Is God the object of our worship?

 

Is God the object of our worship?

Since one is either a worshiper of God or a worshiper of the Devil, it is imperative that we are able to distinguish Godly worship from false worship and avoid the pitfall of false and vain worship which is automatically diverted to Satan. Some of us do not take seriously enough the fact that Satan desires to be worshiped just as God is worshiped and therefore, any form of worship that is not in accordance to the principles ordained by God is false and  it honors the devil.

There should not be any confusion or ambiguity when it comes to the worship of the One and only true God because in quoting the prophet Isaiah Jesus Christ said; “Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:7-9; Mark 7:6-8).

Although we may not be able to discern one’s heart in order to render a worship to be in vain but we can definitely define vain worship when the teaching is not in accordance to the commandments of God but rather in accordance to the customs and traditions of men.

For example, concerning the people of Sodom and Gomorrah the Lord spoke to the prophet Isaiah saying; “When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies --- I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; They are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood” (Isaiah 1:12-5).

God takes pleasure in what He has ordained for His glory and not what man choose to offer to Him, For example, this is what the Lord says; “The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts. 'Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work on it; it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings. 'These are the feasts of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times” (Leviticus 23:2-4).

The Lord went on to identify all the feasts which honor Him and their appointed time of observance by name and left no one in any doubt. So although one has the liberty to observe or not to observe as illustrated by the apostle Paul who wrote: “One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it” (Romans 14:5-6).

The crux of the matter is, if one is going to regard a day or an occasion to worship God it must be on the day or occasion He has ordained for His honor and glory. For again the Lord says; “You shall not make idols for yourselves; neither a carved image nor a sacred pillar shall you rear up for yourselves; nor shall you set up an engraved stone in your land, to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God. You shall keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary: I am the LORD” (Leviticus 1:30; 26:1-2.

In addition to the set times and occasions there is also a protocol or a prescribed manner by which the supreme God is to be worshiped, anything short of this is vain and useless.  For we have been duly admonished saying; “Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, give to the LORD glory and strength. Give to the LORD the glory due His name; bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth. The world also is firmly established, it shall not be moved. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; and let them say among the nations, "The LORD reigns" (1 Chronicles 16:28-32; Psalms 96:7-11).

The irony of truth is, God ordained specific days and occasions for His people to appear before Him to honor and worship Him. He did not leave it up for man to decide for themselves when to appear before Him or to worship Him according to the customs and traditions of men. He did not give man any reason to do what seems right in their own eyes or to walk after the imagination of their own evil heart because this would be confusion and God is not the author of confusion.

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With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph