The Bible clearly teaches that the Christian is not to worship idols. The Ten Commandments include "thou shalt have no other gods before Me." Habakkuk says "Woe to him who says to the wood, 'Come to life!' or to lifeless stone, 'wake up!'" This is an obvious denouncing of idol worship. The born-again Christian may feel that they do not have any idols in their life. There are not graven images that they worship, and therefore they may feel they are safe.
However, idol worship takes many forms. As stated in the Ten Commandments, "thou shalt have no other gods before Me." The truth is, idols are anything in the Christian's life that comes before his relationship with Christ. It does not have to be made of wood or stone in order to be considered an idol. Anything that is a greater priority in the Christian's life than the Lord falls into the category of idols. For example, if television is a higher priority in the Christian's life than devotional time, then television is an idol. Christ is to be your number one priority.
Think about it. What has Christ done for you? Christ took our sin on Himself and died on the cross, even though He had no sin of His own. The born again Christian has accepted the free gift of salvation, given by Christ by His death on the cross. Doesn't that kind of love demand the highest level of dedication? There is no room for idols in the dedicated Christian's life!
What are some common present-day idols? Television has already been mentioned. Today, the computer and video games can command much time for the Christian. When this time begins to cut into the Christian walk, the computer becomes an idol. What about sports? Do Christians place sports players on a high pedestal? Then perhaps the sports player becomes and idol. Does recreation keep you from church on Sunday? Add that to the list of idols.
If you have found an idol in your life, you need to confess the sin of wrong priorities. Idolatry is no different than any other sin, but confession and restoration is the only way to solve the problem. Confess the sin to the Lord and ask for forgiveness. I John 1:9 says "If we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Then, you need to remove the idols from your life. Make a commitment to limit the time you are going to spend on the offending activity, or eliminate it altogether if needed. Having a great relationship with Christ takes work. But considering the sacrifice He gave for your sanctification, it is the least you can do. Getting the proper priorities in your life is the best decision you can ever make. Commit yourself to living for Christ, and reap the rewards of a Christ-centered life.