The Act and Heart of Worship Sunday 26 th August 2018 It is very strange the way that the Lord directs a person to influence your life, or creates a situation whereby He (God) will directly influence you, in order to bring about a paradigm shift regarding very basic and habitual acts which we perform as an act of worship. By way of an example, let s look at what is commonly perceived to be the desired behaviour associated with praise and worship. When the music is fast and loud, we act and function in a mindset of praise and transversely, when the music is slow and soft, we think and act in a mindset of worship. All of these acts of adoration unto God are acts of humble submission as we present ourselves before God Sometimes we dispense with certain instruments, when we enter into worship. This has become such a ritual of church worship that we even announce the transition over to worship! In many instances, worship is merely regarded as the act of singing, the source of their fulfillment and the social interaction which cements their friendship and identity. When questioned, you will almost always hear people say that they enjoyed the praise and worship, but seldom do you hear about what was taught, the lesson to which the praise and worship directed them. This act of misguided act takes the focus away from the creator, who is to be worshipped and places it upon the created, which is man. This subsequently builds up pride among the members, which results in their downfall. I have said before, that the nature of man is to worship someone or something. If they can not find someone or something to worship, then they worship themselves. The compelling reason however, that man yearns to worship, is because God has placed this desire in him. These are all fallacies that need to be corrected. Worship is not an act of receiving, but an act of surrender. We can only really reflect Jesus Christ in our lives, when we have acted upon (what I say and think) and actioned upon (what I do) His calling upon our lives. Let me explain this principle! The Apostle Paul tells us that true worship can only be experienced once a man s mind has been transformed (meaning to make a dramatic and thorough change in form (inner attitude and character) and renewed (a change in attitude towards God which is actually repentance). He says that we must undergo this change as an act of obedience in order to fully surrender ourselves to God. This is the act of change. You can do it all to show people, but not really change in your heart.
This we read I Romans 12:2 (NIV) 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God s will is his good, pleasing and perfect will. Not only must our transformation be an act of change, it must also be an action of change. In other words, we must not only reflect the change, but we must also show it through our actions. This is the action of change. This act is irreversible and evident to see. This we read in John 3:3-5 (NIV) 3 In reply Jesus declared, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. 4 How can a man be born when he is old? Nicodemus asked. Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother s womb to be born! 5 Jesus answered, I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born (baptized) of water and the Spirit. Matt Redman, a well known English worship leader, was challenged by his pastor one day in a service, to dispense with the normal manner of praise and worship and to seek alternative ways to worship God. This little experience in introspection had such a profound effect on him, that he wrote the following, now well known and loved song; When the music fades / and all is stripped away / and I simply come / longing just to bring something that s of worth / that will bless your heart I ll bring you more than a song / for a song in itself is not what you have required / You search much deeper within / through the way things appear / You re looking into my heart / I m coming back to the heart of worship / And it s all about you / It s all about you Jesus / I m sorry Lord for the thing I have made it / When it s all about you / It s all about you Jesus King of endless worth / no one can express / how much you deserve / Though I m weak and poor / all I have is yours / every single breath I ll bring you more than a song / for a song in itself is not what you have required / You search much deeper within / through the way things appear / You re looking into my heart / I m coming back to the heart of worship / And it s all about you / It s all about you Jesus / I m sorry Lord for the thing I have made it / When it s all about you / It s all about you Jesus Matt Redman realized through this simple challenge, that there is so much more to worship than formal singing, with music and instruments which are in harmony. He realized that worship is a sacrifice, not to be laid down to die, but to be living and breathing and bringing joy to the heart of the Father. God is not looking for proxy followers, or onlookers, or those who offer payment of another life (sacrifice) for the sin of their own. No! In retrospect, God is looking at you and how you live your life as a sacrifice to Him.
