Day 1088 · Year 3 · The Great Tradition
Keller on what your heart actually worships
A New York pastor named the idols underneath the symptoms.
Today's passage
1 John 5:20-21
20And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
21Little children, keep yourselves from idols.
Berean Standard Bible · public domain
Reflection
Tim Keller often preached that the question is not 'do I have idols?' but 'which ones?' An idol is a good thing that becomes an ultimate thing — work, family, romance, control, approval, comfort. John ends a whole letter about love with one line: 'little children, keep yourselves from idols.' The path forward is rarely 'try harder to stop.' It is naming what you are actually worshiping under the surface, and turning instead to the One who is genuinely God. Repentance is mostly redirection.
From the great tradition · paraphrased
Timothy Keller · Modern · 20th–21st c. · USA
Tim Keller named the idols underneath the symptoms — work, control, family, approval — and called the church to gospel-driven repentance that redirects worship instead of just rearranging behavior.
Paraphrase only. Scripture, not any teacher, is the authority.
Think it through
- What does John say is true of Jesus in verse 20?
- Why does John end the letter with verse 21?
- What good thing in your life has become an ultimate thing?
A prayer to pray
Name the idol honestly. Confess it. Turn — by name — back to the One who is really God.