idolatry

“He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs.” – Psalm 107:35 As modern-day believers, we often lose sight of how fragile the ancient world was. Though we look at what’s going on today and see chaos, it’s nothing compared to the evil, war, and paganism that were prevalent in Biblical times. In those days, earthly rulers were constantly shedding the blood of innocent people to attain greater power, and even worse, idolatry was the norm. Now when I say idolatry, I don’t mean just bowing down to statues or shrines — I mean the abuse of women and children, and often their death. Slavery was common, and so was human sacrifice — it was a culture of brutality, aggression, and violence. Yet into that dark night, a small seed of hope was born. The God of Creation chose Abraham and his clan, an