Look at what Jesus instructs us to do with our lives Romans 12:1 (NIV) 1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God this is your spiritual act of worship. The reason that Paul refers to us as living sacrifices, opposed to human sacrifice, is the intended outcome. Human sacrifice indicates that we die when we are sacrificed, whereas a living sacrifice intends there to be life after the action. In other words, our living sacrifice grows and continues steadily into the likeness of Christ. A living sacrifice is the state of body, mind and soul, being in perfect harmony (unity) with each other, in a surrendered act of humble submission to God. Your spiritual act of worship, is the surrendered state of your being, your thoughts, emotions, feelings, actions, words, deeds and general lifestyle, all being in unity and agreement with each other How did Jesus describe worship during His teachings? Mark 12:28-31 (NIV) 28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, Of all the commandments, which is the most important? 29 The most important one, answered Jesus, is this: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart (with your inner being, your life) and with all your soul (with your emotions, your will) and with all your mind (with all your thoughts) and with all your strength (with your joy). 31 The second is this: Love (with your fruits) your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these. Here we can see that worship is a commandment. Not just a commandment, but the greatest commandment given to mankind. We are instructed to worship God, with all that is within us, as a lifestyle, not as a service. God does not want a sacrifice! No! He wants us with humble and broken hearts! He wants our spirits lowly and submissively focused upon Him. This is why Jesus is so adored and exalted by His Father! Jesus hung on the cross in broken heart and spirit, obedient to the Father s will, as an ultimate act of worship. Stephen permitted the crowds to stone him to death as an act of worship to God. Noah built a boat for over 100 years. Moses and Joshua led the people for 40 years in the desert. Paul committed his ways to the work of the Lord. Job had confidence that his God would rescue him in his circumstances. Let us look at the type of worship that pleases God. When and where you worship is not as important as to why you worship and how much of yourself you offer to God in worship. We can worship incorrectly, which does not please God. We read in Hebrews 12:28 (NIV) 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.
So how must we commit our lives before God as an act of transformed and meaningful worship? 1) WORSHIP MUST BE ACCURATE Many people visualize and conceptualize God in a certain manner. They then compartmentalize God into the image that they have created of Him. This allows them to deal with and project their lifestyles accordingly. In other words, if you imagine God to only be in the likeness of nature (trees, blue sky, colourful array of flowers, in the scenery), then you will worship nature and project your lifestyle accordingly. You will be at peace with nature and believe to be only truly at one with yourself when you are in the woods, mountains or at the sea. God is categorized as colourful, peaceful, tranquil, love, harmony, a force which will never get angry or judge, as this is not in His nature, or in keeping with nature. Some people believe that they are the chosen of God as prophesized in the bible. They then interpret and adapt the Word of God, to suit their own ends and diligently walk in the conviction of their beliefs. They work tirelessly in the hope of their reward and regard the outcome as they have believed. God is then required to comply with their interpretation and lifestyle and must reward them accordingly. Some people believe that they need to be at one with the force (God) within them. When they find this force, they become one with it and apparently find inner peace. This they believe is the power which created and sustains the universe and no greater force exists or can be achieved. They reflect this as the highest form of spiritual truth. Some people believe that according to the way they live their lives during this lifetime, will determine at which level of the human chain they will one day be reincarnated as. The most desperate group of people, are those who believe that God is love and no loving God will hold them accountable for the things they do upon the earth. These people are not much unlike the so called Christians who believe that only elements of the bible have to be adhered to. In John 4:23 (NIV) we read what Jesus says about true worship. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. NB! To worship in truth means to worship God as He is truly revealed in the bible. 2) WORSHIP MUST BE AUTHENTIC Authentic worship means that there is no alternative or ante (in place of) worship method. Worship must be genuine and heartfelt, with all your heart and mind and soul and strength. It must be as the Spirit directs and touches you as an individual, within a body of believers. It must be according to the Word of God, without exception.
