Worship the Creator, Not Created Things

Romans 1:25

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

In the early 2000s, a line from a college commencement speech caught people’s attention: “Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.” The speaker was not a Christian, but he still spoke some truth about the human heart. Everyone builds life around something. Everyone looks somewhere for meaning and hope.

It is a blessing to be surrounded by people who worship the Lord. We hear them speak about Jesus as their Savior. We see them value God’s Word, faith, family, and life. Their lives reflect the light of Christ, imperfectly . . . . but genuinely. Standing among our fellow believers is a reassuring place to be.

Then reality hits. We meet someone who clearly worships status or pleasure. We talk with someone who wants spirituality without a personal God, especially not a God who confronts sin and offers salvation by grace. We witness with sadness those who follow one of the many humanly created worldviews that become popular for a time.

Why worship what is not true? Only our Creator can give what our souls truly need.

This is no reason for pride. We did not “choose” our way into God’s family or make ourselves spiritually wiser than others. Faith is God’s gracious gift, created by the Holy Spirit through the gospel in Word and Baptism.

So we look to Jesus. He carried our guilt, defeated death, and opened eternal life to us. He is the only One we can trust without reservation. Everybody worships. By grace, we worship the One who first loved and saved us.