Because Gd Said So

Some weeks ago a friend of mine, well maybe not a friend, but genuinely someone I care for, made a point that well, was a really really good point. This point I told her I'd use in a film I was writing about 2 boys, one of whom doesn't believe in the Christian "mantra" of striving be like Jesus because it's setting oneself up for failure and he's got better things to do in his life than be constantly reminded of his shortcomings. 

My friend basically questioned, Why is it so necessary to tell Gd how awesome He is, He's Gd, I'm pretty sure He knows how awesome He is. 

As soon as she asked me, my simple Sunday School response was 2 things: 1. Because it's a commandment. 2. Why not tell someone how awesome they are? We tell football athletes how great they are all the time, either in the form of a ka-ja-billion dollars for playing, a ka-ja-billion to wear a pair of shoes, trophies, women, haircuts. We tell Bill Gates, astronauts, our own friends how smart, nice, funny, or kind they are...how important they are to our lives. I specifically recalled from Sunday School my teacher explaining to me that Gd is our father, and in the same way that we love our father, trust our father, do things for our father for the pure sake that he's our father, we are to do that much and more for Gd who is the Father of all. When broken down in that manner, to a 5-year-old whether or not they have a father (mine was void), they get it. We are born, our parents, decent ones, wipe the poop off our bums, feed us from their breast, help us walk, pull forks or plastic bottle caps from our hands and mouths, they dress us, they give us candy, they literally care, nurture, love and discipline us by the fact that they're our parent. And it is that, that causes us to automatically love them, despite the things they may do that we disagree with. And we show our love by listening to them when we don't want to, hugging them after we get the best birthday gift ever, or a hugging them for absolutely no reason at all. Very rarely do we disclaim their existence, their presence, their help, in private nor in public. We call them, send them letters, gifts, ask them for advice, all truly just by default that they're our parent(s). When this Sunday School teacher co-related the similarities of Gd the Father to our human father, the daily prayer, the random shouts of Thank Gd, or Help ME JESUS, the weekly visit to "his house" (church) and seeking Him for money, clarity, advice and etc. makes sense.  

But, I feel the true dilemma resonates in my initial thought: because it's a commandment. Why must it be a commandment? I mean, not only is it a commandment, but it's the first one: Thou shalt have no other god before thee (Exodus 20:3). Our parents don't demand that we love them. Our parents don't really demand that we call them every day or week, nor do they demand that we hug them (mine told me to get the fuc* off), buy them gifts or even claim them in private or in public. I believe we do all those loving/caring things for our parents naturally, if not naturally, we do it by familial or societal pressure/guilt, but we don't need a commandment or law in order for us to act in such a manner.

It took me weeks to think of why? Biblically speaking, why? Why does Gd command us to worship Him? I say biblically because well, anyone can come up with a good or justifiable reason for Gd doing something with just basic faith and logic, which I feel can often times result in the wrong reasoning, but Gd "gave" us the Bible for a reason; it's a source to look to for the answers for the evidence of questions we have about His will and His way. SO, biblically, not why must we worship Him, but Why does a god, THE GOD, Almighty, Most High, ALL Knowing, ALL Powerful etc. etc. demand, command that we mere humans love Him, worship Him, tell Him He's awesome?

Does He demand that we love him? I can't find that in the Bible. I don't know where it says, GOD SAYS, YOU  MUST LOVE ME! I know of the scripture in the New Testament Luke 10:27: You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.

The context of that scripture, however, is on the basis of someone asking Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life?

So...from what I can tell, Gd doesn't command that you love Him, in fact, it seems like He's constantly advising people not to love/worship other gods for the reason that it causes people to do things that causes them to kill their children (Leviticus 18:21), scar their bodies (Leviticus 19:28 and 1 Kings 18:28), and just bad bad stuff happens. It seems more like we humans do have the option to love Him or hate Him. However, if one does want to inherit eternal life....that's a different thing, hence Luke 10:27. If you want a pair of Nikes, you need 60 bucks. If you want to live with your parents (as teenagers) you must obey their rules. One can't expect to get Nikes without money or live in their parents' house while cursing, hitting, rejecting their parents. AND essentially, if you hate your parents that much, why would you want to gain access/live in their home where you know they reside?

