Worshiping Jesus, Worshiping God - What is Worship?
Matthew 2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.
Many Christians claim that only God can be worshiped and thus Jesus must be God. The word used for “worship” in the Bible literally means to bow down in reverence or to give honor. These men bowed down before Jesus in the same way they would bow before their King out of reverence and respect for him – in his proper position and authority- to the glory of God, his Father.
1 Kings 1:31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.
Genesis 1:19 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground;
Jesus is worshiped in respect to the power and position that God gave him. The context of how we worship is what matters.
We are not to worship anyone or anything in place of God. When certain Christians worship Jesus as God they are breaking that very law. They are placing a man before God and taking Glory away from God. Jesus came to glorify the Father, not to take glory from Him. The Lord God is one!
Matthew 14:33 Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.
Note that those bowing down before Jesus named him the Son of God and not God himself. Being named the Son of God does not make him equal to God. God is a title of authority and belongs to the Father alone. The people worshiped Jesus in respect to his own title: the Son of God.
Revelation 3:9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
In the end, even the Church, the Body of Christ will be worshiped, not as God, but because we are exalted by God and this glorifies God.
Jesus was worshiped and this glorified the Father who sent him. Jesus was not worshiped as God but as the Son of God, the chosen Messiah who had come to save us.
Amen! Let us worship God in the beauty of His Holiness. Thanks for sharing.
In Islam, we believe in Jesus, Mohammed, and Moses, but we worship God and only God. We believe that Jesus was not the son of God, but rather a prophet.
Curious, how do you feel about the Bible then? Do you reject it entirely?
We believe that when the Bible was first revealed to mankind, it was perfect, but that the people changed it and distorted it out of their selfishness and disbelief.
In fact, we believe that the whole concept of Trinity is a fabrication and is false. Here is one of the many verses that states this in the Quran:
Those who say, "God is the Messiah, son of Mary," have defied God. The Messiah himself said; "Children of Israel, worship God, my Lord and your Lord." If anyone associates others with God, God will forbid him from the Garden, and Hell will be his home. No one will help such evildoers. Those people who say that God is the third of three are defying [the truth]: there is only One God. If they persist in what they are saying, a painful punishment will afflict those of them who persist. Why do they not turn to God and ask his forgiveness, when God is most forgiving, most merciful? The Messiah, son of Mary, was only a messenger; other messengers had come and gone before him; his mother was a virtuous woman; both ate food. See how clear We make these signs for them; see how deluded they are. {5:72-75}
"Messiah" is referring to Jesus and "God is third of three" is referring to the Trinity.
I mostly agree. You are right about the trinity. It is not found in the Bible. It is a heresy and a doctrine made by man. The title Son of God refers to being the Christ, which is the Messiah.
I trust the Bible, I believe it is not perfect, but the truth is preserved. Even in corruption God can preserve truth. I do believe we are to worship God alone but I disagree on Jesus being only a messenger. The Messiah is the Savior, that is the meaning behind that title. I believe that he alone reconciles us to God through his sacrifice and love.
I agree, God can preserve the truth during corruption.
The reason why we believe in Jesus solely as a messenger is because, for us, Jesus was never killed or crucified.
We believe that one of Jesus' companions volunteered to be a sort of "trick", if you may. That companion (whom I do not know the name of because I don't know the story in detail) was then morphed by God to resemble Jesus. Then, Jesus went up to the heavens, and the people crucified Jesus' lookalike.