we ought to have a desire to give glory to God for his name, and for his truth. Okay, look at verse number two, it says, Wherefore, should the heathen say, Where is now their God? And that's what that's what the last word like, right? You know, they'll say, Well, where is your God? You know, I've gone door knocking, people have said to me, you know, I would believe the Bible, if God just appeared in front of me, you know, if Jesus just appears right in front of me right now, then I would believe where is your God? In other words, you know, your God is an invisible God. And yes, he is, he is an invisible God. And, you know, where to trust him, where to believe, we're meant to put our faith upon him, you know, the faith of our spiritual eyes, not faithful, our physical eyes. But this is what the heathen say, right? They want to see a tangible God, they want to, they want to witness this with their own physical eyes. And so it says in verse number three, but our God, that's the God of the Bible, is in the heavens, he have done whatsoever he have pleased. Alright, so our God is in the heavens, our God reigns supreme, you know, our God is not limited to the earth and the natural realm, our God is beyond this realm, our God is eternal, our God is all powerful. Okay. And yes, it pleases God for us to place our faith on him. He does not represent himself as a picture, so as a as an image of wood or gold or silver. But then it keeps going in verse number four, their idols, it says, their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. So hey, if you've got a religion, and they've got the gods of silver and gold, the work of men's hands, that is their God. Even though they say we worship the God of heaven, no, what they really worship, what they really honor, are the work of man's hands, the silver and the gold. Okay, their God is not the God of the heavens. And again, you know, I know they use the same terminology, they would still call their God, God, they will still call their Jesus, Jesus. But it's not the God, it's not the Jesus of the Bible. Okay, it's another Jesus, it's another spirit, another gospel, etc. But let's keep going there. Verse number five, they have mouths. So these idols, yeah, they make them with mouths. Hey, but they speak not. Okay. Hey, how does God speak to us? Through his word. Hey, our God speaks to us. Amen. Let's keep going there. It says eyes they have, but they see not. Yeah, the little idols with the eyes here, they can't see what you're doing. Like why, why grave those eyes into that statue when they can't even see you? But you know what our Lord God sees all, our God sees everything. You know, it says they have ears, but they hear not. You know, they, they can't hear the prayers being directed toward them. But brethren, every time we pray, every time we go before the Lord, he hears what we have to say. His ears are inclined toward us. It says noses have they, have they, but they smell not. So often in these religions, they'll have incense toward these images and these idols, they can't even smell it. Okay. Verse number seven, they have hands, but they handle not. Okay. So, you know, people praise these idols. They can't answer your prayers. They can't do anything for you. They can't even, they can't lift a burden off your back. Hey, but our God has hands. In fact, the God of our God, his hands were nailed to the cross. You know, he sacrificed himself for us. It says feet have they, but they walk not. Yeah. So you see him in the Catholic churches where they carry, they go around carrying an idol of the Virgin Mary or something, right? It's, you know, and they carry that out. Yeah. Cause you can't walk. I mean, what kind of God can't even walk? I mean, this is that God, a God that can't walk, a God that can't do a thing to the hands, a God who can't smell, a God who can't see, a God who can't speak, a God who can't hear. Why would you want to worship this type of God? It says they have hands, but they handle not. Feet they have, but they walk not. Neither speak they through their throats. And then look at verse number eight. They that make them are like unto them. So is everyone that trusteth in them. So what is, what is the, what does, what does the Psalm teach us? It's saying that these idols are worthless. It's vanity. It's pointless. These gods can't help you. These gods are stupid. They can't hear. They can't talk. They're completely stupid worthless. And it says those that make those idols are the same. They that make them are like unto them. Those that make these idols also become stupid. Okay. So is everyone that trusteth in them. If you put your trust in idols and images, in icons, all these things, you become like the icon. You become like the image where you cannot see clearly. You cannot hear. You cannot do the works of God. All right. You know, the more someone gets into idolatry, the harder it is for them to receive the word of God. Their ears start to be waxed gross, right? Their hearts become dark. They start to turn away from the truth of God's word, and they become like unto these images. And so, you know, it's not just an innocent tradition of these religions that have their idols. No, these people that worship idols, they're becoming stupider. Okay. They're becoming less likely to be able to receive the word of God because they're becoming stupid and worthless like the idols that they worship. All right. Now, thank God for those of you that were, you know, in false religion. You know, we've got church members that leave something down here at Blessed Hope that were former Catholics, former Orthodox. You know, thank God