Exclusivity of Worship in Scripture
Moses wrote, “You shall worship the LORD your God, and him only shall you serve (Deuteronomy 6:13). This devotion was and is appropriate because “the LORD our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4). God’s people are called to love the LORD with an undivided heart and to give Him their exclusive allegiance in worship and obedience (Deuteronomy 6:5). Isaiah records, “I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other” (Isaiah 42:8). Biblical monotheism, therefore, leaves no room for shared worship. It draws a clear line between the Creator and all created things and reserves worship for God alone.
This exclusive worship continued in the New Testament. When Cornelius fell down to worship Peter in Acts 10:25, Peter lifted Him up and rejected any praise. The same pattern repeated itself in Lystra when the people wanted to worship Paul and Barnabas. They rejected this worship, saying, “We are humans like you” (Acts 14:14). In Revelation 22:9, the angel rebuked John for attempting to worship him, saying, “Worship God.” Interestingly, Paul says, “for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist” (1 Corinthians 8:6). Then he affirms his faith that Jesus is equal to God the Father as he shares in the singular divine essence saying there is “one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist” (1 Corinthians 8:6). Paul does not relax Biblical monotheism. Instead, he affirms monotheism Christologically. He uses the language of divine identity without multiplying gods. So, did the early Christians affirm the deity of Christ in their worship practices?
Special thanks to Donnie DeBord of Apologetics Press for this series.
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