How To Worship… God’s Way
Psalms 66:13-20
Scripture views the glorifying of God as a sixfold activity: praising God for all that he is and all his achievements; thanking him for his gifts and his goodness to us; asking him to meet our own and others' needs; offering him our gifts, our service, and ourselves; learning of him from his word, read and preached, and obeying his voice; telling others of his worth, both by public confession and testimony to what he has done for us. Thus we might say that the basic formulas of worship are these: "Lord, you are wonderful"; "Thank you, Lord"; "Please Lord"; "Take this, Lord"; "Yes, Lord"; "Listen everybody!"
This then is worship in its largest sense: petition as well as praise, preaching as well as prayer, hearing as well as speaking, actions as well as words, obeying as well as offering, loving people as well as loving God. However, the primary acts of worship are those which focus on God directly -- and we must not imagine that work for God in the world is a substitute for direct fellowship with him in praise and prayer and devotion. (James Packer, Your Father Loves You, Harold Shaw Publishers, July 1986, P. 15.)
Worship is essential in the life of a Christian. In the previous verses of this chapter the psalmist has encouraged God’s people, to bless the Lord. Beginning in verse 13 he begins to share his mindset as he goes to worship. These verses reveal to us what is necessary to participate in genuine worship.
A.W Tozer said - Worship is to feel in your heart and express in some appropriate manner a humbling but delightful sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder and overpowering love in the presence of that most ancient Mystery, that Majesty which philosophers call the First Cause, but which we call Our Father Who is in Heaven.
Often we are guilty of allowing others to influence our worship. Some hold back because of others. Out of fear of being judged by others some may be hesitant to bow their head or lift their hands. Some may be led to give a testimony of praise but for fear they remain silent. On the other hand... Some add to their worship. There are some people who are not truly worshiping the Lord. They are putting on a show. They want to seem super spiritual. They want the attention to be placed upon themselves rather than the Lord.
Deeply immersed in meditation during a church service, Italian poet Dante Alighieri failed to kneel at the appropriate moment. His enemies hurried to the bishop and demanded that Dante be punished for his sacrilege.Dante defended himself by saying, "If those who accuse me had had their eyes and minds on God, as I had, they too would have failed to notice events around them, and they most certainly would not have noticed what I was doing." - (Today in the Word, March 10, 1993.)
When you hear the gripes of the malcontents in the church they are almost always complaining about other people in the assembly. The heart of their problem is that they have lost sight of why we gather together. Instead of focusing on worshiping the Lord, they are focused on the actions of others.
Worship is an individual action. We can’t worship together unless we individually possess a heart of worship. One of the reasons that worship is an individual action is the fact that we have all had individual experiences with God throughout the week. We all have different reasons to praise the Lord. Worship cannot be generic. Not everyone is the same... Some shout, some cry, some close their eyes, some lift their hands, some bow their heads. There is no universal format to worship.The issue at hand is not the method of worship but rather the motive.
The majority of the people under the sound of my voice know how to "do church". We put on our nicest clothes. most walk in the door with a smile on their face, we shake each others hands, hug each others necks, sing our songs, give a tithe, pray our prayers, listen to the sermon, stand through the invitation and go home. Friends we can do all of these things and still miss out on true worship.
I want to take some time and walk through this Psalm and see "How To Worship... God's Way". The first truth that I would like to consider is:
I. Worshipping God’s Way Requires Attendance - v13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings:
The Psalmist proclaims…. “I will go into thy house”. There are many who are quick to proclaim that they can "worship the Lord anywhere". This is true... and it is a fact that we should not wait until Sunday morning at 11 o'clock to worship our God. But there are many who make this proclamation is an effort to justify their lack (or complete neglect) of corporate worship. Throughout the book of acts we see where the early church regularly met together for the purpose of worshipping the Lord.
We also see that corporate worship was important to Jesus. Jesus visited the temple when he was 12 – Luke 2:42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. - Mary & Joseph went to the temple every year - Luke 2:41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. - Two times during His ministry Jesus went into the temple and cleaned house. - There are several other occasions where we see Jesus worshipping.
