Trading Up? More Like Trading Down

Read

Romans 1:23 “…and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.”

Think

It’s one thing to ignore God. It’s another to replace him. But that’s exactly what Paul says happened. Humanity didn’t just drift from glory—we traded it. Swapped it. Exchanged the beauty and brilliance of the immortal God for things that can be touched, controlled, and molded to fit our desires. It sounds ridiculous—trading the infinite for the perishable. But we do it all the time.

This verse paints a picture of people who saw the glory of God and chose to settle for lesser things. Not because they were forced to. But because, somewhere deep inside, they believed a lie: that created things could give them what only the Creator could. And before you write this off as ancient idol-worship—carved statues, golden calves, temple shrines—look a little closer. The trade is still happening. It just looks different now.

We trade the glory of God for the approval of people. We chase likes, compliments, status, and validation, hoping they’ll give us the worth we crave.

We trade the glory of God for success—believing that if we can just get the promotion, hit the number, win the recognition, we’ll finally feel secure.

We trade the glory of God for beauty, for pleasure, for comfort, for control. And every time we do, we’re making the same exchange Paul warned about.

It’s like trading a mansion for a cardboard box. Like giving away a diamond to hold on to a rock that sparkles just enough to fool you. It might shine for a moment. But it can’t sustain you. It wasn’t built to carry the weight of your worship.

Worship, by definition, is giving ultimate value to something. And every human being is a worshiper. It’s not whether you worship—it’s what you worship. We are hardwired to bow before something. And if it’s not God, it will always be something smaller, cheaper, and unable to hold us together when life starts to fall apart.

Paul uses the word “images” to describe what we chase. Things that look like life, but aren’t life. Things that seem noble or harmless, but subtly steal our affection and attention from the One who made us.

It’s like chasing a shadow instead of turning toward the light. The outline may look convincing. But it has no substance. No voice. No power to redeem.

And here’s the tragedy: the glory of God isn’t something to be feared, it’s something we were meant to reflect. Scripture says we were made in his image. But when we worship other images—whether idols, ideas, or our own self-made image—we lose sight of who we actually are. That’s why idolatry is so devastating. It doesn’t just dishonor God. It deforms us.

You become like what you worship. If you worship money, you’ll always feel bankrupt. If you worship beauty, you’ll never feel enough. If you worship success, failure will crush you. But when you worship the glory of the immortal God—your soul begins to come alive. Not with hype, but with holiness. Not with performance, but with presence.

So how do you know what you’ve been worshiping? Look at your calendar. Your thoughts. Your spending. Your anxieties. Your hopes. They all point somewhere. They all reveal what has captured your heart.

Maybe today’s the day to stop the trade. To say no to the false gods that overpromise and underdeliver. To tear down the altars you’ve built in quiet corners of your life—altars to control, to success, to relationships, to self. Not because God needs your worship, but because you need to be set free.

The beauty of the gospel is that even when we’ve traded down, God still invites us to trade back. Jesus came not just to forgive our sin, but to restore our sight. To turn our gaze back to the only One worthy of it. To exchange our idolatry for intimacy. Our restlessness for wonder.

You were made for glory. Don’t settle for a shadow.

Apply

Ask yourself honestly today: what have I been giving my attention, affection, and trust to more than God? Write it down. Name the idol. Then take a moment to pray, confess, and intentionally turn your heart back toward the glory that never fades. This is not about shame—it’s about realigning your worship.

Pray

God, I’ve traded your glory for cheap imitations. I’ve chased approval, control, comfort, and success, hoping they’d fill what only you can. But they never satisfy. Forgive me for settling. Teach me to worship you alone. Restore wonder in my heart. Let your glory be what shapes me again. In Jesus’ name. Amen.