Grace Upon Grace

I haven’t been able to quit thinking about the importance of worship in our lives this week.

We were made to worship. And because we were hardwired for it, we cannot turn it off like you turn off the faucet. We worship whatever we give supreme importance to in our lives. And we don’t determine what to worship in a vacuum. We take cues from our family, friends and our community about what or who is worthy of our worship.

We’re all probably familiar with the devastating effects of worshiping “bad” things. When someone bows down before and adores alcohol or drugs, their life begins to unravel. The god of addiction requires increasing sacrifices and demands more control. The relationship begins with the god of addiction promising much but the returns diminish over time.

But many of us, myself included, like the older brother in the Prodigal story of Luke 15, worship “good” things. We bow down before and adore the applause of others because we believe we are not like those who worship “bad” things. The god of self-righteousness is just as destructive as the god of addiction. And when we worship the applause of others our lives will begin to unravel too. The god of applause requires increasing sacrifices and demands more control. The relationship begins with the god of applause promising much but the returns diminish over time.

Therefore, the reason I encourage people to worship Jesus every weekend is because Jesus is so unlike other gods. When we bow down before and adore Jesus, he is gracious to us. He invites us into the family. He pieces our lives together day by day, so that we can become whole. And then Jesus gives us the opportunity to radiate God’s love to those around us. Not in a self-righteous way - but in a humble generous way. And the returns do not diminish over time because, “from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace (John 1:16 ESV).”