Is God a narcissist?

Basically, what people mean when they ask this question is, why does God ask us to praise him and worship him?

It’s a question that comes logically to people who haven’t been brought up in the Judaeo-Christian tradition. And the reason is because they don’t have a concept of a God who is above all and who is actually worthy to be worshipped.

Among human beings, anyone who constantly wants to be the centre of attention, and wants you to remember how good they are all the time, wouldn’t have many friends, would they? And we actually have a label for such people – narcissists, right? I’m sure we’ve all had to deal with them, or avoid them! They’re usually very selfish and annoying people.

And some people think that’s what the Christian God might be like.

But let me paint a different picture for you.

What if God isn’t like a human being at all? What if God is actually above all, our sovereign creator?

What if you have actually been made by this God, and you only every find your true self when you are right with this God, putting him at the very centre of your life?

This God demands worship, because when you adore him above all, you keep your life centred on who you truly are and on his purpose for your life. Worship becomes how you connect with this God. It’s how you find real peace and joy and it’s how you’re energised to live beyond anything you could ever experience elsewhere.

Now, this God is entirely selfless. He’s entirely loving. And so it’s only right and natural that such a God would demand your worship, because it’s for your own good.

God doesn’t ask you to worship him in order to satisfy his own needs. Because he wants your good, he desperately wants your worship, but he doesn’t need it. He knows that you are only truly safe, when you enter into his strength, into his love. You do it by acknowledging who he is, and surrendering yourself to him. That’s what worship is. There’s no insecurity in true worship. It’s how you find your true identity.

The reality is that the way God created humanity, he made us to worship. Worship is fundamentally. We’re all going to worship something. We worship what we find our security in. We tend to worship what we want to have more of

For some people, it’s money and material possessions. For others it’s the current crop of Instagram influencers or reality stars.

If you worship anything other than God, you’re just going to be let down. If you worship anything other than God, well, that’s what he calls idolatry. So, I don’t think God’s a narcissist. But if you don’t worship him, perhaps you might be.