THE URGE TO WORSHIP GOD TRUMPS ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

THE HUMAN URGE TO WORSHIP GOD 

The articles on this website stress the importance of accurate knowledge about God. And descriptions of the teaching of the good news about the Kingdom stress the importance of interactive learning, that is, that the one who is taught must play and active part in his own learning.

These are important points. But which conclusion should we draw when we compare these points with what happened on the day of Pentecost in the year 33 CE? The Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples of Jesus, and the crowd heard that they miraculously spoke different languages. Then Peter gave a talk in which he explained that Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah. After this talk, 3,000 men and women were baptized.

These people were Jewish proselytes who worshipped Jehovah. But they had not heard previously anything about Jesus as the promised Messiah who was killed and resurrected by God. And they knew nothing about the ransom sacrifice and of the glorious future based on this sacrifice. Nevertheless, when Pater said that they should be baptized, they did this. So, we see that these people were baptized without having an accurate knowledge of God’s purpose.

How could this be the right procedure? The Watchtower of July 15, 1968, page 425, points to something that is stronger than accurate knowledge, something that trumps accurate knowledge of God.

⁵ But, a greater human need must also be met. Mankind was created with an urge to worship God. In his book Man, God and Magic, Ivar Lissner remarks: “One can only marvel at the perseverance with which man has striven, throughout his history, to reach outside himself. His energies were never directed solely toward the necessities of life. He was forever questing, groping his way further, aspiring to the unattainable. This strange and inherent urge in the human being is his spirituality. It is constantly leading him on toward a goal which is just beyond his reach. And that goal is God.” (Pages 11, 12) Indeed, multitudes have groped for God and many have also found him.

To his listeners on Mars Hill in ancient Athens, the apostle Paul once said: “The God that made the world and all the things in it . . . gives to all persons life and breath and all things. And he made out of one man every nation of men, to dwell upon the entire surface of the earth, and he decreed the appointed seasons and the set limits of the dwelling of men, for them to seek God, if they might grope for him and really find him, although, in fact, he is not far off from each one of us.” (Acts 17:24-27) Almighty God, who is above all and is without equal, “is condescending to look on heaven and earth,” and of him it is said: “Jehovah is near to all those calling upon him, to all those who call upon him in trueness.” (Ps. 113:5, 6; 145:18) But how can those sincerely groping for God find him?

The magazine said that mankind was created with an urge to worship God. It is this “urge” that may trump accurate knowledge. I will again look Acts 17:26, 27, 30, 31 from the view of the urge of humans to worship God:

²⁶ And he made out of one [man] every nation of men, to dwell upon the entire surface of the earth, and he decreed (orizō — RJF:“give detailed instructions regarding”) the appointed times (prostassō kairos) and the set limits of the dwelling of [men], ²⁷ for them to seek to [RJF: so they can seek] God, if they might grope for him and really find him, although, in fact, he is not far off from each one of us.

³⁰ True, God has overlooked the times of such ignorance (khronous tēs agnoia); but now he is declaring to all people everywhere that they should repent. ³¹ Because he has set (histemi) a day in which he purposes to judge the inhabited earth in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and he has furnished a guarantee to all men in that he has resurrected him from the dead.”

We note the words “the times of such ignorance.” (khronous tēs agnoia) in verse 30. While the Greek word kairos refers to an appointed time, a time of a certain length, the word khronous refers to time generally. According to Louw and Nida, the word agnoia has the meaning “to not have information about.” God had not decreed times of ignorance. But up to the time of Paul’s speech, there had been a time of ignorance when it was difficult to find God. But now all people were admonished to repent, which means that those who repent would find God and get close to God.

One word in verse 27 that may imply the urge to worship God is “grope” (psēlafaō) with the meaning “to make an effort, despite difficulties, to come to know something, when the chances of success in such an enterprise are not particularly great— ‘to feel around for, to grope for, to try to find.” (Louw and Nida)

The word “grope” indicates a personal effort to find God, and therefore, the word indicates a force that is behind this personal effort, and this force is the natural urge to worship God, and this is an intrinsic part of every human being.

FINDING GOD IS CONNECTED WITH THE BOUNDARIES OF THE NATIONS 

In his discussions with the Athenian philosophers as to how God could be found, Paul quotes the words of Deuteronomy 32:8:

 When the Most High gave the nations an inheritance, When he parted the sons of Adam from one another, He proceeded to fix the boundary of the peoples With regard for the number of the sons of Israel.

