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Every Knee and Every Tongue

               It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’” (Romans 14:11)

                Here we go, once again, we’re being told that God can’t cope without our constantly reminding Him that He’s so much better than we are. His ego just can’t it if we don’t treat Him like He’s special. Isn’t that precisely what the Pharisees had against Jesus? He insisted on claiming that He was better than they. Not only did He use messianic titles like “Son of Man,” but He even claimed that “the Father” (AKA God) and He were one. What audacity! The hubris was beyond measure.

                Now, suppose you walked up to a vehicle in a parking lot and someone shouted, “Stop! What do you think you’re doing?”

                You responded, “Getting in my car.”

                They shouted again, “Someone call the police. This person is trying to steal a car!”

                Somewhat confused, you said, “It’s my car.”

                “What arrogance, to claim that it belongs to you and you have the right to get in it and drive away! What hubris! You must think you’re something really special.”

                You said, “But it is my car. Look, the key fob unlocks the door.”

                “Police!”

                You reached into your car and pulled out your registration and driver’s license. “See, here’s a picture of me identifying me as (your name here). And the registration for this car states that the owner is (your name here.)”

                And finally, the police come, look at your documents, and let you drive away while the accuser screams that you have no right.”

                It all comes down to the question of whether or not the claims of ownership, lordship, godhood, etc. are true. If they are, then bowing the knee and acknowledging God isn’t done to placate His fragile ego. Bowing and acknowledging isn’t even a matter meant to humble us. It’s simply a matter of accepting reality. If He is God, then He’s God. Claiming otherwise is insane. It’s not God demanding that we make Him feel special. It’s just logic.

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