…because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. (Romans 1:25, ESV)
We are—all of us—hardwired for worship. This is not the same as saying we should worship, though we most certainly should. Rather, it is to say we all, in fact, worship something. The former is an ethical prescription. It prescribes that we “ought” to worship. The latter is a descriptive declaration. It describes us as worshipers by nature. Thus, we are either worshipping the Trinitarian God revealed in Scripture or we are worshipping some aspect of his good creation. This is, largely, what Romans 1 is about. As Tim Keller observes, “We will either worship the uncreated God, or we will worship some created thing (an idol). There is no possibility of our worshiping nothing.”
Consider a rough and ready definition: Worship is that orientation of heart, disposition of mind, and inclination of will directed towards our highest priority. Simply stated, if you want to know what you truly worship, ask yourself the following question: What is the most important thing in my life?
If the answer is Jesus Christ, then, “worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24)!
If your answer is “my stock portfolio,” “my handicap,” “my career,” “my spouse,” or anything thing else in the created order, then, reverse course and worship the “true and living God” (1 Thessalonians 1: 9).
Ironically, having good stocks, low handicaps, thriving careers, and lovely spouses are all good things. Idolatry is not merely giving ourselves over to evil things. Rather, it is taking any good thing and making it the ultimate thing. When we take a good thing and attempt to make it the ultimate thing, we have stumbled into idolatry. And that is a bad thing.
Worshipping God through Christ, in the power of the Spirit, leads to the deepest satisfaction and creates heart space to fully enjoy life.
I vividly remember playing Pebble Beach on two separate occasions. The first time I played this majestic course, my ball striking was uncharacteristically good. When I left that day, I recall being emotionally empty and spiritually miserable. The second time I played it, my normal ball striking had returned. And, although I had, to state it charitably, played poorly, I remember leaving the course with an unspeakable joy in my heart.
How is that possible? On my first trip around that scenic venue, I was not right with my Creator. Even though I played beautifully, I was trying to extract from Pebble what it could not give—existential peace and joy. I was guilty of idolizing golf. The second time around I had, by the grace of God, come to realize that only by having Christ as Lord and Savior would I ever know lasting satisfaction. Now, please don’t misunderstand. There is always the third option—having Christ as the center of your life and playing Pebble Beach with your “A-game.” For me, that has yet to happen.
Regarding this fundamentally important issue of worship, G. K. Beale insightfully observes, “A number of biblical passages express the idea that instead of worshiping and resembling the true God, idolaters resemble the idols they worship. These worshipers became as spiritually void and lifeless as the idols they committed themselves to…” In short, worshipping anything other than the Triune God invariably leads to an empty existence. On the other hand, worshipping God through Christ, in the power of the Spirit, leads to the deepest satisfaction and creates heart space to fully enjoy life, especially the great game of golf (Ecclesiastes 2:24-26). Indeed, God is the one obsession that enriches every other aspect of our lives.
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Dennis Darville
May 26, 2021
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.