All we are...All we ever will be...found only at the Cross
One of the greatest blessings
of Christian fellowship is the mystery of worship.
The God of the universe,
creator of all things, ruler of the stars, longs
and desires to fellowship with us. In fact, He is jealous over His time
with us; seen in Exodus 34:14 as we are told “you must worship no other Gods,
for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about His
relationship with you”.
What an honor and privilege to
worship.
Worship is inherent in creation. Luke 19:40 shows Jesus answering the
Pharisees who commanded Him to silence the disciples from offering worship, and
Jesus stated “I tell you, He answered, “if they remain silent, the very stones will
cry out.”
All creation was designed to offer worship and praise to the creator.
The winds blow praise. The waves crash in praise. The mountains stand majestic
in praise. The creatures of the earth and see proclaim God’s glory, and Jesus
shows that if we do not praise Him, the very stones of the earth would shout in
our place!
In the days of the Old
Testament, the people of God offered many different types of things as praise.
They had grain offerings, wave offerings, thank offerings, psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, etc.
However, they were limited by the veil that separated them from the Holy of
Holies…from the very presence of God.
When Jesus crawled upon that cross, and
bore the penalty of sin and death once and for all, that veil was rent in two!
We who come after are granted the privilege and honor of heart to heart
communication with the God of the universe, with no priest needed to mediate
between us.
Jesus is our high and holy priest, and the cross was the ultimate
mediation!!
Worship is so much more than a
few moments of singing on a Sunday morning. It is a lifestyle. It is a
conscience, a state of constant observance of the moving and working of God in
every moment of our lives. It is seeing Him in all things, and offering our praise.
Seeing Him a beautiful sunrise or sunset. Seeing Him in the kindness of a
stranger. Hearing Him in the giggle of our children.
Worship is communion. It
is a life “lived out” – a waterfall of praise being constantly poured forth
from within us. It is not always a “feeling”- it is often a choice. An act of
our will – because He is worthy. We worship Him because of all He has done for
us. Remember the old hymn, Count Your
Blessings? He has done too much in us, through us, and for us - We cannot
remain silent!! 1 Thes 5:18 tells us to “give thanks in everything, for this is
the will of Christ Jesus in you.”
He does not tell us to give thanks for everything, but to give thanks in everything!
How is your worship? Is it
constant? Is it blocked by the trials of this life? Just like a beaver can
build a dam that will stop up even the strongest river, so can the despair and
pain of this life build up in us if we allow it.
The Holy Spirit is the flood
that can crush any dam that has built up within us. If you are feeling dry in
your spirit, if they well-spring of praise in your heart has stopped up, you
can cry out to the creator today. You can sing out with the very stones in
praise to God!
Worship is essential in the life of a Christ imitator- because
Christ lived out the essence of worship.
He told us that if “we have seen Him,
we have seen the Father” in John 14:9.
He is God in the flesh, and He lived out
His life in worship and praise to His Father. We should follow Him in like
manner and live our moments and days in praise to the God who is jealous over
us.
Questions:
1.
Are we worshipping the Lord with all that we
are? If not, what the things that may be impeding our worship?
2. Have
we allowed life to crowd out the praise in our hearts? Pray now and ask the
Lord to purge your heart of the darkness that would suffocate our praise!
3. What
are things we can do to ensure that our lives are a fragrant incense of worship
being constantly lifted before the throne of God?
Scriptures
to Consider:
Psalm
103:1
“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless His Holy name!”
Eph
5:19
“addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and
making melody to the Lord in your heart.”
John
4:23 “But
the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the
Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship Him.”
Psalm
95:6 “O
come let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord God, our Maker!”
“God
gave worship so that we might become partners in His highest purposes.” - Dr. Jack Hayford
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