Creator Based Worship.

Helping people understand the starting points of their religion helps them understand what makes biblical Christianity unique.  Biblical Christians begin reasoning from a Creator who is entirely separate from His creation.  Without a single exception, all other worshipers see their deities as part of the creation and ultimately see us all as being connected..

(In contrast to Creation Based Worship)

 5 Things about Creator Based Worship

Thou shalt have no other gods before me. - Exodus 20:3

And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. - Luke 4:8

1.) Definition of Creator Based Worship

Creator based worship begins and ends with the knowledge of God who alone is the creator of the universe.  God (as revealed in Christ) is our first principle, our starting point. God demands our worship by right of the fact that He alone is worthy of worship, by right of the fact that He created us, and by right of the redemption from sin which He alone has provided, (Exodus 34:14, Deuteronomy 12:31, Psalm 95:6, 1 Chronicles 16:29, Revelation 5:9-13). God’s Word (the Bible) is a record of His self revelation. We worship the Creator, not the fallen creation (Romans 8:19-23). Any other form of worship has exchanged the knowledge of God (in whole or in part) for  a brand of worship which originates from within the creation.  Romans one gives us a vivid description of this descent from the knowledge of God into creation based worship where we ultimately become our own gods.  We are to worship God alone.

Because Creator based worship begins with an unchanging God who exists outside of His creation and is separate from it, neither God nor His promises can change, although we may observe God’s program progressing in the course of history (Malachi 3:6).  Creation based worship, on the other hand, is in a state of continual evolution or change because it originates within a changing creation (Hebrews 1:10-12, James 1:17).

2.) Creator Based Worship is Exclusive, not Inclusive.

Our Creator God hates idolatry and is jealous of our worship. In our entry on the Triunity we taught what the Bible defends, God’s unity: The Bible clearly says that there is only one God and not many:  “The LORD our God is one LORD,” Deuteronomy 6:4. “For there is one God…,” I Timothy 2:5. The false gods are contrasted to the one and only true God: “You shall have no other gods before Me.”Exodus 20:3.  “Is there a God beside Me? Indeed, there is no other Rock; I know not one.” Isaiah 44:8.  “Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one.”I Corinthians 8:4.

God is jealous in the sense that He expects our full love and wants us to know that all false or demon inspired  gods are unworthy of worship. Creation based worship is a counterfeit worship which robs God of the love and worship which belongs to Him alone.

Idolatry is the act of worshiping any created being or thing in place of God. The word idol means copy. All false gods are the construction of men and demons and all counterfeit God in one aspect or another.  Paul even goes as far as to say that coveting anything is an expression of idolatry (Colossians 3:5). When we place anything ahead of our love for God we are mixing creation based worship with Creator based worship.

3.) Creator Based Worship Must Meet God’s Requirements, Not Men’s Preferences.

Men cannot simply decide to worship God. They must meet God on His terms. God is a Spirit. He is not a part of the physical creation. Those who worship God must worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23, 24 ).Worship is an exercise of the heart, not an external ritual.  Those who worship God must come to Him through God’s prescribed way.  Jesus said “... I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6.  Men have been seeking to approach God on their own terms from the beginning of history. (Genesis 4:4-5).

We must not be deceived (Ephesians 4:14). Creation based worship often sets a tone of “holiness” and “humility” but it is a false, external worship which God does not recognize.  It is easy to be seduced into false worship (Colossians 2:18,23), especially in artificially created “worship atmospheres.”

4.) Creator Based Worship Fosters True Unity

Those who believe in Christ alone have precious unity and fellowship in the person of Christ.  We enjoy union with Him and one with each other.  We are all a part of the body of Christ.  Christ prayed that we would all know and experience this unity, a unity which Satan hates and continually seeks to corrupt, (John 17:22-23).

Creation based worship, when fully expressed, teaches us that we are all a part of the universe (the creation) and therefore connected. Its advocates would have us all worship the same god, just in different ways.  It further teaches that we can all strive to experience this mystical unity, to converge in harmony with each other and with the universe, and to ultimately achieve world peace and harmony. Seasoned believers know this lie will culminate in Antichrist.  This counterfeit doctrine is one way in which Satan distracts us from finding the true unity which is ours in Christ alone. True world peace will come through Christ alone.

5.) Creator Based Worship Needs No Aids of Any Sort

Throughout time God has allowed and initiated what the Bible calls testimonies (or symbols) to remind us of a spiritual truth or special event. God further designated a place in ancient times where He would meet men, (Exodus 25:16,21-25). He has also made His glory known, for example, in the tabernacle. However, God has never vested mystique or authority in those symbols and they possessed no inherent powers¹. When Israel began worshiping God through those symbols, (using them as worship aids), those artifacts were destroyed (2 Kings 18:4).

God also ordained priests and prophets as a means to speak to Him and for Him.  However, God never made such men mediums.  No man has ever been required to access God by going through another man. In the same manner, spiritually significant locations in the Bible contain no inherent mystique and offer no special access to God.

Statan’s counterfeit, creation based religion relies on both methods and mediums in order to provide a pseudo sense of spirituality.   This is particularly evident in the eastern religions and to a given extent in Rome, where the artifacts of worship abound, and priestly leaders are often required if one would have the proper blessing and access to God through a given ritual.

Men today can worship God as the result of the shed blood of Christ on the cross and His subsequent resurrection.  We can be place into Christ and enjoy the wonderful unity and fellowship which comes from Creator based worship alone (Colossians 1:20, 2 Corinthians 5:17).

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Additional Resources:  Visit: http://www.compellingtruth.org/

¹Take, for example, 2 Samuel 6:1-7.  God smote Uzzah for touching the ark.  The ark itself did not kill him.