“Do not be afraid of [idols], for they cannot do evil, nor can they do any good” (Jer 10:5).
1494. Beethoven said, “Music is the divine messenger between heaven and the human.” We may not think of the Psalms as a book of sermons, or divine arguments, but God’s music changes the course of history because it changes people. Where mere words might fail, songs can win our hearts. In Psalm 115, the author has a message. He knows our conception of God shapes who we are. We were made in God’s image, so the image we have of God (or gods) determines our image of ourselves. As he says of idol-worshipers, “Those who make them are like them” (v 8). The psalmist begins with a call to make a vital decision (vv 1-3). “Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but to Your name give glory” (v 1). Our worldview must be God-centered, not self-centered. If it is, the Gentiles will have no cause to say, “So where is their God?” (v 2). Glory is revealed character, and I will either show what I’m like or what He’s like in all I do. Next, he shows a vacant difference (vv 4-8). When you visit your idol— NOBODY’S HOME! “They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes…but they do not see;… ears, but they do not hear; noses…but they do not smell;…hands, but they do not handle; feet… but they do not walk” (vv 5-7). People worship idols for that very reason! God sees what we do and hears what we say. But more, “He is their help and their shield” (vv 9, 10, 11). Repeat, repeat again, so we don’t miss it! Yes, our God can give a victorious deliverance (vv 9-18). When you misbehave, idols can’t do a thing to you; when you’re in trouble, they can’t do a thing for you. So blessings past and future, for “small and great…more and more…[for] you and your children…[in] heaven and earth…from this time forth and forevermore” (vv 13-18).