The point here is that God set boundaries for different nations. But of these boundaries, the boundaries of his people were most important because they had to do with the salvation of mankind. Descriptions of what God did in this respect are found in Genesis 15:18 (above) and Exodus 23:31 (below):

On that day Jehovah concluded with Aʹbram a covenant, saying: “To your seed I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Eu·phraʹtes.

³¹ “And I will fix your boundary from the Red Sea to the sea of the Phi·lisʹtines and from the wilderness to the River; because I shall give into YOUR hand the inhabitants of the land, and you will certainly drive them out from before yourself.

The basic point in Deuteronomy 32:8 is that the people of God received their land. But there are also accounts of other nations who got their land, such as the children of Esau and the Ammonites. (Deuteronomy 2:5, 19) The inheritance of the human family was the whole earth. (Psalm 115:16) Because God had confused the languages of mankind (Genesis 11:9), it was natural that those who spoke the same language became a nation and settled in a land together. In this way, God indirectly set the boundaries of the nations.

But what does the setting of the boundaries of the nations have to do with finding God? Jesus gave an answer when he spoke with a Samaritan woman according to John 4:22. A literal rendering of the text is[1]:

²² YOU worship (proskyneō, present) what YOU do not know; we worship, (proskyneō, present) what we know, because salvation (sōteria) originates with (ek) the Jews.

What do we learn from these words? The true knowledge of God was only found among the Jews, and therefore, people of the nations could only find God through the Jews. This will also tell us why setting boundaries had to do with finding God and the salvation of humans. The nation who had the true knowledge of God and who worshipped him in the right way had to be separated from other nations so it could be found, and its boundaries made this separation. That the people can only find God through his people is beautifully expressed in the prophecy of Isaiah 2:3:

 ³ And many peoples will go and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, To the house of the God of Jacob. He will instruct us about his ways, And we will walk in his paths.” For law will go out of Zion, And the word of Jehovah out of Jerusalem.

This is a prophecy that will be fulfilled on spiritual Israel, and people will not literally go up to Zion, the mountain of Jehovah. The most important side of God’s salvation is his Son Jesus Christ, who, by his death, became the perfect ransom sacrifice. So, the boundaries of the nation of Israel and its separation from other nations served as the signpost by which both the Messiah, the savior, and his Father Jehovah God could be found.

Humans can only be saved by exercising faith in the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ. God had to separate his own people from all other countries by boundaries. Therefore, sincere people could search among his people to find the promised Messiah. Thus, God set the boundaries of the nations, so people could know where to find the Messiah, seek God through him, and get salvation.

[1]. The NWT13 has the rendering, “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, because salvation begins with the Jews.” I see no linguistic reason for the rendering, “because salvation begins with the Jews,”and this rendering confuses the words of Jesus. NWT84 has the rendering, “because salvation originates with the Jews.”

FINDING GOD IS CONNECTED WITH THE APPOINTED TIMES 

There are four appointed times that are mentioned in the Bible:

1) The appointed time when the Messiah would appear. (Mark 1:15)

2) The appointed time for the death of Jesus. (Matthew 26:18)

3) The appointed time when the Messiah should become king. (Luke 21:24)

 4) The appointed time of the restoration of all things of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets. (Acts 3:21)

All four appointed times have to do with finding God and the salvation of the human family.

THE APPOINTED TIME LEADING TO THE MESSIAH 

God had promised Abraham that through his seed, all nations of the earth could bless themselves. Abraham’s son Isaac had the son Jacob, who was the ancestor of the nation of Israel. So, through this nation, all people could bless themselves. And interestingly, salvation through this nation was connected with appointed times. In Mark 1:14, 15, we read about an appointed time.

¹⁴ Now after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galʹi·lee, preaching the good news of God ¹⁵ and saying: “The appointed time (kairos) has been fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent, and have faith in the good news.”

We note that the appointed time had reached its completion. There is only one time prophecy in the Hebrew Scriptures that Jesus could refer to, namely, the prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27. My translation of these verses is:

²⁴ 70 weeks have been decreed for your people and your city to complete the transgression and to seal the sin, to make atonement for error, to bring in long-lasting righteousness, to seal vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Holy of Holies ²⁵ You should know and understand that from the issuing of the word to restore and build Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the Leader, there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. She will be restored and built with streets and walls, but in times of distress.

²⁶ After sixty-two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off and have nothing. And the people of a leader who will come will destroy the city and the holy place. And its end will come by the flood. Until the end there will be war, and desolations have been decided. ²⁷ He will let the covenant prevail for the many for one week, and in the middle of the week he will cause sacrifice and gift offering to cease. And upon the wings of abominations the one causing desolation will come. And this will be until the complete destruction, because that which is decided will gush forth upon the one becoming desolate.

