Why does God need to be worshipped?

God is relational and his intention in the matter of mankinds creation is relationally-focused. As the Luke 3 geneology puts it:

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the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God

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Adam, the son of God. God had kids in other words. And a key element of his overall goal is to restore people (those who would want it in any case) so that they can have the kind of relationship with him that he always intended for them.Worship is expression of love, devotion, praise, admiration, awe etc.And the first sense in which God can be said to want our worship is because he wants us to be able to express ourselves. Simply because it is healthy and fun and necessary for us. Imagine if you loved someone and you were "bound up" so that there was no way for you to express that love to them. You couldn't hold them, speak to them, do things for them. Well, you'd burst from the stress of it all. You wouldn't be happy with that state of affairs.Thus, God provides his people with various means of worship and instructs us to worship - because it's good for us. We feel released and fulfilled and content because we can express the love we have.Secondly, God "inhabits the praise of his people". Which means that he expresses his love and care towards us during worship. This is not to say he can't or won't do it at other times but worship is one area where he reciprocates relationally. It can be that his love for a person is poured out on them, or worries soothed, or confidence raised, or questions answered, or waning and battered faith in God restored. Its a theraputic time oft times. Thus God wants our worship in order that he can inhabit our praise so as to deal with us emotionally, spiritually, physically, psychologically. He want's it because he loves us.Then there's plain old joy at being the recipient of anothers love. Why wouldn't God be something like us- seeing as he made us in his image and likeness. Wouldn't any father love when his children jump into his lap squealing with happiness and love? Wouldn't any father enjoy being the one who his children turn to with their troubles and thrill at being the one to wipe away their every tear? Don't all fathers enjoy the admiration of their children and being the centre of their lives?God wants our worship because he's a thinking, feeling, relational person for whom love sits above all. It's not that worship is demanded - "demand worship" is a contradiction in terms in fact. It's that it's natural and good for all concerned. The product of a heavenly father/heavenly child relationship.

So basically worship is for our own benefit rather than God's, is ultimately what you are saying?(Unsurprsingly) I remain personally unconvinced but looked at from the point of view of a believer what you are saying makes a degree of sense. Certainly more so than the idea of God requiring, needing or wanting to be worshipped.As a father myself what I would ultimately want for my children is for them to achieve a level of independence that allows them to function in the world as individuals and who can take responsibility for their own families in years to come.I appreciate that given my finite time here independence plays a greater part in my thinking than it might do God's......However producing 'children' that are permanently so dependent on their 'father' seems somehow....I dunno......"unhealthy"?If we accept that worship of God is for our own benefit then the questions that needs to be asked are - Why would God make us so needy? Why would he create us such that we remain so dependent on his presence? Doesn't this display a slightly narcissistic bent on the part of God?

Does this mean that the reason I don't believe is because God doesn't want me to? He hasn't acted in such a way as to place me in a position of belief?

Since I don't know what the word worship means in this thread I don't know how to begin. But I must give it a go.I have two sons I brought into the world some 45+ years ago.
When my oldest was born I was making $1.10 per hr. working 60 hours a week. Things did get better. I worked long and hard to provide for my boys, and tried to give them things I did not have growing up.Because of that I want their respect, and Love. When I do things for them today I want them to be thankful not think of it as an entitlement.Does God need my worship or adoration? NOI need food and water to live. Anything else is my want's.Let me try to explain God's position.God does not need anything I you or anybody else has.In Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 2:4 - Genesis 4:26 God created the universe, man, animals, birds and all plant life. This He did all in one day.Everything was perfect even the man. God made a perfect place for man to reside and provided everything his heart could desire. But God gave man one rule to live by. He was forbidden to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.Satan was the overseer of the planet earth and I don't know how much more. He convinced the woman to eat the fruit and the man willfully chose to eat the fruit. The man was not deceived.That man and all his descendants were kicked out of God's perfect place into the world of Satan.This condemned mankind to the same fate as Satan.But God wanted to give His created mankind another chance so He devised a way man could get a full free pardon and be able to return to that perfect place.Man can accept that pardon or reject it.The Bible is written to the man that accepts the pardon offered by God.And yes it makes demands on the person that accepts the pardon. That person is no longer a citizen of Satan's world, and they are supposed to show it by the life that they live.So God does not need your worship or praise. He does not even need you to believe He exists. It makes no difference to God what you do that is your choice and He is satisfied with your choice.But God desires for your sake that you do believe in Him and receive the pardon He has offered to you.I notice everybody here seems to want to blame God for everything that happens on the earth. That is not the case. Satan is in charge of the earth therefore it is his responsibility not God's.God Bless,

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"John 5:39 (KJS) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."