they had not gone so far and become like an idol where they will still be able to receive God's word, hear God's word, and trust in the living God. And so there is a danger to idol worship. There is a true danger there. Can you please turn to First Corinthians chapter 10. First Corinthians chapter 10 verse number 19. First Corinthians 10 19. Now, while the idol is nothing, while the idol can't do anything to hurt you, okay, in of itself, there is something deeper. There is some, there is a spiritual connection with that idol that I want to show you here in First Corinthians 10 19. It says in First Corinthians 10 19. What say I then? That the idol is anything or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is anything? Because look, isn't idol really anything? When people offer sacrifice to the idol, isn't really anything. We know it's nothing. It's vanity. It's worthless. Okay. But then it says in verse number 20. But I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, look at this, they sacrifice to devils and not to God. And I would not that you should have fellowship with devils. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of devils. You cannot be partakers of the Lord's table and the table of devils. So what is the Apostle Paul teaching here? The idol is nothing, but the worship, the sacrifice, the service that people give toward this idol is received by a devil. Okay. Not by the idol. There is a devil behind that idol that receives the worship. You see that? Okay. So you, those that think that they love God and they just say, you know, they just honor God with their idols. Really they're sacrificing to devils. All right. Really they're fellowshipping with devils. Really they're participating of the cup of devils when they fellowship with these people. This is why we should have as Christians, we should have no fellowship with the works of darkness. Right. You know, if somebody invites you to their church and you know there's a church that preaches false things, that they worship another God, where they've got idols that they seek to bow down after as Christians, we should have no desire to fellowship in that arena. You know, please have nothing to do with the works of darkness. Please have nothing to do with these devils because you either fellowship with God or you fellowship with the devil. Okay. Or devils. It's your choice. You know, you want to fellowship with a place full of idols, then your worship, your service goes toward devils. Okay. And you can't do these things. You either serve the Lord or you serve false gods and you serve the devils. All right. So I want to show you that there is much more going on with this idol worship. Okay. It's not just ignorance. It's not just something traditional. They're actually worshiping devils. Okay. But you know, do the Catholics, do the Buddhists, the people that have these idols, do they think that they worship in devils? They don't think that. No, they're not necessarily intentionally going out there trying to worship the devil, but that's what they're doing at the end of the day. Whether they realize it or not, that's who they are worshiping. That's who they are serving. And so thank God for every one of you that have broken out of that system, out of that religious system, because you probably didn't realize it. But now I'm showing you what the Bible says that whole time you're worshiping service went toward devils. All right. Now, please go to Romans chapter one. Go to Romans chapter one. And let's have a look at this downward spiral. I'm not going to preach on reprobate and that kind of stuff here. But I just want to show you how someone gets to the point where they think that worshiping an idol is the right thing to do. Okay. Or worshiping a statue bound down to these things. So in Romans chapter one, verse number 19, Romans chapter one, verse number 19, it says, because that which may be known of God is manifesting them for God have showed it unto them. Okay. So we start with people having an innate understanding of what and who God is. All right. That there must be a God. There must be a Creator. All right. Now, once you have that realization in your life, you have a choice. You know, you have a choice. Lord, can you show me who you are? You know, you have a desired choice. Do I want to know the God of the Bible? All right. Or am I going to listen to a man? Am I going to listen to some religious system to tell me who God is? You know, we have we can make up God in our own imagination. We can make up who we think God should look like. Okay. But really, those that will be saved are those that actually want to know the God of the Bible. Okay. The one that sent his son to die for them and type to die for their sins. But it says in verse number 20, for the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. So that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations. And the foolish heart was darkened, professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. And notice verse number 23, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image. All right. Now, when you look up this word, the image, you know, you know, in context of statues and idols, you notice that many times these things are used interchangeably. All right. But there is this desire to know who God is. But those that do not want to know the God of the Bible, they will turn the thought of God into an image, into a statue, something they can see, something they can touch, something that their earthly eyes can be set upon, instead of looking for the invisible God, the creator of all things. Now, in this event here, in