Because the word mashiah means “anointed,” 37 of the 38 occurrences of the word in the Hebrew Scriptures refer to priests and kings who were anointed by God. However, in Daniel 9:26, the word “messiah” stands alone without any determination, which means that it refers to the promised Messiah who would come. The word to build and restore Jerusalem was issued by Nehemiah in the year 455, and 69 weeks or 483 years from that year ended in the year 29 CE. This was the year when Jesus Christ started his preaching of the Kingdom of God.[1]

Finding God was connected with appointed times, and the appointed time of 69 weeks marked the arrival of the promised Messiah. When Messiah arrived, he was preaching the good news about God. And because of this, honest-hearted people could find God. Thus, finding God was connected with the appointed times of the 70 weeks. This is confirmed by Paul in Galatians 4:4:

⁴ But when the full limit of the time (to plerōma tou khronou) time arrived, God sent his Son, who was born of a woman and who was under law, ⁵ that he might release by purchase those under law, so that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Here Paul uses khronos, which is the general Greek word for time. However, the word khronos was determined by the word plēroma, which, according to Louw and Nida means “the totality of a period of time.” Thus, the use of khronos and plēroma together means the same as kairos (“appointed time”). Paul connects the purchase of the humans and the adoption as sons with “the full limit of time.” He, therefore agrees that this appointed time would help people find God and get a close relationship with him.

There is also another appointed time that is connected with the 70 weeks. In Matthew 26:17-19 we read:

¹⁷ On the first day of the Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus, saying: “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?” ¹⁸ He said: “Go into the city to So-and-so and say to him, ‘The Teacher says: “My appointed time (kairos) is near; I will celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your home.”’” ¹⁹ So the disciples did as Jesus instructed them and prepared for the Passover.

When Jesus says that his appointed time is near, he evidently referred to his death. His death would bring atonement, and this atonement is connected with the seventy weeks in Daniel 9:24. Verse 26 says that after 69 weeks the anointed (Messiah) would be killed. The Hebrew word ‘aharē (“after”) has different meanings related to temporal succession. This means that the Messiah should be killed at a point of time after the end of week 69. Verse 27 says that in the middle of this week, week 69, sacrifice and gift offerings would cease. When the Messiah died, this was the perfect offer for sins. At that time, all other offerings became obsolete.

Thus, in the middle of week 69, three and a half years from the year 29, when Jesus started his service as the Messiah, he would be put to death. This happened in the year 33, and this must have been the appointed time Jesus referred to that was near. The death of Jesus Christ was the ransom sacrifice that would give people everlasting life. Therefore, the appointed time of his death was related to finding God with the possibility of acquiring a close relationship with him.

THE APPOINTED TIMES LEADING TO THE SECOND COMING OF JESUS CHRIST 

There are many prophecies about the second coming, or rather of the presence of Jesus Christ. When Jesus would be invisibly present, it would be possible, more than ever, to find God. The Greek word kairos (“appointed time”) is also connected with the presence of Jesus and the establishment of the Kingdom of God, which would give the people of the earth the possibility of finding God. In 1 Peter 1:5, we read:

⁵ who are being safeguarded by God’s power through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last period of time (kairou eskhatō).

We have already seen that the Greek word kairos means “appointed time,” and eskhatos is defined by Louw and Nida as “pertaining to being the last in a series of objects or events.” The salvation Peter refers to will be revealed during the last appointed time in this system of things. In 1 Corinthians 4:5, we read.

⁵ Therefore, do not judge anything before the due time (kairos), until the Lord comes (erkhomai). He will bring the secret things of darkness to light and make known the intentions of the hearts, and then each one will receive his praise from God.

This text draws a parallel between kairos (“the appointed time”) and the erkhomai (“coming”) of the Lord, who is Jesus Christ. In his letter to Ephesians, Paul gives more details regarding the purpose of God’s appointed times. We read in Ephesians 1:9, 10:

⁹ by making known to us the sacred secret of his will. It is according to his good pleasure that he himself purposed ¹⁰ for an administration (oikonomian) at the full limit of the appointed times (pleromatos tōn kairōn), to gather all things together in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth.

At the end of verse 9, Paul speaks about God’s purpose. And this purpose was an administration (oikonomia). The Greek word is abstract and refers according to Mounce to “the management of a household; a stewardship.” Thus, the “administration” is not the household itself, but it is the way the household is managed. In connection with the time for the administration, we again meet the Greek word plēroma, which has the meaning, “the totality of a period of time.” This Greek word determines the word kairos (“appointed time”), and literally, the meaning of both words is “the full limit of the appointed times.”