Worship is a holy act, instituted by God and can not be replicated. All other forms of worship have been created by man. The problem is, we can become drawn into believing that all forms of worship are acceptable. You can only express real adoration and praise to a higher being who truly deserves it, someone who created you and who knows and understands you intimately and uniquely. NB! We can worship God imperfectly, but we can never worship Him insincerely Real worship happens when your spirit responds to God. True worship does not respond to musical tones, because many songs are perceived as sentimental and touching at the heartstrings. This can hinder true worship, as it takes the attention off God, by focusing it upon your feelings. Your greatest distraction in worship is yourself. Many people are concerned about how they sing, if they are the only one doing a certain thing, worries and problems. As a result, they enter into worship in the hope of escaping their reality, whereas all they are doing is drawing attention away from God. NB! Christians differ vastly on the appropriate way to worship. These views are largely determined by their upbringing and experiences. The bible describes many forms of praise (share some), but the most authentic way, is the way which most reflects your background and personality. Hebrews 13:15 (NIV) 15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise the fruit of lips that confess his name. Psalm 7:17 (NIV) 17 I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. Psalm 149:3 (NIV) 3 Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with tambourine and harp. Psalm 150:3 (NIV) 3 Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, Nehemiah 8:6 (NIV) 6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, Amen! Amen! Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. Ezra 3:11 (NIV) 11 With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the LORD: He is good; his love to Israel endures forever. And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid. Psalm 47:1 (NIV) 1.Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. God has made us all uniquely different, so why do we expect everyone to conform to a prescribed method. Individuals are unique and should show their love for God in their own personal and unique
way. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12, that we are all members of a large body, each with a different role and function, each with a unique background, education, culture, belief system etc, but each one fits equally into the body of believers, contributing uniquely for the common good of all. There is no one size fits all approach to worship. We need to honour and encourage the individual character and contribution of each functioning member. God wants you to be yourself, as you were created to be and as you are intended to be. 3) WORSHIP MUST BE THOUGHTFUL To love the Lord with all your mind, is repeated 4 times in the NT. God is not pleased with the thoughtless and mindless singing of songs, expressions of adoration and praise, self uplifting prayers. NB! If worship is mindless, it is meaningless. You must apply your mind to the privilege of entering into the presence of God. In Matthew 6: 7, Jesus called thoughtless worship, mindless repetition, babbling prayer. In 1 Corinthians 13: 1, Paul describes it as, ( 1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love), I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. We run the risk of reducing biblical commands and promises into clichés, through vain repetition and senseless interpretation. When we overuse biblical terms, we can easily stop thinking about their true meaning. Furthermore, with the quest to make the original biblical version more understandable and widely available, certain translations have minimized or changed the original Hebrew and Greek versions, in order to make the message more understandable. This has changed the meanings of life giving truths which were carved in suffering, hardships and blood. However, the reading of different versions could broaden your spiritual vocabulary. We are so stuck in biblical mindsets that we worship mechanically. God is so much more than praise, hallelujah, thanks and amen. Practice using different terms to worship God, such as admire, respect, value, revere, honour, appreciate, adore, exalt and so on. We must be specific in our worship. Sometimes we are inclined to repeat the same term over and over. Give God ten different compliments rather than the same one ten times. In group worship, God also expects us to be thoughtful. Paul donates a whole chapter to this in 1 Corinthians 14 and ends with the words, everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way. To emphasize this point, Paul tells us that our group meetings must be understandable to all present, as we read in 1 Corinthians 14:16-17 (NIV)
16 If you are praising God with your spirit, how can one who finds himself among those who do not understand say Amen to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying? 17 You may be giving thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified. 4) WORSHIP MUST BE PRACTICAL Why does God instruct us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices? Simply because the body is the host to the spirit and soul within us! Without the body, nothing can happen anywhere upon the planet. If your body is not there, then neither is anything else! You can not say, although I will not be with you in body, I will be with you in Spirit, it just can not happen. One day we will all receive an upgraded body, but as long as we are on this earth, God wants us to give what we have, a living sacrifice. Wherever the spirit is, there is life. We are not dead physically, but we can be dead spiritually. That is why we are told to offer ourselves to the Spirit of God, who is the breath and presence of God upon the earth. God is looking at our lifestyle, day in and day out. We sing Onward Christian Soldiers on a Sunday and then go spiritually AWOL on Monday. God is pleased with our diverse sacrifices of worship in the form of praise, thanksgiving, repentance, humility, tithes and offerings, serving the poor and needy, caring for the widows and orphans, serving others, sharing our provision and standing in unity. David understood real worship when he said in 2 Samuel 24:24 (NIV) 24 But the king replied to Araunah, No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing. So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them. We can not serve God and at the same time be self centred, for we can not serve 2 masters simultaneously, we will serve the one and hate the other. Real worship means to shift the focus from ourselves, onto God. We must love God with all our strength. This means that it will take energy and effort. True worship sometimes is a sheer act of the will a willing sacrifice. The word says in James 4:8 (NIV) Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Closing challenge! What is more pleasing to God right now my public or private worship? What can I do about this?
Closing Thought A man walked out under the evening sky, looked up and commented, Look at the millions of stars spread across the wide sky, how is it that God can even see little old me?