this context of Romans one, the image that they turn God into, it says here, an image made unto like uncorruptible man. Okay, so that's where you get the statues of a long haired Jesus, for example, all right, with his blue eyes and his blonde hair, you know, looking nothing like a like a Jew of the day. All right. They turn God into an image, as it were, you know, this represents God or whatever it is. And then it says answered birds, and four footed beasts, and creeping things. All right. So you got some religions that literally worship animals. And I believe is maybe brother Tim Tim's here. Maybe you can correct me. I think it's Hinduism that worship cows. Is that right? I mean, look, they think the cow has some deeds, some value from a from a deity perspective. And so they view it in that sense. They reference cows in that way. Okay, they turn the thought of who God is into an animal. They think this animal represents what God is. I mean, it's crazy. It's ridiculous. But this is the downward spiral, where people they want to, they want, you know, this desire, I'm curious as to who God is, but you've got to decide, do I want to know the God of the Bible? Or do I want a God of my own imagination? You know, I want a God that I can see and touch. And so they start making these idols, or they start viewing animals as what God is. All right. Now, I'm going to get to turn to Leviticus, please turn to Leviticus chapter 19. Turn to Leviticus chapter 19. So when we think about probably the main church that has idols against the Catholic Church. And so I went to catholic.com. So their main website, and I just looked up, you know, what they teach on idolatry. So I can just share with you what they how they view and why they view worship worshiping idols as something legitimate, something God wants them to do. All right. While you're turning to Leviticus 19. But this is what I read. It says catholic.com. It says, people who oppose religious statuary, forget about the many passages, I want you to think about what they're saying. So people like us, that catholic.com says, we forget about the many passages, where the Lord commands the making of statues. Now, I want you to think about your Bible. I'm sure you've read your Bible. I'm sure you're on a plan. I hope so. Okay. Now, as you read your Bible, are you sort of, are you coming to the thought, well, there are many verses in the Bible where God tells us to build statues. Is that really the conclusion you're coming to? Not me. I don't think anyone that has truly read the Bible comes to the conclusion that God commands us many times to build statues. That's what catholic.com is trying to teach us. And then it goes, for example, and then they've got a Bible verse here in their version, it says, and you shall make two cherubim of gold, ie two gold statues of angels of hammered work, shall you make them on the two ends of the mercy seat. So they're trying to use this teaching where God instructed Moses and the, you know, the Israelites to build the mercy seat and on the seat of the mercy seat. The mercy seat would have two statues, two gold statues of cherubim, two angels, basically. Okay. And they say, well, see, God instructed in this process, for example. All right. Now, is that found in your Bible? Of course it is. God did instruct such things. Okay. But catholic.com says there are many passages that teach to make statues, but there was not many. Okay. Now think about that. Let's say this was a legitimate thing that Catholics believed. Here God is teaching us how to build statues. How many Roman Catholics do you know that walk around or have little mercy seats in the house with little angels on top of it? None. You know, if you've ever gone to a Roman Catholic churches devout, their statues are saints is what they call the Virgin Mary is what they call Jesus Christ. Okay. Images. I've never seen a Roman Catholic with a mercy seat and two cherubim on it. So if they're trying to use this passage, you know, as a reinforcement of their beliefs, but they don't even practice what they say the Bible teaches. I say there are many passages. There are not many passages. You know, this construction of the cherubim is an exception. That's all it is. It's an exception. God allows it for this point, because it shows as an image, the greater truth of heaven, how God's throne is surrounded by the angels. It's just an exception that God has given in the Bible. But again, if you're going to use that exception as permission, but where are they building these cherubim, these golden cherubim? They're not building those things, are they? Okay, so it's just such a stupid argument. But rather, not that there are many passages teach us to build statues, rather, there are many statues, sorry, many passages teach us not to build statues. For example, you're there in Leviticus 19 and verse number four, Leviticus 19 verse number four, it says, Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods. I am the Lord your God. God makes it very clear, you start building these things, that becomes your God, because no, I am your God. Don't build those things. You're then Leviticus, go to Leviticus 26. Leviticus 26, verse number one. Leviticus 26 and verse number one. The Bible says you shall make you no idols, nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, don't have like a statue, neither shall you set up any image of stone in your hand, or sorry, in your land, to bow down to unto it, for I am the Lord your God. Okay, and I'll just quickly read you some other passages. Deuteronomy 29 16. For ye know how ye have dwelt in the land of Egypt, and how we came through the nations which ye passed by. Look at this, it says, and ye have seen their abominations. What are the abominations that the Israelites have seen? You have seen their abominations, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were among them. Hey, God says all these statues are an abomination. God hates these things. Okay, it's disgusting in the eyes of God. And then people want to take these statues and think they're worshiping the God of heaven. No, no, no, the Bible is very clear in many passages, not to have statues. 