Articles
Worshiping God
Worshiping God
How many times have you heard the question, “Don’t we all worship the same God”?
When the question is asked, the first thoughts that come to mind is “Who is the “we” and “To which God, or god, is being referred,” i.e., the god of Islam, Greek Mythology, Paganism, Nature, or whatever religion may be under discussion? Some see God as a “universal force,” or simply a “higher being,” or “nature.”
Also, “What is meant by the term worship? Without a fixed and agreed upon definition the question cannot be answered. These factors and concepts must be understood before the question can be answered.
Let us consider what Jehovah said about Himself and Worship then ask the question.
Exodus 12:12 - "against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am Jehovah"
Exodus
1 Chronicles
Concerning worship, the Lord said, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). What is truth? Jesus said, concerning truth, “thy word is truth” (John 17:17). So, acceptable worship is according to the truth taught by the Father (vs. 1), i.e., God.
If an individual’s criteria for who God is and what God expects is based upon any other criteria than what God has revealed concerning Himself and what He accepts, then no, “we” do not all worship the same god.”
When the apostle Paul, “stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.'” He then said, “what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you” (Acts
Thus, the scriptures themselves identify that it is possible, and in the case of
Remember the words of the apostle Paul, who said to the people of Athens, “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist” (Acts 17:24-28). ret
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