Peter uses “appointed time” in the singular in 1 Peter 1:5, and the same is true with Paul in 1 Corinthians 4:5. But in Ephesians 1:10, Paul uses kairos in the plural. This means that Paul connects the administration of God with the full limit of the appointed times, i.e., with the end of the appointed times that Paul refers to.[2]

 That the appointed times of God are plural is also seen in Acts 1:7:

⁷ He said to them: “It does not belong to you to know the times (khronous) or seasons (kairous) that the Father has placed in his own jurisdiction.

The words of Jesus show that God has decided particular times and appointed times.” Peter and John went to the temple to pray. A crowd of people gathered, and Peter gave a speech to the Jews where he discussed the acts of God’s administration from a different angle than Paul did in Ephesians 1:9, 10. I quote Acts 3:19-20:

¹⁹ “Repent, therefore, and turn around so as to get your sins blotted out, so that seasons [appointed times] of refreshing (kairoi anapsyksis) may come from Jehovah himself ²⁰ and he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus. ²¹ Heaven must hold this one within itself until the times of restoration (khronon apokatastasis) of all things of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets of old.

The Greek word kairos means, as we have seen, “appointed time” and anapsyksis has, according to Louw and Nida. the meaning “relief from distressful, burdensome circumstances.” The people to whom Peter spoke had already found God; they were in the temple praising God. Peter admonished these people to repent, and the result of this would be that they would experience “appointed times of refreshing.” After these words, Peter refers to these times with the words kairoi apokatastasis. The word kairos refers to “an appointed time,” and it is determined with the word apokatastasis, which means “restitution” or “restoration.”

Taking the two expressions together we see that the promise refers to appointed times in the plural, and that these appointed times are refreshing because they will bring restoration. The study note in NWT13 has some excellent comments:

the times of restoration: a·po·ka·taʹsta·sis and ka·thiʹste·mi, The Greek word for “restoration” (a·po·ka·taʹsta·sis ), in some  Bible translations rendered “restitution,” comes from a·poʹ,  meaning “back” or “again,” literally meaning “to set down.” The corresponding verb is translated “restoring” at Josephus used the Greek word for “restoration” in referring to the return of the Jews from their exile in Babylon. In papyrus writings, the word is used of the repair of certain buildings, the restoration of estates to rightful owners, and the balancing of accounts. Ac 3:21 does not specify what things would be restored, so this must be ascertained by a study of God’s message spoken through Restoration is a recurring theme in the writings of the Hebrew prophets. Through them, Jehovah promised a land restored and repopulated, fertile, protected from wild beasts and enemy attacks. He described their restored land as a paradise! (Isa 65:25; Eze 34:25; 36:35 ) Above all, the temple would be rebuilt, and pure worship would be reestablished. (Isa 2:1-5; Mic 4:1-5 ) The foretold restoration would include both a spiritual and a physical restoration.

As the study note correctly says, what the expression “all things” that will experience restoration refers to, is not known. But the study note points to several things that the prophets have spoken about. However, Peter mentions one factor by which the time of the restoration can be known. The beginning of the restoration will be when Jesus Christ returns when heaven no longer “holds him within itself.” According to the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:31, his coming means the establishment of the heavenly Kingdom with Jesus Christ as king. This establishment is the same as a restoration of this Kingdom. In connection with this restoration, there is a time prophecy referring to appointed times in Luke 21:24:

²⁴ And they will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled on by the nations until the appointed times (kairoi) of the nations are fulfilled.

This prophecy is discussed in detail in chapter 1 of my book, “My Beloved Religion — And The Governing Body.”  In ancient Israel, God’s kingdom existed because descendants of David sat on Jehovah’s throne in Jerusalem. The kingdom ceased to exist when Zedekiah, the last king in the line of David was removed from his throne in the year 607. There is both a linguistic (lexical) parallel and a thematic (topical) parallel between Luke 21:24, and Daniel 4:10-17 where seven appointed times are mentioned. Using the same kind of calculation in connection with the seven appointed times as with the 70 weeks in Daniel chapter 9, we find that the seven times are 2,520 days which represent 2,520 years. If we start with the year 607 BCE, we find that the Kingdom of God with Jesus Christ as king was established in the year 1914 CE. So, the restoration of all things by the help of God’s administration started in that year but were not completed.

