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An Explanation of Luther's Small Catechism by Joseph Stump
page 54 of 222 (24%)
1. ALL IDOLATRY. "Thou shalt have no other gods." Idolatry is committed
by all who put anything in God's place, the highest place in the heart.
"Whatever we set our heart upon is our god."

_Open Idolatry_ [Exod. 32:1-9, Ps. 135:15-17, Isa. 42:8, Rom. 1:22-23]
is committed by those who worship imaginary beings, the sun, moon, or
stars, animals, dead ancestors, idols made with hands, images,[3]
pictures, the Virgin Mary, saints, angels, the devil, or any other
creature.

[Footnote 3: When God gave the commandments to Israel, He forbade them
to make any graven images or likenesses. God being a Spirit, the making
of an image of God would at that period necessarily have resulted in
idolatry. But since Christ has come in the flesh and was visible among
men, we are permitted to make pictures and images of Him. Luther
preached very forcibly against those persons who, during his absence
from Wittenberg, destroyed the pictures and images in the churches. He
said that we make a picture of Christ in our heart whenever we think of
Him, and put pictures of Him in the Bible and other books; and that
therefore it is not wrong to place pictures or images of Him in our
churches, so long as we do not worship them.]

_Secret Idolatry_ is committed by all who put (a) Self, [Prov. 3:6, 6.+,
Jer. 9:23, 24] (b) Fellow-men [Acts 5:29+, Matt. 10:28+, Matt. 10:37+,
Ps. 146:3-5] or (c) Objects of this world [I John 2:15-17+] (money,
fame, business, pleasure, etc.) above God, by fearing, loving, or
trusting in them more than in God.

2. Godlessness. [Sam. 2:30, Ps. 10:4] Neglect to worship the true God,
unbelief, scepticism, superstition, Infidelity, and atheism are a
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