But God created Satan, with full knowledge of what Satan would do. Doesn't God, then, share at least some of the responsibility?

He wasn't very satisfied with Achan's choice (Joshua 7) after Jericho, and He not only had Achan executed for it, but He made all of Israel suffer defeat at Ai. How about King Sihon of Heshbon, whose only sin was not wanting the Israelites to march their armies through his land (Deut. 2)? Or Er--we don't even know why God killed him, except that he was "evil in the sight of God" (1 Chron. 2:3)? These examples are not consistent with a God who is willing to honor an individual's personal choice. In fact, the plight of Achan, Sihon and Er is consistent with Larni's appraisal in Message #4 (i.e. megalomania and narcissism).You must either agree that (1) God is vindictive and narcissistic, (2) the Old Testament is mistaken or (3) God was vindictive and narcissistic in the time of the OT but isn't anymore. Which of those three fits your personal beliefs (I like #2 myself). I don't think you can blame Satan for Achan's, Sihon's or Er's deaths. The OT actually says God slew Er (1 Chron. 2:3), and says God does things like harden people's hearts so Israel will have an excuse to kill them.

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Darwin loves you.

God made Satan capable of what he does yes.But the first man opened the box and let Satan out. Had man never eaten the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil Satan would have been without a job.Don't blame God for man's choice even though He made man capable of making the wrong choice.Just as man can choose to believe in God today or not believe in God.God does not need man or anything man has. Man needs God and what God can provide for him.God Bless,

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"John 5:39 (KJS) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."

Sure God was satisfied He just made sure he would not make that choice again.The God of the OT was a God of Law. All you have to do is read it. God made a lot of laws and if they were broken man had to pay.I think God was trying to point out to mankind that man could not keep His laws. So that when grace was offered man could accept it. But there are many still trying to keep laws trying to please God.You mentioned the nations God gave over to Israel and told them to destroy them. Those were ungodly people that had followed their own ways.Guess what there are a lot of people and nations that have done that today. Time is coming when God will say enough is enough. If you are here then you will look on the things in the OT as a sunday school picnic.As I said God does not need us.God does not need our worship.God does want obedience out of those who are born again.Jesus said: "My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they Follow Me." Not following is not an option.God Bless,

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"John 5:39 (KJS) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."

Wasn't it Satan that got the man to "open the box" in the first place? How did he do that if he wasn't already "out of the box" beforehand? That's ridiculous: He not only made sure Achan wouldn't do it again, He decided to take it out on all of Israel. In other words, He went out of His way to make His point clear, and had lots of people killed for it. This is that exact opposite of allowing personal choice. So, you believe that God has been changing over time? Are you suggesting that God just used the people of the OT as an example for us? Guinea pigs? They didn't get second chances, as God allows us nowadays. Was salvation ever on the table for them, in the first place? If so, why were the standards different before Christ came?

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Darwin loves you.

