God Commands Our Worship - Martin Wiles

Series: Nature Lessons About God

The young lions roar after their prey, And seek their food from God. Psalm 104:21 NKJV

Worship sometimes takes work.

My brother and I trudged over a high mountain aptly named. Rocks groveled under our feet, and our feet ached by the time we reached the top—but it wasn’t our destination. The next mountain was. That peak reached even higher. We had been there before, so we knew what lay ahead.

Prior to reaching the peak, we came to a 360-degree overlook. Standing, or sitting, on the rocks allowed us to look at the mountains surrounding us, feel the wind as it curled through the valleys, and observe the clouds as they flitted like angels.

We walked on. Reaching an Appalachian Trail shelter, we unloaded our gear and set up our tent. Nearby was an outcrop of rock. Sitting there allowed us to see far into the distance … hundreds of miles away on a clear day. We wondered over the beauty of the surrounding mountains and marveled as they grew smaller as they shrank into flat plains.

From this vantage point, watching the sunset that evening and then rise the next morning led us to worship the One who had constructed this beautiful place. We didn’t need a church building—or anyone else around us. What God provided in nature was sufficient for the moment to draw us closer to Him and realize how big He is and how small we are.

The psalmist recognized how nature can command worship of this same God. The young lions roar as they pursue their prey, but know where it comes from.

Worshipping God in nature has characterized all people groups. Unfortunately, sin led most of them to worship things God had made rather than God Himself. Sun worship, moon worship, polytheism, and other forms of worship resulted.

Only by hearing about the true God, and then believing in Him, can nature do what God intends for us to do: worship Him, not His creation. And once we do, then we’ll want to care for what God has made. 

We won’t litter—but we might clean up after those who do. We’ll recycle to cut down on trash. And in many other ways, we’ll work to preserve God’s earth so that others can see the beauty of nature and be drawn to the Creator.

Take care of God’s creation, so you and others can enjoy the beauty of what He has created.

Prayer: Father, we adore the creation because we see You in it.

Tweetable: What are some ways you worship God? 

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