How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewis

Deut 12:30  Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise. 

Here is another warning to Israel to take heed when they entered the Promised Land and saw the ways the Cannanites worship their gods. They might be tempted to follow the ways of the heathens and said: “How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise” (verse 30).

The tendency for human is to follow what others are doing. Why some churches of Christ go into liberalism? The answer: they follow what the denominations are doing. They say likewise: “How do those denominations worship God? Let’s follow after them.” The reason is the same: it brings in the crowd. God warns: “Learn not the way of the heathen,” (Jeremiah 10:2).

Sadly, in “Christendom” today, anything and everything has become permissible in worship service. That includes the use of contemporary music, light and sound effects, even magic shows. Worship has been turned into an entertainment!

What we are seeing today practised by the denominations will not be the last; it will only get more bizarre. Now it’s only rock music and magic shows but in future, it could be anything - circus show, acrobatic performance, send in the clowns, cooking demonstration, aerobic exercise, and maybe, immoral performances and game shows. New things are being introduced every now and then into the “worship service”. The reason often given is that the existing worship is deemed to be too outdated, not “user friendly”, old-fashioned, boring, and does not appeal to the new generation.

The temptation to follow the trend is so great today. If we are not careful we too will get caught up with the trend to increase our attendance by delivering an emotionally charged and thrilling experience to worshippers.

Our Lord commanded: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). Worship MUST be in accordance with God’s truth and not man’s ways. True worshippers worship the Father in spirit and in TRUTH. To worship in truth is to worship according to what God has commanded. Why do you think God struck dead Nadab and Abihu?  The Bible gives the answer: because they “offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not” (Leviticus 10:1). They offered something God had not commanded.

God takes it very seriously when men fail to worship Him the way He prescribed. He charged Moses to tell Israel: “Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them” (Deuteronomy 12:30a). It tells us that God not only wants our worship, but He wants us to worship Him according to His accepted way: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12).

Our worship service must glorify God alone. When we gather together to worship God, our focus is to be giving to Him, not getting from Him. The selfish worshipper complains he does not get anything out from the worship. He is worldly and does not understand what worship to God is. Worship is men coming together to pay homage to God; it is men offering up sacrifices to God and not men expecting something from God.

True worshippers come to the worship service offering themselves to God: “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name” (Hebrews 13:15). Let us follow God’s way when we worship and not the ways of the heathen!

Jimmy Lau

Psa 119:97  Oh how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.