 I will now return to Acts 17:26, 27. God has used appointed times so people could seek God, and this is clearly seen in connection with the appointed times of the nations and the establishment of the Kingdom of God. A part of the sign showing that Jesus Christ was present is expressed in Matthew 24:14:

¹⁴ And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

When the appointed times of the nations ended, the Kingdom was established, and this resulted in the preaching to all the nations. So now, after the end of the appointed times of the nations, more than ever before, people could find God. Please note the demonstrative pronoun “this” in connection with the good news of the Kingdom. There is a difference between the preaching of God’s Kingdom by Paul, Peter, and John and the preaching of Jesus. Paul, Peter, and John preached about a future Kingdom that would come. But Jesus said that God’s kingdom had come. He said that it was in their midst, because he as the king in the Kingdom was present. And this good news of the Kingdom that Jesus preached. —the Kingdom is here — should be preached after the end of the appointed times of the nations. In other words, the preaching should be that the Kingdom has been established, it is in your midst. Thus, both the bundaries between the nations, and the different appointed times serve as signposts for those who are seeking God so they can find God.

THE APPOINTED TIMES OF THE DAY WHEN THE INHABITED EARTH WILL BE JUDGED IN RIGHTEOUSNESS 

In the last section I discussed the restoration of all things, which started to be fulfilled in the year 1914 when the presence of Jesus Christ started. But I pointed out that these words were not completely fulfilled. I quote Acts 3:19-21:

¹⁹ “Repent, therefore, and turn around so as to get your sins blotted out, so that seasons [appointed times] of refreshing (kairoi anapsyksis) may come from Jehovah himself ²⁰ and he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus. ²¹ Heaven must hold this one within itself until the times of restoration (khronon apokatastasis) of all things of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets of old.

As mentioned, the Greek word anapsyksis means “relief from distressful, burdensome circumstances,” To what do the words about this relief refer? The relief started when heaven no longer would hold within itself the Lord Jesus Christ, when his invisible presence started in the year 1914.

But there are two reasons why the complete fulfillment of the words still has not been accomplished, 1) the human family has not been relieved from distressful, burdensome circumstances, and 2) the restoration means that all things that God spoke through the prophets must be fulfilled, and this we have not yet seen. Paul throws light on this with his words in Acts 17:26, 31 that I quote one more time:

²⁶ And he made out of one [man] every nation of men, to dwell upon the entire surface of the earth, and he decreed (orizō) the appointed times and the set limits of the dwelling of [men], ²⁷ for them to seek [RJF: so they can seek] God, if they might grope for him and really find him, although, in fact, he is not far off from each one of us.

³⁰ True, God has overlooked the times of such ignorance; but now he is declaring to all people everywhere that they should repent. ³¹ Because he has set (histemi) a day in which he purposes to judge the inhabited earth in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and he has furnished a guarantee to all men in that he has resurrected him from the dead.”

The words “he decreed” in verse 27 parallels “he set” in verse 31. God decreed “the appointed times”, and “a day” that “he set” is one of the appointed times. Verse 27 shows that the purpose of God when he “decreed the appointed times” and when he “set a day,” was that they “every nation of men” could seek God. The first period of the appointed times  pointed to the coming of the Messiah to the earth, identified the Messiah, with whom there was salvation. The second period of appointed times identified the king Jesus Christ, and because of the worldwide preaching that was connected with God’s kingdom, all nations could now seek God.

The third period of the appointed times points to Judgment Day (a day), which is one thousand years long. Because the words at the beginning of verse 27, “for them to seek God”/”so they can seek God” refer to all the appointed times, these words prove that those resurrected in Judgment Day will have the possibility to seek God and be able to find God. In other words, Paul shows that Judgment Day is an appointed time where all humans will be offered the value of the ransom sacrifice of Jesus, and if they believe in Jesus, they will get everlasting life.

This is seen by the words at the beginning of verse 27, but also of the words expressing the purpose of Judgment Day, namely to judge the earth in righteousness.” What would judgment in righteousness mean? We can illustrate this issue by quoting John 3:36:

³⁶ He that exercises faith in the Son has everlasting life; he that disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.

The requirement for receiving everlasting life is to believe in Jesus. However, all humans who lived before Jesus came to the earth, and a great number who have lived after Jesus have not had this chance. Judging these peopleto everlasting death because they have not believed in Jesus will not be righteous. Paul says in 1. Corinthians 15:22 that all who die “in Adam,” because of the sin they have inherited, will get a resurrection. A righteous judgment would be to give them the possibility after their resurrection to learn about Jesus and the purpose of God and to judge them according to their actions after they have been resurrected. And this is confirmed by the words of Paul in Acts 17:27, 28, 30, 31.

