Say the word worship and it brings different word pictures to different people. Some think of the contemporary church where people are waving their hands in a dimly lit auditorium. Others think of a church where the music is alive and loud, and people are almost dancing in the aisle. Some denominations are very somber and ritualistic in their worship. Expressions of worship are as varied as a culture will allow. The word worship came from the contraction of the words “worth” and “ship.” It literally means to add worth, or ascribe worth, to something. To worship, then, is to lift up the Lord, to declare His value, and to place life under His Lordship. So, how do we know that what we are doing is actually “worship?” Some would say they gauge it by how they feel, but feelings are never to be our guide on determining truth. We must always seek and find the answers from the word of God.
David declared worship in Psalm 29:1-2
Psalm 29:1-2 “A Psalm of David. Give unto the LORD, O ye mighty, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
When we talk about worship, we are not only talking about corporate worship where we gather together and sing, pray, give, and listen to preaching. We are to worship on our own private time with God. I believe the depth of our personal worship will determine the value of our corporate worship. Our corporate worship will reflect the past 6.5 days we have had with the Lord and prepare us for the days to follow.
Worship requires obedience. It is not the expression of what we desire and how we feel that causes our actions to be acceptable worship. Our worship is worthless if it is not received by the one we are worshiping. In Genesis 22:5, Abraham is proceeding to go up the mountain to sacrifice His only son that God had promised him and that God was now telling him to offer back to Him. Abraham tells his servants to wait on him while he goes up the mountain to worship. This was not a “feel good” type of worship. It would not fit in any of the categories or types of worship mentioned above. This was acceptable worship to God because it was an act of obedience. It required giving of what was dearest to the heart of Abraham. He was withholding nothing from God. It was not an experience that would be forgotten when the worship time was over. True worship costs us a complete surrender of everything.
Genesis 22:5 “And Abraham said unto his young men, abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.”
Our worship is not to be about us and how we feel. When we make it about us, we have set ourselves up as our own God. God is a jealous God and will not share the spotlight with us. I believe true worship takes a conscious effort to empty ourselves of our self.
Exodus 34:14 “For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:”
I am one of those people who is very observant. And I am easily distracted, so I often see what is going on around me during the music/worship time. Our worship time is NOT just during the singing. I see well-meaning Christians who are seemingly in another world when they sing. Hands may be lifted high, eyes closed, and body swaying to the rhythm of the music. It appears they are truly worshiping our God, and that is wonderful unless that is all there is to their worship. They are completely open and involved until it is time for the Word of God is to be opened and expounded upon. Do you see anything wrong with this picture? The music is not to be your worship; it is to prepare your heart to receive the Word. It is only a part of our worship. If preaching and reading God’s word is boring, you have experienced a false sense of worship. True worship is about God, not us. True worship should bring us to our knees in awe of who God is. We should have feelings of gratitude for all He has done for us. We should have feelings of deep love for the one who gave His life for us and continues to sustain us. Our desire should be to see Him as the majestic, all-knowing, all-caring, all-powerful God that He is.
Another part of worship is giving. We offer ourselves, but we also offer a gift to God. This part of worship was established in the Old Testament when God directed His people to give back a portion of what he had blessed them with during the year. An offering was always a part of worship. I believe we have cheapened this part of worship, and many do not realize that it is a part of worship. It should be a solemn time to reflect on the goodness of God to us.
John reminds us that true worship must be done in spirit and truth. “In spirit” stands opposed to all the external pomp we seem to think defines worship. Worship must begin in the heart. In verse 23, it refers to the engaging of the heart, soul, and mind. Our desire should be to simply glorify Him. Spiritual worship is where the heart is offered to God, and where we do not depend on external forms for acceptance. Our worship must be in truth. We are to seek God through our direct access to Him through Jesus Christ.
Why should we worship this way? First, God seeks it. Every form of worship is to lead the mind to God. It is to prepare His people for a purer form of worship of Him. God seeks our worship not because He needs it, but because we need it.
John 4:23-24 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
Think about it. When was the last time you truly worshiped God? Did your private worship prepare you for corporate worship? Did you seek to give worth to God, not thinking of yourself at all, or what you can gain from it? I challenge you to truly seek God in Spirit and truth, to find Him in your quiet time, and to fully surrender to His Lordship.
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