Episode Overview

Main Theme:
In this sermon, “First of All,” Tim Keller explores the true meaning of the First Commandment—“You shall have no other gods before Me”—and how idolatry subtly captivates our hearts. Using the story of Jonah, he illustrates how even good things can become ultimate things (idols) and lead us to spiritual bondage. Keller guides listeners to recognize, confront, and relinquish these idols, directing them toward authentic freedom and fulfillment in God alone.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Story of Jonah as a Case Study in Idolatry

Timestamps: 02:00–11:30

• Keller recounts Jonah’s mission in Nineveh, where Jonah, a renowned prophet, becomes "exceedingly angry" after God spares the city following its repentance.

• Keller’s Insight: Jonah’s distress reveals that his real god was not the Lord, but the security and status of Israel. His anger exposes an idol hidden even from himself.

  • “Jonah was proud of his nationality… his love for his people had become racism… because he wanted the annihilation of his enemies, not the rehabilitation of his enemies.” (09:31)

• Memorable Illustration: Keller draws a vivid parallel to Patty Hearst, who became “a co-conspirator in her own kidnapping” because she idolized her captors. Likewise, Jonah and we often become “co-conspirators in our own bondage,” emotionally invested in the very things that enslave us.

2. Personal Idols: How Good Things Become Ultimate Things

Timestamps: 11:30–16:41

• Detecting Idols: Keller challenges listeners to examine what non-negotiable things in their lives they feel they “must have to be happy.” These are revealed as functional gods or idols.
  • “If there’s anything in your life that you say, ‘Lord, I believe in you, but I’ve got to have that to be happy,’ and if you don’t give me that, our relationship is negotiable… we must have those things, and if those are threatened, we experience a loss of meaning in life… those are really our gods, not him.” (12:42)
• Different Forms for Different People:
  • “You nervous types, you need certainty and you can’t live with risk… You achiever types, you can’t live with failure… You relational types, you’ve got to have approval…” (15:27)
  • “Our idols are just different. Don’t you see? Certain things control us… whatever our god is… that god controls us.” (16:37)

3. The Nature and Power of Idols

Timestamps: 17:37–22:50

• Becky Pippert’s Definition:

  • “Whatever controls you is your Lord. The person who seeks power is controlled by power. The person who seeks acceptance is controlled by those they want to please. We do not control ourselves.” (17:46)
  • Keller expands: If Jesus is not our sole Lord, something else will control us.

• God’s Process of Revealing Idols:

  • As with Jonah, God often removes or threatens our idols not out of cruelty, but to free us.
  • Illustration: The lumberjack and the birds—God “rattles” our nest (idols) not to harm us but to teach us to build our life on “a rock that’s not coming down.”
  • “You will never be free from ups and downs… until you build your nest in some tree that’s not coming down. That’s me.” (21:21)

4. Sacrifice and True Devotion: Abraham, Isaac, and Mary

Timestamps: 22:50–26:40

• Abraham’s Test: God calls Abraham to offer his son Isaac—a test to see if Abraham’s ultimate love rests with God or with his son. Keller notes:
  • “The offering, the act of offering, cleanses you and frees you.” (24:13)
• Mary’s Surrender: When called to bear Jesus under scandalous circumstances, Mary responds, “Let it be unto me according to thy will,” unlike Jonah who was “angry enough to die.”
• Lesson: The things threatened are often good things (“Isaacs”), but must be handed over to God to prevent their becoming idols.

5. The Process of Removing Idols & Real Freedom

Timestamps: 26:40–31:45

• Process, Not Perfection:

  • Keller observes that Jonah’s story ends without clear resolution, but notes that Jonah himself likely wrote the book, suggesting transformation.
  • Idols often “bounce back.” Even after seemingly rooting them out, “a shoot comes up out of the stump… you’ll spend all your life coming back to say, ‘I thought I dealt with that idol, and it’s back.’”

• How to Fight Idolatry:

  • Use the gospel to confront each idol: “The only love I really need is the one love that I cannot lose… the only certainty I really need is that I’m accepted by the free grace of Jesus Christ.” (29:53)
  • “This is the only way to the heights.” (30:16)

• Memorable Analogy:

  • The mountain campaign: “In battle, you need soldiers who fear nothing… The roads are rugged, the feelings of dizziness on the heights… But fear them not! There are also the joys of sunlight, flowers such as are not on the plain… The only way to the heights… is to say, I see that there are idols in my life… Jesus alone is my Lord.” (30:40)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Idols:
  • “Our adoration, our idolization of [our little gods] is what binds us.” (07:12)
• On God’s Commitment to Liberate:
  • “He is committed to liberating you… only by pushing you to purer and purer and more exclusive devotion to him can he ever bring you to that place.” (19:26)
• On the Gospel's Leveling Power:
  • “No matter how respectable you are, no matter how much a criminal in the gutter you are, you stand in the same place. No one is good—no, not one. Anyone can be saved if they humbly ask for the grace of Jesus Christ.” (27:03)
• On the Lifelong Battle:
  • “You’ll spend all of your life going back and having to say, ‘I thought I dealt with that idol, and it’s back.’” (28:36)
• On the High Call:
  • “The only way to the heights… is to say, Jesus is my exclusive Lord. I’m going to give myself to him absolutely, utterly and totally. And put everything else second. That’s the only way to the heights.” (31:11)

Important Segment Timestamps

• Jonah’s Idolatry Uncovered: 04:00–13:00
• Identifying Modern Idols: 13:00–16:41
• How God Exposes Idols: 17:37–22:50
• Biblical Examples (Abraham, Mary): 22:50–26:40
• The Ongoing Process of Heart Change: 26:40–31:45
• Prayer & Call to Examine Ourselves: 31:45–33:12

Tone, Style, and Language

Dr. Keller’s tone is warm, incisive, and pastoral. He combines vivid storytelling, gentle confrontation, and gospel-centered comfort, speaking frankly of human frailty but always directing listeners to God’s supreme grace and sovereignty.

Summary Takeaways

• All people, even the deeply religious, are prone to making good things—security, approval, family, achievement—into ultimate things, thus becoming “co-conspirators” in their own bondage.
• The First Commandment confronts us so that God can free us from our little lords, to discover that true security, freedom, and joy are found in him alone.
• The fight against idolatry is ongoing—idols return, but the gospel provides the power to continually surrender them and experience spiritual heights otherwise impossible.
• Freedom comes not from serving our own goals, but from making Christ our only, exclusive Lord.

“You’ll never have lasting certainty and joy until you build your nest in some tree that’s not coming down. That’s me.” – Tim Keller (21:21)

For more, listen to the full episode or visit gospelinlife.com.