But we may ask one question regarding the words of Acts 17:30:

³⁰ True, God has overlooked the times of such ignorance; but now he is declaring to all people everywhere that they should repent. ³¹ Because he has set a day in which he purposes to judge the inhabited earth in righteousness

The reason why God is declaring that all people should repent is that he has set a day for judgment. If most people who have lived on the earth will get a resurrection on Judgment Day with the possibility to repent and get everlasting life, why was it so important for all people everywhere to repent in the days of Paul? There are two reasons for this:

• As Revelation chapter 7, 14 and 20 show, there will be a heavenly government of kings, priests, and judges, counting 144,000 members, that Jesus will use in his judgment on Judgment Day. The first part of this group were called and chosen in the days of Paul, and they had to repent at that time.
• Jesus shows that the way persons behave in this system of things will either work in favor of, or against, the effort of the person to repent on Judgment Day. Jesus shows that it will be easier for the inhabitants of Sodom to repent than for the inhabitants of Corazin and Bethsaida in Matthew 11:20-24. And the words we speak will form our personality in a good or bad direction. (12:35-37)

Jesus showed that repenting in this system of things and following the principles of God will be a great advantage for our relationship with God on Judgment Day

[1]. A detailed discussion of the mentioned prophecy is found in my book. “When was the Book of Daniel Written? A Philological, Linguistic, and Historical Approach,” pages 207-212.

[2]. A detailed discussion of the sacred secret and God’s administration is found in the article, “God’s administration — his channel of communication,” in the category, “The Governing Body.”

THE UNIVERSAL URGE TO WORSHIP GOD 

According to Genesis 1:26, God said: “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness,” and James 3:9 says that all men “have come into existence in the likeness of God.” Paul says according to Ephesians 3:15 regarding God the Father, “to whom every family in he

TO WORSHIP GOD IS AN INTRINSIC PART OF ALL HUMANS 

In a human family, there is a strong bond between each child and its father and mother. This bond is caused by God because every family owes its name to him, and a similar bond exists between God the Father and his earthly children. No passage in the Holy Scriptures explicitly speaks of such a bond between humans and God. But there are passages where such a bond is implied. In the letter to the Romans Paul discusses laws made by God, and in Romans 2:14, 15 he says:

¹⁴ For when people of the nations, who do not have law, do by nature the things of the law, these people, although not having law, are a law to themselves.¹⁵ They are the very ones who demonstrate the matter of the law to be written in their hearts, while their conscience is bearing witness with them, and by their own thoughts they are being accused or even excused.

Please note the words “by nature.” These words show that the first humans were created with an urge to live according to the just laws of God. The passage shows that even people of the nations who do not know the laws of God are to a great extent inclined to follow these laws. There is a mechanism that helps each one to do what is right, and this is the conscience of each one. It is obvious that when humans are born with an urge to live according to the norms of God, humans are also born with an urge to worship God. The Watchtower of April 15, 1956, page 231, made the following interesting comment:

Another aspect of the instinctive urge to worship is that it is universal. It exists among men of all races, all nationalities. Even atheists worship something, though it may be their own philosophical atheism. The urge to worship is so widespread that if there were no God it would be impossibly difficult to imagine why people should spontaneously reach the conclusion that there is one.

The observations of the magazine are correct. But when we look at the situation today, most people do not worship the creator Jehovah God, but rather many other gods, and very few persons today live according to the laws of God based on their conscience. How can we explain this situation?

THE URGE TO WORSHIP GOD HAS BEEN SUPPRESSED 

Today the human family does not reflect the image of God. Romans 3:23 says:

²³ For all have sinned and fall short of the glory (doksa) of God.

The Greek word doksa can mean both “glory” and “appearance.” So, doksa in this verse may refer to the image of God in which humans were created. There are three factors that have led the human family away from the image of God, in which the first humans were created.

First, there is the sin that Adam’s descendants inherited from him. Paul gives a description of the inherited sin in Romans 7:18-23:

¹⁸ For I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, there dwells nothing good; for I have the desire to do what is fine but not the ability to carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good that I wish, but the bad that I do not wish is what I practice. ²⁰ If, then, I do what I do not wish, I am no longer the one carrying it out, but it is the sin dwelling in me.²¹ I find, then, this law in my case: When I wish to do what is right, what is bad is present with me. ²² I really delight in the law of God according to the man I am within, ²³ but I see in my body another law warring against the law of my mind and leading me captive to sin’s law that is in my body.

Paul says that sin is “dwelling in” him, and this suggests that the inherited sin literally is a part of our cells, and the offspring inherits the cells of their parents.

