By Steven Davis
I have been thinking about worship. I know that we all join in the songs of praise that are sung when we gather together as believers. I know that most of us sing because we don’t want the person next to us glaring at us disapprovingly because we are not singing as loud, or off-key, as they are. My question is, are we really worshipping, and if so, what? When we sing about Jesus as our Lord and Savior do we really mean it? Do we understand what He did for us and the reason we worship. Is our worship out of heartfelt gratitude for what He has done for us?
Bear with me as I take this argument to its conclusion. Do we worship a person or what the person has done for us? If a doctor saves our life or makes us whole again aren’t we grateful? If a fellow soldier risked his life for us wouldn’t we be grateful, almost to the point of owing him our life? Is someone worthy of attention or ‘worship’ just because of who they are as in the case of movie stars and other celebrities? Are those celebrities really worthy of the adulation they receive or are they prostituting themselves as participants in a system of falsity so they can have something that wasn’t really earned?
This brings me to God Almighty. It is written that He created the heaven and the earth, which is something that continues to stick in the craw of Richard Dawkins. Now, if a person, or entity, is known by what they do or the ‘fruit’ of their actions as Jesus said what we can adduce about god who created this planet and the universe He set it in. According to the laws of physics, all the conditions for our existence are tuned precisely to who we are with a precision that is beyond most of our manufacturing technology to replicate, (millionths of a percent variation). This planet, even in its fallen state, has been the topic of poetry and artistic expression since man has been here. The wonders of God’s natural creation and food production are beyond compare even though we have been taking God’s bounty for granted since the advent of agribusiness. The discerning heart is never at a loss for appreciation of the beauty of our surroundings. It is written that all creation is upheld (kept in place and functioning properly) by the power of God’s Word, (aka Jesus Christ). Brilliant colors, glorious sunrises and sunsets, abundant produce, rainfall as needed, isn’t all this the work of a loving God who cares for us? So should we not worship God simply for what he has bestowed upon us?
As if this fallen planet wasn’t sufficient, we have been offered eternal life with God where He lives! If this earth is fallen, what is where God dwells like? Paul said it was unlawful to even try to describe it. God gave us His Word (Jesus Christ) that He would not abandon us. We who have received this promise have a hope that is secure in heaven where God Dwells. Shouldn’t that prompt our hearts to outpourings of praise? It should, but there are others who are envious and jealous of what we give to God that is owed to him for all he has done to and for us as only a loving Father could do. Satan, who was once Lucifer, Chief of the Angels, became enamored of his beauty and forgot who it was that made him. Did Satan create the universe? Did Satan create the angels, Man, Himself? If the answer is no, what has he done to merit any consideration at all? Because he is? That is the same excuse the Hollywood celebrities use. Jesus said that Satan exists only to kill, steal and destroy, and accuse us before the Father in his spare time. He claims to be the god of this world and has his minions working overtime trying to make it so. Has Satan made a glorious sunset or a rainbow? If he hasn’t why should he be worshipped?
But that is what he wants even though he has done nothing to merit any gratitude, acclaim, or any other congratulatory sentiment. You can almost see the hollow desire in today’s celebrities and politicians. They haven’t added anything of worthwhile value to our life on this planet but they demand our adulation all the same simply because of whom they are or imagine themselves to be. This same shallow sentiment will find its ultimate expression in the Anti-Christ, who will demand worship as God Himself. What has the Anti-Christ done to merit the worship? Nothing, except the enslavement of the Earth for his benefit, and then the threat of decapitation for failure to bow down. Does that sound familiar? I, for one, would rather lose my head over my faith in Jesus Christ than anything else.
I can only conclude that we do worship others for what they do for us. Jesus Christ gave His life for me so that I could have a life that is worth the living free from the insanity the devil brings. He gives me plenty to eat. He gives me life in colors that cannot be duplicated, only admired. Jesus could have made the world black and white and plain and only provided the bare minimum for existence. But Jesus is a loving God who gives life and gives it abundantly. He also sends Himself to the hearts of believers by way of His Holy Spirit to counsel and guide us. I cannot ask for more. I can only give thanks and cry out in worship.
Thanks for bearing with me. I see the day coming where those who have not worshipped the truth will be forced to worship the lie. I see Obama as a precursor of that and a type of what is to come. Would someone choose that over Jesus’ hand extended in love? I couldn’t imagine why.
0 Comments - Share Yours!:
Post a Comment