Does HE demand that we worship Him? I would say, yes, just based on the premise of the 1st commandment. Here is where one can say, why? Not necessarily, why is this god so special. But particularly, why does this god decide to make it a commandment to worship him? After weeks, and weeks of thinking about this. Searching my mind for what I've been taught or praying for a scripture to come to mind to explain it and well, nothing really came to mind. I can't say there was a mystical dream, voice, or sudden sermon that answered this, but it was actually something I constantly truthfully struggle with: relationship. If you remember I changed referring to the person who spawned the question from friend to a person I care for to an acquaintance. I'm terrified of relationship. I'm terrified of relationship well because it demands love. lol. Relationship expects a certain amount of responsibility to remember and act love. From this, and my inner monologue of my first-half-life crisis, which I'm not going to expel, I concluded with WHY DO I EXIST?! Why didn't Gd just kill me a long time ago when I wanted to die? And, I thought of the first person who may have asked that, the first human to have ever existed, Adam. In the standard Holy Bible, there isn't a scripture that says, Gd created humans because he wanted to have a relationship, but I believe there is enough scripture to imply that Gd did/does want to have and intended to have a relationship with us humans. I don't mean in a Gd is lonely way, but just that He loves us and wants relationship with us. Genesis 3:8, They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden... Okay, so Gd walks in the garden to see Adam and Eve? Why? Had Gd been there before. I'd say yes. I'd say, Gd "hung out" in the garden, "chillin" with Adam and Eve. In the book of Enoch, it further describes angels "hanging out" with Enoch, who is the great grandfather of Noah (maybe great great grandfather)? It seems there was relationship. There was a want to see how everyone was doing, sharing what's on the mind of the other, etc. etc. After that, humans called on the Lord (Genesis 12:8). The Lord spoke to humans throughout the book of Genesis (Genesis 14) where it actually says, The Lord said to, The Lord told, The Lord spoke to...all of these being specific people, Lot, Abram, etc. Then, in Isaiah 41:8, But you Israel my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend...  So it seems initially that Gd spoke to us humans in a common relationship fashion, called us humans friend, and then identified us humans as chosen, and finally the current state, servant. 

To continue the relationship theme into the New Testament, Jesus is often OFTEN times talking about having a heart for the poor, the needy, love your neighbor has yourself, be kind rewind...just kidding about that last part. But, in Jesus' constant preaching of love, he's insinuating that we humans ended up putting love on the back burner and it should be in the front burner to do what? Have relationship with our fellow brothers and sisters, which is what he also calls people around him. 

I would say that humans loving Gd and showing it through various forms of affection: the 5 love languages possibly: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, Physical Touch (5 Love Languages)., was the norm, was supposed to be the norm, and then something happened. However, Gd's longing to walk amongst us still remained, but because of impurities brought on by sin, He could no longer. And the farther we went from Him, the more poisonous we became to ourselves, and that made Gd sad first (Genesis :5-6) and then angry with particular individuals as well as nations: Solomon, Israelites (Book of Exodus). All in all, Gd wants to have a relationship with us, and after a series of events, He had to discipline/guidelines us to just be healthy, and then when the discipline/guidelines wasn't enough there were rules. Rule number 1 I think wasn't specifically no worship of other gods, but more of a respect the hand that feeds you, no more walking away from me when I'm talking to you, no more talking back... And as said before, in a relationship, in a relationship with a human being we care about, a human being who has given us a gift, or brought us into this world, we do exercise some of the 5 love languages with them, and Gd wants to get in on that love. I believe, in thinking about our creation, it's still an option, you don't have to if you don't want to; in thinking about the New Testament, a true sign of respect, honor and love of Gd is worshiping him (telling Him he's awesome). It is done not because of the 1st commandment or any commandment or hopes of getting into heaven, but is done because you want to. It is done out of the sincerity and genuineness of the heart. This is why Jesus speaks of the Pharisees as being scripture fed people or works led people and to beware of that, of being legalistic, striving to earn one's way to heaven or putting aside caring for a hurting brother or sister because your are a priest, doctor, or it's the Sabbath. This is why Jesus speaks against the bell being rang with someone gives an offering and suggests to instead give an offering in secret for the Lord sees you always. This is why Gd has said I look not on appearances, but on the inside. This is why Jesus tells the story of a stranger taking care of a hurting person and calling the helper and neighbor and friend when the hurting person's own race, nation and family wouldn't help. (Matthew 6:4, 1st Corinthians 8:11, 2nd Corinthians 9:8, Matthew 16, Luke 10, 1 Samuel 16:7) Because it's not about titles, blood lines, knowledge, smarts, doing something out of guilt, out of obedience or out of command, but in the hearts desire to love. The desire to want to show love and to actually show love to your neighbor and to your parent, to Gd. And it is through showing love that you develop relationship, a relationship that Gd wants to have with his children, us humans. 

SO, does a god who is Almighty, ALL Powerful and etc. to need to be told how awesome he/she is? Not the Christian Gd. I don't think Gd needs us for anything. He wants to have a relationship with His children. Does He demand that we love Him. Nope. Does He demand that we serve no other gods before Him. Yes. But, does that means He wants us to do so because He told us to? Or does He actually just want us to do it because we appreciate all that He has done, is doing and will do for our lives, which is to protect us from all harm, to love us unconditionally, and give us life and more life abundantly (John 10:10)? I'd say, it's not about the command, but about the will. I'd say Gd is awesome cause He is AWESOME. I'd say He's done more for me and has been nicer to me than my own mother and for that I should tell Him hi a bit more often. I'd say if I could give him a hug and kiss, I'd gladly do so everyday because I'd know He would never have malice or deceptive thoughts for me or my life. I give money to my mother and rake her yard out of responsibility, guilt and spite because she's my mother and that's what you do despite the fact that she constantly makes my life difficult, sets out to do so. Giving a measly 10 %, which is significantly less than the tip I give to an average waiter, from my paycheck and volunteering to work with the church kids, pass food out in the church kitchen or clean the pews, is a few hours of my life I gladly give to the one who fulfills promises even if I do disobey and promises more promises even though I don't deserve them. No, I don't think it's about the command demanded to be fulfilled, but about the will from the happiness, the joy of a child's heart.