Second, Satan the Devil is the god of this system of things, and he has blinded the minds of many people. This is seen in 2 Corinthians 4:3, 4:

 ³ If, in fact, the good news we declare is veiled, it is veiled among those who are perishing,  ⁴ among whom the god of this system of things has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, so that the illumination of the glorious good news about the Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine through.

Satan and his demons work hard to influence people to turn away from God, and Satan has blinded many people, as Paul says.

Third, because of our inherited sin and the bad influence of Satan, the consciences of most people have become dull and do not function as a guide to what is right. And the good things that originally were a part of the nature of each human have been suppressed. Paul mentions this in his letter to Titus 1:15, 16:

¹⁵ All things are clean to clean people; but to those who are defiled and faithless, nothing is clean, for both their minds and their consciences are defiled. ¹⁶ They publicly declare that they know God, but they disown him by their works, because they are detestable and disobedient and not approved for good work of any sort.

Just as our inherited sin literally is a part of our cells, the urge to worship God and live according to his laws literally is a part of our cells as well, though being suppressed in the cells of many people. And this is the reason why only a few people today worship God in the right way.

HOW THE URGE TO WORSHIP GOD IS STIMULATED 

I started this study with the example of the proselytes who were present in Jerusalem at Pentecost in the year 33 CE. They heard the speech by Peter, and when they were admonished to be baptized, they did so and became a part of the newly formed Christian congregation. However, they had no knowledge of what Christianity really was. Did they act in the correct way when they accepted Peter’s admonition and became baptized?

We must remember the background of these people. They came from many different nations, but they were all worshipping Jehovah; this was the reason why they had traveled to Jerusalem. We must assume that these people were well versed in the Hebrew Scriptures, and therefore, they were waiting for the promised Messiah. Peter gave evidence that Jesus from Nazareth was the promised Messiah, and what a thrill it must have been for these people to understand this. What they had waited for a long time, was now a reality!

Because of this new understanding that was supported by the miracle that they heard the Jews speaking in their native languages, their urge to worship God in the right way was stimulated, and they accepted Christianity, although they did not know what Christianity really was. But these people stayed for some time in Jerusalem, as Acts 2:42 indicates.  And in time they got an accurate knowledge of Jesus Christ, his ransom sacrifice, and of the restoration of all things.

I would like to illustrate the stimulation of the urge to worship God with my own experience. When I was a boy, my mother and grandmother regularly attended meetings in a Pentecostal congregation. They taught me about God but I had no knowledge of the Bible. I believed that God was the creator of all things, and as a youngster, I remember conversations where I argued in favor of the existence of God. But I did not read the Bible.

In the summer of the year 1961, I started to attend a school with the goal of becoming an engineer. I rented a room with a family where the mother and the eldest son were Jehovah’s Witnesses. They started to preach to me, and I remember two long and heated discussions. After the second discussion, they had given up on me. But they gave me the book From Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained, and they encouraged me to read it. I read the book, and when I finished reading it, I said to myself: “This is the truth!”

I did not have any knowledge of the Bible, and I did not know what the Christian way was. Did I have a good basis for my conclusion that this was the truth? The book described how the first paradise was lost. It described how Jesus came to the earth and became the ransom sacrifice, and it described how God will cleanse the earth and create a new paradise. I was certain that this was true because this was what I had been looking for without knowing what I was looking for. This was a clear stimulation of my urge to worship God. Four months after I read the book, I was baptized, and six months after my baptism I started as a full-time preacher; and my full-time service lasted for 15 years.

I have heard about many other examples that are similar to mine. People have been looking for the purpose of life without knowing what to look for. And the message of the Bible has given them an aha moment. Even though they did not know what the truth was like, when they now saw the purpose of God outlined in the Bible, they knew that this was the truth. Their urge to worship God was stimulated, and that compensated for their lack of accurate Bible knowledge.

Many of the articles on my website are rather complicated. Greek and Hebrew words are often used as well as detailed analyses of Scriptures in the Bible, and this is also the case with this article. That could suggest to the readers that much detailed Bible study is necessary in order to worship God. This discussion shows that this conclusion is wrong. What is needed is just an outline of the purpose of God and the understanding that this is the truth. On this basis, the inborn urge to worship God is stimulated and a good relationship with God can be obtained.

However, just as the Jewish proselytes remained in Jerusalem for some time to learn more about God’s purpose, it is necessary for those who suddenly find the truth to continue their Bible study so they can understand the fullness of God’s purpose. The basic doctrines of Jehovah’s Witnesses are directly based on the Bible, and most of what takes place in the congregations of the Witnesses is just and good.