Why does God need to be worshipped and why do people worship God?Make yourself a list of who doesn't worship God, perhaps starting from Satan, then do an evalution on what his fate is laid ahead.Then you will know why man worships God.You don't worship God, you die. Simple as that. Of course, God wants your worship, because He's a loving God.Edited by Hawkins, : No reason given.Edited by Hawkins, : typosEdited by Hawkins, : TyposEdited by Hawkins, : typos

As pointed out, it's also for Gods enjoyment. Whether that could be said to be beneficial to God is another thing. That's fair enough - the cycle of life/death demands it be so. They are dependent, then independent, then exceeding you as your powers wane. But where no cycle of life and death the reasoning of this world would break down. Not even God can help us being dependent upon him. Everything is sustained by God by his will and his will alone. If he's taken out of the situation there is nothing else to hold things together and it ceases to exist. God cannot create something that is not totally and completely dependent upon him for it's existance. Not even God can remove sticky toffee paper from his fingers.The nature of the 'thing being sustained' will determine what is required to sustain it in the state God intended for it. That which is required to sustain "us" emotionally, psychologically and spiritually won't be the same that that required to sustain "iron" as iron.It is possible for us to reject being sustained in optimal state. Those in Hell, for instance, won't be worshipping God. They will be conscious beings but very far removed from the ideal that occupies Heaven. And pretty far from the less-than-ideal that we see walking around in this world

The reason God hasn't acted so as to have you believe in him (etc) is because you refuse to be convinced of what God is attempting to convince you of. God says that your a hopeless sinner. He says that for all the nice exterior you might present to the world, your heart is black and evil and perverse*.An important thing to note is that you don't have to believe in God to be convinced of the essence of what he is trying to convince you of. Once convinced of that, once you believe that to be the case about you, you can then be saved.It's Gods job to convince you of this - and it might well be that he will eventually convince you of it. But he won't force that you be convinced meaning that you can evade conviction until your dying breath, if that is your hearts desire. It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who gets the blame for that state of affairs.-*Don't be offended - that's what he has to convince everyone of - for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of GodEdited by iano, : No reason given.

But God already knows whether I will "be convinced" or not. He knew before I was born, so if I go to my grave not being convinced, its because God knowingly did not do enough to convince me. It seems like he likes people who are easily convinced of something, and just lets the skeptical of "his creations" fall.It would be like a parent of two children caring only for one child because that child is easy and letting the other one go because its more difficult. It sounds to me like a lazy, negligent parent.

No. Satan deceived the woman. The woman gave the fruit to the man and he chose to eat. He did not have to eat it and he was not deceived into eating it. All I can figure is he knew God said when you eat the fruit you will die and the woman was going to die and leave him alone with the animals. He did not want that so he chose to eat and die with her.Had man not willfully disobeyed God Satan would still be in the box. But that man would be the only human being to walk and talk with God. Achan disobeyed God and took spoil when ordered not to.Joshua sent people into battle without consulting God and lost a lot of men.Achan was then asked what he had done. So somebody had to know what had taken place but didn't rat him out until after the disaster.Since Achan was the head of the house and all those of his knew of his deeds they became partakers of his deeds and all were taken outside the camp and killed.It was not because they did not worship God, but because they disobeyed God.God did not need anyone setting a bad example by disobeying an order. No God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.He did deal with people different in the OT than He does today.He also dealt with Israel in a different way than any other people because they were a chosen people through whom Jesus would come. I think He uses people today as examples. Ananias and Sapphira come to mind, they dropped dead because they lied to the Holy Spirit. They made a deal then reneged on following through.Abraham believe God and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
Enoch walked with God and God took him.
Elijah walked with God and was carried into heaven in a chariot.
Many believed God and obeyed Him and yes they went to heaven.
Many today think they can pray a prayer and make a profession of faith and that is being born again. They have been sold a bill of good by the prince and power of this earth.Jesus said: "My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they FOLLOW ME."The only option we have today is to believe God is and accept Him or reject Him.If you accept Him you will follow Him. If someone claims to be a Christian and is not trying to follow Jesus, they are none of His.It is not a matter of worship but of obedience.God requires obedience from His children (those who are born again) if that is called worship then I guess that is what it is.Everybody else can do as they choose.God Bless,

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"John 5:39 (KJS) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."

Where do you get the idea from that it is God's obligation to convince you of anything, must less His existence.If God convinces you then you will not need faith.But man is saved by faith, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ when he accepts God's offer of a full free pardon.You don't like God's plan. Then reject it.People have a weird idea of what God wants as worship.God simply wants obedience, That is all He ever wanted.God Bless,

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"John 5:39 (KJS) Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."