Called To Worship

 Luke 4:8

23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

24 Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.

25 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is also to be feared above all gods.

26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens.

27 Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and gladness are in His place.

28 Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples, Give to the Lord glory and strength.

29 Give to the Lord the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!

30 Tremble before Him, all the earth. The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved.

31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; And let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”

What does it mean to worship?  When we ask others what is worship, many times the answer will be, “it’s when you sing songs and pray to God.”  Worship is so much more than that though.  The word itself will help us in understanding what worship is.  Like most English words, worship is a compound of two other words.  Worship comes from the term worth-ship.  It’s meaning was to show that something or someone was worthy.  In some old English plays and even in some movies, you will hear others addressing a queen or king as “your worshipfulness..”  That term means that the member of royalty is worthy of their respect by their office.  In the same way, the Christian addresses our most Holy and Awesome God.  He is worthy and worthy to be praised.  When we lift up our voices in song, when we pray to God, when we give our tithes and offerings, when we help another person, when we obey God, we express to God His worthiness and His awesomeness.

To show this kind of respect and worthiness, God looks at the heart.  To truly think and recognize something or someone as holy, it must come from the heart.

John 4:21-24

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Jesus declared to the Samaritan woman at the well and to us, that true worshippers will worship in spirit and truth.  True worship comes from the heart and is not just vain actions.  

I fell under deep conviction when I thought about this.  I know there have been many times when I have been in a church service and I have been “checked out.”  I’ll admit it.  Even being a leader in the church and a pastor to many, I have been mentally, emotionally, and spiritually “checked out” at times.  There have been times when I have just uttered the words of a hymn or song, but that was it.  It wasn’t offered to God like it should have been.  It was vain service.  This is what Jesus was warning us against and was telling us to focus ourselves when we go into worship before God.  We are showing and declaring God’s worth.  If we go in half asleep and give a half hearted effort, how much worth are attributing to God in your life?  Have you ever had someone make you feel like you were worthless?  A lot of time we feel that way when people ignore us or ignore our feelings.  How many times do you think that we have made God feel worthless or expressed that to Him.  When we worship Him it must be in spirit and in truth.  Isaiah 1:11-20 has a strong warning for us when it comes to showing true worship.

   11 “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats.

12  “When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, To trample My courts?

13 Bring no more futile[f] sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me.  The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies—I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.

14 Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; They are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them.

15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.

16  “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil,

17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.

18 “Come now, and let us reason together, ”Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.

19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;

20  But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword”; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

God is tired of vain actions.  He wants and deserves worship that comes from the heart.  God promises us that if we obey Him, trust Him, and believe in Him, we will be blessed.  We can have fullness or heart when we worship God.

   How are you going to show God that He is worthy today?