"For example, I am a portrait artist. My favorite portraits to paint are of Jesus. However there are some that say that if I do paint a portrait of Jesus, that I am actually making a graven image, which goes against the commandments. But I think what the Lord's intent on that is that we shouldn't make a graven image and bow down and worship it, or cause other people to worship it.

My actual intent is to glorify the Lord through my portraits of Jesus. If someone comes along, sees one of my portraits, and buys it to take it home to worship it, is it my sin?"

There are a lot of people who use things in ways they were not intended to be used. So is it the person who created the thing at fault? Especially if it wasn't his intention for it to be used that way?

I have been accused of worshipping the cross, but I do not worship the cross, I worship someone who hasn't been on it for 2000 years. Yet the cross is a symbol of so much of that, first his payment of my debt, but also because the cross is empty, that we serve a risen LORD amongst other things.

1Co 10:25 Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscience' sake;
26 FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORD'S, AND ALL IT CONTAINS.
27 If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscience' sake.
28 But if anyone says to you, "This is meat sacrificed to idols," do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience' sake;
29 I mean not your own conscience, but the other man's; for why is my freedom judged by another's conscience?
30 If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered concerning that for which I give thanks?
31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
32 Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God;

it can work both ways, perhaps you are using (or eating) something meant for evil, yet you do not know it. If you don't know, then it can't be held against you.

Amen my friend. Just as in days when Jesus walked this earth there are many legalists who know the letter of the Word but not it's heart or intent. Unless one understands the Father's heart he will no more understand the Word of God than did the Pharisees.

.......

first you would have to under stand the word abomination.
so does the word mean "hate" or forbidden and unclean .


Contrary to what many of us may think, the term “abomination” does not refer to extra-ordinary sins per se. When some denounce homosexuality as an “abomination” they usually do so with the intent of emphasizing how “ghastly” it is. Thus, we don’t typically hear other sins referred to as “abomination.” Sins like gluttony, lying, stealing or arrogance are considered more “ordinary” and not worthy of the epithet “abomination.” The problem is Scripture doesn’t use the term in this way; it does not treat homosexuality as the more grievous sin. Proverbs states, “There are six things which the Lord hates. Yes, seven which are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who utters lies, and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers” (6:16-19). The reality is all of us, gay or straight, have committed various “abominations” in our lives. No one should ever use this term to single out certain people for extra condemnation. Furthermore, God gives us prohibitions, not to condemn us or make life difficult, but to guide us toward what is life-giving. As God puts it: “If only you had paid attention to my commands, then your well-being would have been like a river” (Isaiah 48:18).

This definiton below is from the Vines Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Personally I perfer the Vines over most other dictionairies for the following reason; most bible dictionairies give you all the definitons of a Greek or Hebrew word which can can dramatically with the gramatical structure of the sentence they are contained in (and at the same time is keyed off the Strongs Concordance). Many simply look through the definitons and pick the one that seems right to them. This is (sadly) how a major cult wrote it's "bible" and can lead to misunderstanding of the scripture. What I really like about the Vines is the way it gives you specific verses for each defintion based on grammatical composition and it takes a lot of guesswork out of the equation.


AbominationA. Noun.
to`ebah (H8441), "abomination; loathsome, detestable thing." Cognates of this word appear only in Phoenician and Targumic Aramaic. The word appears 117 times and in all periods.
First, to`ebah defines something or someone as essentially unique in the sense of being "dangerous," "sinister," and "repulsive" to another individual. This meaning appears in Gen_43:32 (the first occurrence): "...The Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians." To the Egyptians, eating bread with foreigners was repulsive because of their cultural or social differences (cf. Gen_46:34; Psa_88:8). Another clear illustration of this essential clash of disposition appears in Pro_29:27 : "An unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked." When used with reference to God, this nuance of the word describes people, things, acts, relationships, and characteristics that are "detestable" to Him because they are contrary to His nature. Things related to death and idolatry are loathsome to God: "Thou shalt not eat any abominable thing" (Deu_14:3). People with habits loathsome to God are themselves detestable to Him: "The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the Lord thy God" (Deu_22:5). Directly opposed to to`ebah are such reactions as "delight" and "loveth" (Pro_15:8-9).
Second, to`ebah is used in some contexts to describe pagan practices and objects: "The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire; thou shalt not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein: for it is an abomination to the Lord thy God. Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house..." (Deu_7:25-26). In other contexts, to`ebah describes the repeated failures to observe divine regulations: "Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;... because of all thine abominations" (Eze_5:7, Eze_5:9). To`ebah may represent the pagan cultic practices themselves, as in Deu_12:31, or the people who perpetrate such practices: "For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee" (Deu_18:12). If Israelites are guilty of such idolatry, however, their fate will be worse than exile: death by stoning (Deu_17:2-5).
Third, to`ebah is used in the sphere of jurisprudence and of family or tribal relationships. Certain acts or characteristics are destructive of societal and familial harmony; both such things and the people who do them are described by to`ebah: "These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto him:...a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations,...and he that soweth discord among brethren" (Pro_6:16-19). God says, "The scorner is an abomination to men" (Pro_24:9) because he spreads his bitterness among God's people, disrupting unity and harmony.
B. Verb.
ta`ab (H8581), "to abhor, treat as abhorrent, cause to be an abomination, act abominably." This verb occurs 21 times, and the first occurrence is in Deu_7:26 : "Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house...."