1 Kings 15 verse 11. And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did David his father. And he took away the sodomites out of the land, praise God for that. But then it says this, and removes all the idols that his fathers had made. Okay, so what is the right thing in the eyes of the Lord to get rid of the idols? Listen, when my wife got saved, the Roman Catholic Church, she did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. She got rid of the statues and the idols that were in her bedroom. She got rid of them. All right. And Brethren, if you have come out of a Catholic Church, or an Orthodox Church, or some religion that had these idols, and if you still have some Brethren, do what is right in the eyes of the God, get rid of them. Okay, don't go and give it to your relative. Don't give it to your friends as a gift. Okay, don't cause them to worship devils. Hey, just destroy, break that thing. Burn it with fire. Do whatever you have to do to get rid of these abominations. Psalm 97 verse 7, confound them be all they that serve graven images, and boast themselves of idols. Worship him, all you gods. You know, and you say, well, these are all Old Testament passages. Well, let me just read to you some New Testament ones. First Corinthians 10, 14. Wherefore my dear beloved, I'm sorry, wherefore my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry. Run away from idolatry is instruction. First John 521. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. And Revelation 9 20. It says, and this is, of course, when God is pouring down his wrath on this earth. In Revelation 9 20, it says, and the rest of the men, which were not killed by the plagues, yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and of wood, which neither can see nor hear nor walk. The same thought that came from Psalm 115. And again, Revelation 9 20, confirming that the worship of these statues are being received by devils, you know, and as God starts to pour out his wrath on this earth, you know, in the latter times, on the end times here, you know, these people, they're not going to, they're not going to repent from the worship. They're going to continue worshiping their false gods. They're going to continue worshiping the beast, right? And, you know, such, these are what the people are. That's why God's wrath is falling upon these people in the end times. But brethren, there are many passages, there are literally hundreds. I'm just pulling out some examples, some examples from the Old Testament, some examples from the New Testament. There are hundreds of Bible verses where God says do not build statues, do not build graven images, do not have such things. And Catholic.com says no, actually, there are many passages say to build it. But they don't even follow what they say they're going to do. I mean, it's just ridiculous. Of course. I mean, it shouldn't surprise any of us how false, how wicked, you know, how anti Bible the Catholic Church is. You know, it continues in a sorry, if I can get you to turn to because what did I get? Oh, got a second Kings, please. Got a second Kings chapter 18. Got a second Kings chapter 18. And while you're turning there, Catholic.com continues. It says, so he tries to give another example where God instructs the Israelites to build statues. It says, during a plague of serpents sent to punish the Israelites during the Exodus, God told Moses to make a statue of a fiery serpent and set it on a pole. And everyone who is bitten when he sees that shall live. So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit a man, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. Okay, so that's a passage coming from the false viral version. But did God instruct Moses to build a brazen serpent? Of course he did. Okay. But again, if the Catholics are using this passage, as proof that they should have statues, how many Catholics do you see walking around with a bronze serpent on a pole? Zero. How many Catholics do you see with a mercy seat with a cherubim, the cherubim of gold? Zero. Okay. Again, they use these verses, but they didn't follow what the verse says. It's crazy. But they want to use that to support their worship of idols. Now, here's the crazy thing about this. Now, of course, the bronze serpent on the pole was a picture, was a representative of Christ being crucified on the cross. And for those that were bitten by these serpents, yeah, they had the venom of the snakes that would kill them. But when they set their eyes upon the bronze serpent, they would be healed. Hey, same as us, all of us, we've been tainted by the poison of sin. The moment we look and trust on Jesus Christ to save us, we are healed from sin, and we're made right with God. And so that bronze serpent represents what Christ would be. Okay. And, but here's what's interesting about the idea of the bronze serpent. In 2 Kings 18, and verse number one, 2 Kings 18 and verse number one. So yeah, Moses built this thing, and the Israelites, they held on to it, okay, for a while. But then in 2 Kings 18, verse one, it says, Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea, son of Elah, the king of Israel, that Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign. Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign. And he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah. Look at this, and he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. All right, so this king, he does that which is right. What did he do? According to all that David his father did, he removed the high places and break the images and cut down the groves. Hey, this king's getting rid of all the idols. He's getting rid of all the statues or the icons or the images. And look at this, and break in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made. Wow, this king did what which was right. He broke the brazen serpent. Catholic.com is saying, hey, God asked Moses to build it. That's proof and evidence that we can have statues. This king did which was right in the eyes of God. He breaks it. Say, why did he break it? Let's keep going. He goes, for unto those days, the children of Israel did burn incense to it. And he caught it Neshatan. Okay, so the people of Israel started burning incense towards this brazen serpent. Instead of it being an image, a shadow, a picture of what Christ would be, they turned it into a God. They started to worship the idol. Okay, and so the king does which is right in the eyes of God. He breaks this thing, and he calls it Neshatan. And I look this up, Neshatan just means a thing made from brass, meaning this is not God. This is just a thing made of brass. It's nothing. It's worthless. It's just a piece of metal. And so that's the name the king gives this brazen serpent that he breaks. Look at verse number five. It says he trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. You know, so the Catholics try to use this brazen serpent as proof of building statues. No, hey, you start burning incense toward it. You start bowing down to these things. You know what, what is right in the eyes of God to break it, because it's just a thing of brass. It's just a thing of wood. It's not a true God. Why? How dare you worship such things? God is jealous. Worship and praise belongs to him, not to a devil. What about bowing? Now Catholic.com says about bowing, because obviously they bow themselves to these things. You know, it just blows my mind that they use this as an example. It says, though bowing can be used as a posture in worship. Not all bowing is worship. So this is what they say in Japan. In Japan. Okay, they're the Roman Catholic Church, Rome, Italy. Okay, but they say in Japan, because we know we want to justify our bowing. In Japan, people show respect by bowing and greeting. All right. You know how to say hello in Japanese, brother? Konnichiwa. Because they do that in Japan. Okay, they the Catholics think this is fine to do to a statue. Okay, they say the equivalent of the Western handshake. So we give handshakes, don't we? How's it going, brother? They say that's what we're doing to the statue. You know, when we bow to these things, we're just greeting the statue. No, no, they're bowing in worship. I mean, look, you ask the average Catholic out there, you know, all the things that they do with the statues, they will just tell the truth. Yeah, we're worshiping. We're giving our worship toward this. And I know this because I've had these conversations. I say, well, I'm not really worshiping the word. I'm just worshiping God through the statue that is, you know, that he's allowed us to have or whatever. It's not just a greeting. But see how far Catholic.com tries to go. Because the Bible is clear, right? In Exodus 20, the second commandment, Exodus 25, thou shalt not bow down, down thyself to them. Black and white. God says don't bow down to these things. Okay. I mean, bowing to a human being. Yeah, it's a sign of respect. It's a real person. It's a type of greeting. Who cares? They're bowing down in worship. Not a human being, a piece of wood, a piece of gold. And they think this represents who God is. It's completely different to what takes place in some Eastern countries. But look at how far they have to go to justify what they do. And the next thing that the Catholics try to do, because at some point, they must have realized that, man, this is contrary to God's Word. I mean, everything the Catholics do is contrary to God's Word. You know, a bishop, a pastor, a bishop must be the husband of one wife. Will they teach? No wives. Remain celebrate, celebrate, celebrate. How's it go? Celebrate. Yeah. You know, don't get married. That's, you know, and then they're, then the Catholic Church is filled with molesters and, you know, pedophiles and all that kind of stuff. Okay. I mean, the Catholic, we know the Catholics, they do things completely opposite. I feel like they just go to the Bible and say, Okay, that's what the Bible says. Let's do the opposite. You know, that's, that's how Roman Catholics are. But they, what they try to do, they try to hide the second commandments, because it's so crystal clear not to build these things and not to bow down yourself to it. So I'm just going to read to you from catholic.com. It says, another charge sometimes made by Protestants is that the Catholic Church hides the second commandment, they do hide the second commandment. Okay. This is because in Catholic catechisms, the first commandment is often listed as you shall you shall have no other gods before me. And the second is listed as you shall not take the name of the Lord in vain. So not taking the Lord's name in vain is the third commandment in your Bible. Now what I'm going to get you to do, if you can please go back to Exodus, go to Exodus chapter 20 and verse 17. Go to Exodus chapter 20 and verse 17. I'm just going to show you the 10th commandment. All right. So as I said to you, the Catholics, they hide the second commandment. You say, but pastor Kevin, if they hide the second commandments, instead of having 10 commandments, they're going to be left with nine commandments. Correct. So what they do is they take the 10th commandments and they split it into two commandments. Okay. So the 10th commandment becomes to the Catholics commandment number nine and commandment number 10. All right. So let me just show you what they do here in Exodus 20 verse number five, which is commandment number 10. Okay. For them, it says here, Exodus, what did I ask you? Exodus 2017, please. Exodus 2017. It says, thou shall not covet thy neighbor's house. