What not to worship:
A piece of wood
A disciple of Christ
An angel
Satan
Anything created
That just about covers it. But do I worship any of these things? Are these warnings for me?
When I was in China, we went into a Hindu temple. It was full of idols, huge statues of each of their gods, on pedestals higher than our heads. We had to look up to see them, but there were people kneeling in front of them, bowing over bowls of food they had brought to worship them. They were looking for help in their lives, or hoping to appease the gods so they would at least not harm them. I don’t worship statues, but I look for advice from books and, more and more, the internet. I need to remember to examine all advice I receive in light of the Word of God.
I’ve known people whom I really look up to. Lately I’ve been listening to lectures by R. C. Sproul. While I really appreciate his knowledge of the Word and the way he presents it, I need to remember he and other teachers I admire are human, like me. When Peter went to teach Cornelius about Jesus, he had to remind him that he was just a teacher and not worthy of worship.
I’m sure I encountered an angel late one night in Boston, but since he was dressed in jeans and our interaction was pretty short, I wasn’t inclined to worship him. It would probably be different if Gabriel or Michael stood in front of me with a message from God. In the Bible, people’s response to angels is fear and worship, but even in their glory they are not God. Even angels shouldn’t be worshipped.
It’s pretty obvious I shouldn’t worship Satan. The tricky thing is that he wants worship, but will settle for taking me away from worshipping God. So he’ll encourage and trick me into worshipping all the other things listed in these verses. This is where I need to be alert and examine my affections. Everything God has created is off limits for worship.
This morning I choose to worship God.
He’s my Lord. I worship Him because He’s my Master. He gives me work to do, teaches me how to do it and rewards me for it.
He’s glorious, delightful and wonderful. I delight in Him; I enjoy Him because He’s wonderful.
He’s ever-living, eternal, never ending, permanent, the one thing I can depend on.
Worship
Only God
The Lord, my God
The glorious, ever-living God
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