Can non-Christians worship God?
Question:
Should a Christian invite his neighbor (who is not a Christan) to "come and worship with us"? I believe I can and should invite him to come and attend with us, but a person who is not a Christian can not worship God as the Bible commands. A person must first obey the Gospel and then he can start to worship God. This question comes because a local congregation is running ads in the newspaper asking for people to "Come and worship with us." They also have printed cards that say the same thing for the members to pass out.
Thanks ahead of time for your comments.
Answer:
At the core of your question is whether someone who is not a Christian can worship God.
"There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, "Cornelius!" And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, "What is it, lord?" So he said to him, "Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God" (Acts 10:1-4).
Cornelius was neither a Jew nor a Christian; yet, God heard his prayers and noted his devotion to Him. This doesn't mean Cornelius was saved -- he was instructed to send for Peter who would instruct him in what he needed to do. But it would be false to conclude that this Gentile was unable to worship God.
"Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall come and worship before You, for Your judgments have been manifested" (Revelation 15:4).
"Worship" literally means to bow down to. It is to give praise and honor to another. Christians are taught the proper way to worship God, but this does not imply that others cannot worship God.
Though talking about the days when miraculous gifts were still present, the point is made that by seeing God working among the members, the unbeliever will desire to worship God too.
"But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you" (I Corinthians 14:24-25).