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife. The Catholics stop there and go, that's commandment number nine. Okay. And then it says, nor his man. Let me just make sure that I got this right. Yeah. Yeah. That's right. Nor his man's servant. So is this a new sentence or in your Bible, do you have a comma? And the sentence continues. The sentence has not ended, has it? It says, so once we get to this point, nor his man's servant, they say, now this is commandment number 10. Okay. Nor his man's servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbors. So in the Catholic 10 commandments, commandment number nine is, you shall not covet your neighbor's wife. And commandment number 10 is, you shall not covet your neighbor's goods. But you saw it there with me, black and white, verse number 17. This is one solid sentence. It has not changed. It continues, thou shall not covet thy neighbor's house. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his man's servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbors. And so we, of course, commandment number 10, would just simplify it as thou shall not covet. Okay. Not covet anything. All right. This is what the Catholics do. They hide commandment number two, because they know it is so contrary to scriptures. It is so easy to prove that what they do is unbiblical, is incorrect, is worship to devils. They hide that from the Catholics, and they split commandment number 10 into two. So deceptive, so deceptive, you know, and so foolish. But, you know, it's so stupid. I mean, what kind of person would look at verse number 17 and break that into two? Now, look, I'm not saying that the average Catholic person is stupid. You know, I actually believe most Catholics that are just your regular, run-of-the-mill Catholics, they're just trying to do what they think is right. You know, this is what they got taught. The Catholic church is rich. It's been going on for a long time. And they think, well, this must be the legitimate church. And I love God. I try, I'm trying to do, I'm trying to love God the way I think. Okay. But we know their love to the statues is really hatred toward God. Okay. I don't hate Catholics. My wife was a former Catholic. I loved my wife enough to give her the gospel that she would be saved. And brethren, it's the same. You know, we come across Catholics, listen, what is stupid? Their religion is stupid. Their church is stupid. Their religion, their faith is a worship of devils. But they themselves, they're just a lost soul. A lost soul that Jesus Christ has died for. And you know what, it's our job to still see these people, give them the gospel and love them, you know, love their souls because Christ has died for them and give them that opportunity to know the true God of the Bible. You know, praise God for all of you that have come out of false religion. You know what, and the iniquity of your forefathers that were in false religions will not fall upon you because you've been broken out of that. God's mercy has been given to you and you're saved and you're a child of God on your way to heaven. Praise God for salvation. Please turn to Colossians chapter one. Please turn to Colossians chapter one. Colossians chapter one, please. Now, as I continue for this article on catholic.com, I think the next part was the most blasphemous that I've ever heard. I mean, the whole article is stupid leading up to this point. But then we get to this next part and I want you to realize, I want like the efforts they make to justify statues and how this leads into blaspheming Jesus Christ. Okay, because then it says this in the article, but more important, in the incarnation of Christ the Son, God's showing mankind, look at this, an icon of himself. Paul said, he is the image or Greek icon of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. Christ is the tangible divine icon of the unseen infinite God. This is how they're trying to justify this statue of worship. Think about that for a moment. Think about these statues that cannot see, that cannot walk, that cannot hear. And they're saying, well, Christ is the ultimate statue. Christ is the ultimate icon. Christ is a picture of that. Again, the contradiction, though, okay, because your Catholic priest will say, well, we're not worshiping the wood. It's just wood. It helps us worship God. Okay, fine, if that's what you truly believe, but then if you take that teaching and that thought to Jesus Christ, who is this ultimate icon, then what are you saying about Christ? Well, we know Christ is not really God. He's just a man and he just helps us send our worship toward the real true God if you remain consistent, but you know they do not remain consistent. They know they should worship Christ, which then proves they're worshiping