--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Lots of people today would never consider…" description: "\"Lots of people today would never consider themselves guilty of idolatry as far as it is spelled out in the Ten Commandments, but by reducing God to som..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51c/charlie-campbell-40400_able_lots-of-people-today-would-never-conside_1987676.jpg" --- # Lots of people today would never consider themselves… ![“Lots of people today would never consider themselves guilty of idolatry as far as it is spelled out in the Ten Commandments, but by reducing God to some benevolent "man upstairs" whose only attributes are love and tolerance, and who could not care less about sin, they truly have transgressed God's…” quote by Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51c/charlie-campbell-40400_able_lots-of-people-today-would-never-conside_1987676.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51c/charlie-campbell-40400_able_lots-of-people-today-would-never-conside_1987676.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/51c/charlie-campbell-40400_able_lots-of-people-today-would-never-conside_1987676.jpg) > “Lots of people today would never consider themselves guilty of idolatry as far as it is spelled out in the Ten Commandments, but by reducing God to some benevolent "man upstairs" whose only attributes are love and tolerance, and who could not care less about sin, they truly have transgressed God's commandment. They have created a god in their mind who does not actually exist and will on the day of judgment, not be able to offer them any help.” [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reducing God to a benign, non‑judgmental figure violates the command against idolatry and leaves believers without divine accountability. **In simple terms:** Simplifying God undermines core doctrine. Key Takeaway Respect theological depth. Themes faith idolatry theology Mood thoughtful critical Type theological philosophical When to use this quote - personal belief - church teaching - interfaith dialogue - ethical decision‑making Key Concepts monotheism religious authenticity Questions to Reflect On - How does this view affect moral responsibility? - Can a non‑judgmental deity coexist with doctrine? A Different Perspective Some view God as compassionate rather than punitive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) [Attributes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attributes/) [Benevolent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benevolent/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Commandment Created](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commandment-created-3428607/) [Commandments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commandments/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [God Commandment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-commandment-1371464/) [Guilty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilty/) [Guilty Idolatry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guilty-idolatry-3428605/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [Idolatry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idolatry/) [Idolatry Far](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idolatry-far-3428606/) [Judgment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgment/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Man U](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-u/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Miscellaneous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miscellaneous/) [Offers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/offers/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reducing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reducing/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) [Ten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten/) [Ten commandments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten-commandments/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Tolerance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tolerance/) [Upstairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/upstairs/) ## Related quotes > [There is no God and that's His only commandment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/there-is-no-god-and-that-s-his-only-commandment/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [“After attainment of Supreme knowledge a man lives but he does not lead an ordinary man’s life. He lives, he eats, he sleeps and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jibankrishna/after-attainment-of-supreme-knowledge-a-man-lives-but-he-does-not/) [Jibankrishna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jibankrishna/) > [“The only good understanding is to obey the God's commandment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-only-good-understanding-is-to-obey-the-god-s-commandment/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“The first word God speaks to human beings in the Bible—God’s very first commandment—is “Eat freely” (Genesis 2:16, NASB). The last words out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/the-first-word-god-speaks-to-human-beings-in-the-bible-god-s-very/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [“The Great law is God's commandment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-great-law-is-god-s-commandment/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Thou shalt not, it is said, make unto thee any graven image of God. The same commandment should apply when God is taken to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/thou-shalt-not-it-is-said-make-unto-thee-any-graven-image-of-god-the-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everything is from God himself, both commandment and fulfillment. He alone commands; he alone fulfills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/everything-is-from-god-himself-both-commandment-and-fulfillment-he/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [“To love God is to keep his commandment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/to-love-god-is-to-keep-his-commandment/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“Whoever gains good understanding, keeps God's commandment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/whoever-gains-good-understanding-keeps-god-s-commandment/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Thou shalt not, it is said, make unto thee any graven image of God. 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I'll go upstairs and check.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-c-escher/i-might-be-in-the-basement-i-ll-go-upstairs-and-check/) [M. C. Escher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-c-escher/) > [I was born imagining myself with an apron on, with pies cooling on the window sill and babies crying upstairs. I thought that all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/i-was-born-imagining-myself-with-an-apron-on-with-pies-cooling-on-the/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) ## More by Charlie Campbell > [“The one thing we will not do under any circumstances is accept ourselves as we are. We prefer to find an explanation for why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/the-one-thing-we-will-not-do-under-any-circumstances-is-accept/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [One of the things that sets the Bible apart from all other ancient religious writings is its scientific accuracy. Without exception, every other ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/one-of-the-things-that-sets-the-bible-apart-from-all-other-ancient/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [When it comes to the whole debate today over evolution versus creation, Jesus affirmed the early chapters of Genesis were accurate when He said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/when-it-comes-to-the-whole-debate-today-over-evolution-versus/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [There are dozens of writings outside of the Bible that verify the historical accuracy of many of the names of people, places, and events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/there-are-dozens-of-writings-outside-of-the-bible-that-verify-the/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [Javascript is the duct tape of the Internet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/javascript-is-the-duct-tape-of-the-internet/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [Many of those who scoff at the trustworthiness of the Bible do so completely overlooking the fact that thousands of archaeological discoveries have affirmed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/many-of-those-who-scoff-at-the-trustworthiness-of-the-bible-do-so/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [Those who brush off the Biblical accounts as "ancient fiction" and "legends" only reveal their ignorance of these archaeological discoveries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/those-who-brush-off-the-biblical-accounts-as-ancient-fiction-and/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [Today there survives more than 25,0000 partial and complete, ancient handwritten manuscript copies of the New Testament. These hand written manuscripts have allowed scholars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/today-there-survives-more-than-25-0000-partial-and-complete-ancient/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [We prefer to find an explanation for why things are not perfect, and these rarely stand up to close scrutiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/we-prefer-to-find-an-explanation-for-why-things-are-not-perfect-and/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) > [“What starts as satire is so often reborn as propaganda...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-campbell/what-starts-as-satire-is-so-often-reborn-as-propaganda/) [Charlie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) [Explore all 11 Charlie Campbell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-campbell/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. 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