Becoming What We Worship

“A person will worship something, have no doubt about that. We may think our tribute is paid in secret in the dark recesses of our hearts, but it will out. That which dominates our imaginations and our thoughts will determine our lives, and our character. Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping we are becoming.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Our preacher here at the Huntsville church of Christ used this quote last Sunday for his sermon, and it has been flying around in my head since. I like this quote, especially the end. It reminded me most of two scriptures, Matthew 6:24 and I Timothy 6:10.

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." - Matthew 6:24

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." - I Timothy 6:10

Money is one of the most worshipped objects in the world today. But as we see in I Timothy, its not just money that is the problem, its the love of money. We hear this from Jesus too there is Matthew as He reminds us that we can only love one or the other, God or money. Let's take this back to Emerson's words. We all worship something, whether we actively think about it or not, we worship something. That something is whatever it is that controls our lives. If we constantly think of money, everything we do is to earn money, and all we can talk about is money, then we worship money. Insert whatever person, place, or thing that fits for you into that sentence and that is what you worship. According to Matthew, recounting the words of Jesus, God should be what we are inserting into that sentence. Unfortunately we are human and we all miss the mark (don't worry, God made a way around that for us). But it's that last statement in Emerson's quote that really gets me thinking. "Be careful what we worship, for what we are worshipping is what we are becoming."

To illustrate this, consider the man named Donald Trump. When you hear that name, read that name, or even just think of that name, one of the first things that comes to your mind is ... MONEY. His life seems to revolve around money, therefore I would argue that he worships money. I would also argue that he has become the face of the love of money. He is used by companies to promote their products in order to attain more money. He has been a role model of sorts for those who wish to have the wealth that he has. He has become for all intents and purposes "the love of money."

To further illustrate my point, consider another man by the name of Jesus Christ. His life here on Earth (completely as a man) was completely enveloped by God. His daily actions, his thoughts, and the conversations he had (even with Satan) were all to the glory of God. He worshipped God and in the end He was made Lord over all the Earth.

Worship is a way of life. It's what we do everyday, what we think all the time, and the words we choose to pass on to others. It is NOT just the songs we sing, or the fact that we are sitting in a room listening to someone talk about God every Sunday morning. If our lives are dominated by God and His love, then our lives will begin to look more and more like that of Jesus. Daily giving to, helping, and serving others without even a second thought. Everyone around us will know (with certainty) who it is that we worship. It is even promised to us in the scripture that if we live for Him we will become like Him.