Worship Is Our HonourExemplo

My Highest Calling

Every one of us is made to worship, we long to be connected to, and fulfilled by something bigger than ourselves. As the late author David Foster-Wallace put it:

“In the day-to-day trenches of adult life, there is no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get - is what to worship.”

That’s why when God outlines the first instructions for His people in the Ten Commandments, He starts with some warnings about worship - because we were made to worship. So we need to be attentive to the objects of our worship, because there’s plenty of things that compete with God for our devotion. We can look to relationships and wealth to give us security; we’re tempted by ambition and pride to try and prove ourselves; we get sucked into constructing an identity that’s popular so we feel significant; we chase pleasure and all kinds of experiences, hoping they might satisfy.

But the Bible calls any substitute for God an ‘idol’ - a false god that we end up trusting to meet our needs and secure our future. And the thing about idols is that they are just attempts to control our own world, to source our own solutions in the pursuit of what we think will produce our best life.

A Jealous God

These days when we read the Ten Commandments it can sound like God is being a bit petty and self-absorbed. “Do not worship any God but me… Don’t bow down and worship idols.” But this isn’t about God being demanding and unreasonable, it’s not power grab. It’s about realising God’s commitment to us and being content with the richness of the life that He promises. God wants what’s best for His people, and so yes, He’s jealous for our devotion and attention. Because the risk is that we’ll be seduced by false gods that can never satisfy.

John Calvin, one of the Protestant Reformers in the 1500’s, famously said that “the human heart is an idol making factory.” We foolishly fall for the empty promises of pleasure, power, fame and fortune, again and again. We think that they'll be able to deliver the security, happiness and meaning that we long for. But we were made for the only One who can truly meet those needs. That’s why God, like any protective Father, starts with these commands about worship. He wants to save us from the loss and devastation that false gods end up bringing. He wants to protect us from the way idols corrupt our motivations and distort our relationships. He wants our whole-hearted worship, because that’s actually what’s best for us.

A World of Temptation

As we’ve already seen though, the story of human history is one of temptation. Adam and Eve were tempted into believing that they knew what was best for themselves, and they stopped trusting God. When Jesus was tempted it was the same lie, “You need to look after yourself, you can’t trust God to know what’s best for you.” We all face temptation, it’s part of the human condition. It’s the test of whether or not we trust God. Do we believe that He is good and that He is faithful to His promises? Do we believe He will meet our needs?

Temptation undermines our faith and corrupts our worship. Instead of relying on God we put our hope in other things. Instead of praying and waiting for God, we get busy chasing what we want. Instead of trusting God we hold tightly to the things that we think will meet our needs. Sometimes we give up when it feels too risky to trust God.

Paul picks up on the same idea at the start of Romans 12. We have a choice, we can either trust God and His map for life, and let go of our own wisdom, surrendering control. Or, we can grab the steering wheel and try to find our own way to the life we long for. The irony is that when we are willing to lay our desires and dreams on the altar of worship, we actually discover that the power and presence of God will transform our thinking and our lives.

Reflection Questions:

1. What are the ‘idols’ that I am most likely to get focused on?
2. How whole-hearted could I say my worship is - my trust in God?
3. Am I aware of the devil’s strategies to tempt my heart? What am I most vulnerable to?