Pondering today in Acts 14, where Paul and Barnabas were being worshiped by the crowd after Paul had healed the lame man. They were doing a great work, so the people thought Paul and Barnabas were gods who had come down in human form. But Paul admonishes them and appeals to them not to do such a thing, for they, Paul and Barnabas, were only human like anyone else.Worship can be obvious, as it was here. The people brought sacrifices to offer to them. Worship can also be subtle, in that we begin to follow leaders, be they pastors, celebrities, or others that we think highly of. It's good to have leaders, but we need our focus to be on Christ and not the leader. We are all human and prone to weakness and failure. There is caution the other way around as well. Leaders need to be cautious not to draw people to themselves. There is danger here in self-worship. We all should be elevating Jesus.
So I ask myself these two questions:
(1) Do I more often comment on what Jesus and the Scriptures say, or do I more often comment on what my favorite person says?
(2) When there is opportunity to lead, do I bask in the attention and accolades?
Painting ~ A Woman Seated Near A Door, Carl Vilhelm Holsoe 1863-1935
Wiki Commons public domain