However, particularly in the 21st century, the members of the Governing Body have given themselves unlimited power, and they have introduced some false doctrines. This has harmed thousands of Witnesses. And because I have promised Jehovah always to tell the truth, I have exposed these false doctrines and actions of the members of the Governing Body. That is the reason why several articles are complicated. In order to expose something that is wrong, solid evidence must be produced.

HOW THE URGE TO WORSHIP GOD IS STIMULATED IN THE WRONG WAY

Most people on the earth worship someone or something. It is obvious that there can be only one truth, as Paul confirms in 2 Timothy 2:3-4. So how does God view all those whose urge to worship God has been stimulated in the wrong way?

Take for example an Adventist who is preaching to a person. While his message is different from the message preached by Jehovah’s Witnesses, there are also some similarities. The Adventist will present the God of love and his Son who is the ransom sacrifice for all men. When Jesus comes, the Adventists will be taken up to heaven where they will remain for 1,000 years. The earth will be burned, and those who are in heaven will inhabit the new earth. Suppose that the man reacts to this message in the same way that I reacted to the message that was preached to me and say, “This is the truth,” how will God view this person?

We may also consider a man who is born into a Muslim family. He has been taught about a grand future. In heaven where he expects to come, there is a huge garden with a river flowing by its side, and there are fruits and shades from the trees. He believes that this is the truth, and therefore he prays five times a day and tries to live according to Muslim ethics. How does God view this person?

We may also consider a person who is born into a Buddhist family. He is taught that it is right to fall down before idols. And he looks forward to coming to Nirvana where the suffering of reincarnations will stop. He is convinced that this is the truth, and therefore he accepts the teaching of Buddha and is abstaining from 1) harming living beings, 2) taking things not freely given, 3) sexual misconduct, 4) false speech, and 5) intoxicating drinks and drugs causing heedlessness. How does God view this person? When these persons die, will they be eternally annihilated?

Paul answers this question in 1 Corinthians 15:22:

²² For just as in Adam all are dying, so also in the Christ all will be made alive.

The punishment for sin is death, and all who die because of inherited sin will get a resurrection on Judgment Day with the possibility of repenting and getting everlasting life. The only persons who will not get a resurrection are those who have sinned against the holy spirit. They do not die because of inherited sin but because God judges them to everlasting annihilation.

The persons I mentioned above were sincere persons who followed their urge to worship God, though in a wrong way. Their sincerity will be an advantage on Judgment Day. Most persons who have lived on the earth will get a resurrection on Judgment Day. Some of these have been wicked, such as the Jewish generation in the days of Jesus, whom Jesus said will get a resurrection.

The personality each person has developed in this system of things, a wicked or a good personality will be an advantage or a disadvantage on Judgment Day. But what really counts is seen in the words of John in Revelation 22:17:

¹⁷ And the spirit and the bride keep on saying: “Come!” And let anyone hearing say: “Come!” And let anyone thirsting come; let anyone that wishes take life’s water free.

The final outcome for each person who will be resurrected is whether he or she “is thirsting” — is following his or her urge to worship God— and whether he or she “wishes” — from his or her heart really wants to serve God.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

The urge to worship a god or gods is universal. In order to help people who are seeking God to find him, Jehovah has made boundaries between the nations, so the Jewish nation through which the salvation comes, was clearly separated from other nations. Jehovah has also made appointed times to serve as signposts for sincere persons, so they could know when the savior, the promised Messiah, would come to the earth, when he would die as a ransom sacrifice, and when he would return as the invisible king in the Kingdom of God.

The urge to worship the true God and live according to his laws and principles has been suppressed by the inherited sin, by Satan the Devil who is the god of this system of things. Because of this influence, the conscience of many people has been dulled and does not serve as an indicator of what is right and wrong.

Those whose urge to worship is stimulated in the right way may accept the truth about Jehovah God without having accurate knowledge about what Christianity really is. In this way, the urge to worship God trumps accurate knowledge. But after these persons have accepted the truth, they should strive to acquire accurate knowledge of God.

Those whose urge to worship is stimulated in the wrong way will worship different gods or different things. They will not experience an adverse judgment because of this. But on Judgment Day they will get the opportunity to repent and serve God in spirit and truth. Only persons who are incorrigibly wicked and have sinned against the holy spirit will not get a resurrection.

A particularly important point that has been stressed is: Paul said that God decreed several appointed times. The purpose of these was that humans would get the opportunity to seek God. Paul shows that Judgment Day is one of the appointed times. Therefore, when most humans who ever have lived will  get a resurrection on Judgment Day, they will get the opportunity to seek God.