idols, okay, because they are, the Catholics are likening who Christ is as the image of the invisible God as another statue. I mean, that is blasphemous, you know. Christ is not just an image, is not just an icon, is not just some statue, okay. That's not what Christ is, and so I'm going to turn there to Colossians chapter 1. Colossians chapter 1, verse number 15. Colossians 1, 15. So this is the passage that they turn to. It says, speaking of Christ, who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature. Now is it saying that Christ is like a statue of God, some icon that we can see a tangible God? No, that's not what it's saying, okay. He's the image of the invisible God. He's the image of the Father, okay. The more you know Christ, the more you know the Father, okay. When you understand God's Christ leading, Christ steps, then you understand what the Father wants. Christ is that perfect representation of who God is, right. I mean, I've got a whole bunch of kids. I'm sure I hear that from some of you guys. Oh, this son, this child is just like you. He looks just like you, or he acts just like you. So you learn a little bit about more about who I am when you see how my kids behave, okay. Yeah, he would be, you know, my child might be an image of their Father, but they're not like a statue. They're not just some, some, you know, inanimate objects that you that you give worship to that then gets received by someone else. No, it continues in verse 16, Colossians 1 16, for by him, for by Jesus were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or powers, all things were created by him and for him. Christ is not just some image, okay. He is God. He is the creator. Christ, yes, he's the Son of God, but he's the same God as the Father, as the invisible God, the same God as the Holy Spirit. We serve one God. Christ is not just some statue or some representation. He truly is God. God manifests in the flesh. 100% man and 100% God. We can see how blasphemous these Catholics become, trying to justify their statues, trying to turn Jesus into just some statue, okay. Ridiculous. This is coming from catholic.com, and if you don't believe me, you can look it up yourself and read the article yourself, all right. Oh, in continuation of the article, it says common sense tells us that, and they think they've got common sense, but anyway, common sense tells us that since God has reviewed himself in various images, most especially, most especially in the incarnate Jesus Christ, it is not wrong for us to use images of these forms to deepen our knowledge and love of God. Again, they're comparing Jesus to a piece of wood, okay. Because Jesus is this way, this is why we have our pieces of wood. This is why we have our gods, gods of gold and our saints and our virgin Marys and things that we worship. How ridiculous. Colossians 2 9 says, for in him, for in Christ, dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Christ is fully God. Again, you know, he's not a piece of wood. He's not just a man. He truly walked this earth and he was God, God Almighty on this earth. So anyway, what do you expect from the Roman Catholics? That's, you know, their religion is false. It's stupid. They worship devils, okay. According to the Bible, not according to this pastor, according to the Bible, they're worshiping devils. Their service to these idols goes to devils, okay. Now, one of these churches is full of pedophiles and reprobates, haters of God, okay. Okay, in conclusion, please turn to John chapter 4. Please turn to John chapter 4. John chapter 4. John chapter 4 and verse number 23. So brethren, how then are we to worship God? Very clear. We don't want to set up idols, okay. That's a horrible sin, you know. And if you have any leftover idols from your old religion, please destroy them. Please destroy them. Do that which is right in the eyes of God. How do we worship the Lord? John chapter 4 verse 23. The words of Jesus Christ, okay. He says, but the hour cometh and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a spirit. Hey, God is not some tangible object. He's not just a piece of wood. He's not some gold and silver statue. God is a spirit and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. Our worship is spiritual, okay. We're not setting our eyes on some carnal object, okay. That worship goes to the devil. We want to worship the Lord God. We worship him in spirit, spiritual. We serve an invisible God. We worship an invisible God. But in truth, God's word is truth. We worship the God that the Bible teaches us about. The God who says no to statues, no to graven images and says if you do such, God is jealous for your worship. You want to worship God? Worship him in the Bible. Worship him the way God instructs us to worship him, okay. The Israelites were never to worship the brazen serpent. They were never to worship the cherubim of gold, okay. These things, they're exceptions, all right, and they represented something greater, okay. People never bowed themselves. They were not supposed to bow themselves to these things and you saw when they started to do these things, the right thing to do was to destroy that image because our worship is in spirit and in truth, all right. We draw the conclusion of who God is through his word, the truth of his word, not a God of our imagination and worshiping in spirits. So the only people that can truly worship God are those that are saved, okay. You've got a new man, you've got the spirit within you, the revised we're born of the spirits. Then in that new man, with the truth of God's word is how we worship the Lord God. All right, brethren, let's pray.