It is apparent that going to the Temple was important to Jesus. Better yet, spending time with His Father was important to Him. And is should be to us as well.
David said in - Psalms 122:1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. - Is that true in your life? Or would you have to say “I was grumbling when they said to me, Let us go into the house of the Lord”
It is not enough to simply come into God’s House... we must come into His house with the proper mindset! The psalmist did not simply go to the Lord’s house. He prepared his heart & mind before going there. He did not just go because it was a habit or because there was nothing else better to do. He purposed in his heart that he was going to God’s house.
- The first step in worshipping God's was to go to the House of The Lord.Let's move a little further and see what to do when you get there... Notice:
II. Worshipping God’s Way Requires Sacrifice - v15 I will offer unto thee burnt sacrifices of fatlings, with the incense of rams; I will offer bullocks with goats. Selah.
Notice the phrase “I will offer burnt-sacrifices”. Burnt offerings were sacrifices completely consumed on the altar. These offerings were presented for the honor of God. Not one ounce of this offering that was kept for the one who made the sacrifice. The burnt offering mentioned by the Psalmist was from a "fatling". This means that this sacrifice did not come from a useless animal.This was an offering of the best fed and healthiest animal. This was the animal that the individual would loved to have had on his own dinner table.
Our God desires, deserves and demands the very best that we have. He desires, deserves and demands the very best of your time. He desires, deserves and demands the very best of your talents and He desires, deserves and demands the very best of your treasure. When it comes to our worship of Him... He deserves the very best that we have to offer!
You have heard it said that "half-hearted obedience is complete disobedience". Likewise, half-hearted worship is not worship at all!
Let’s take a moment and define the term “Worship”
1. In the Hebrew it is {H} (shâchâh - shaw-khaw') - to depress, that is, prostrate: - bow (self) down, crouch, fall down (flat), humbly beseech, do (make) obeisance, do reverence
2. In the Greek it is {G} (latreuō -lat-ryoo'-o) - to minister to God, that is, render religious honor.
3. In Modern English it is - The reverent love and devotion accorded a deity. (GOD)
When we see God for who He is, and consider what we really are this should prompt us to bow before Him and worship His Holy name. We should humbly beseech God in honor and reverence because of devotion & love! If we are going to worship God's way, we must offer God all that we have and all that we are.
- As we move further in the text we also see that:
III. Worshipping God’s Way Requires Praise -v16 Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.17 I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.
Praise means "To express approval or admiration."
1. We praise God through songs. Psalms 69:30a I will praise the name of God with a song,
2. We praise him with our lips –30b and will magnify him with thanksgiving.
3. We must praise him with all of our heart - Psalms 86:12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul, l I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.
There are countless reasons for us to praise God: The creation of the World, The gift of Life, The sacrifice of His Son, Our Salvation, Our personal relationship with Him, Eternal life and a home in Heaven.
Then there are the specific reasons that are special to us as individuals. We have homes to live in, Food on our table, Clothes on our back, Shoes on our feet, Our health, Our family, Our friends ...on and on it goes. There are countless reasons for each of God's children to praise His holy name and praising Him is part of His plan for worship.
If we are going to Worship…God’s Way” it requires “Attendance” “Sacrifice” & “Praise”. But if we are going to worship God's way, we must also examine our standing with the Lord. Notice:
IV. Worshipping God’s Way Requires Examination - v18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:
In essence, the Psalmist is saying - “I can’t expect God to answer my prayer, if I delight in iniquity. - When you indulge in sinfulness, this creates a barrier between you and God. Before you can experience true worship that barrier must be removed. If you want to truly experience WORSHIP, EXAMINE YOURSELF. If you examine yourself and find that there is unrepentant sin in your life you must address that sin. Once that sin is addressed then you can worship... God's way!
There is much debate concerning worship today. There seems to be a generational divide and this brings a certain amount of conflict. This has been labeled as "worship wars". Most of the contention comes over what "types" of songs are sung in a given church service. Friends. there is much more involved in worship than simply singing a hymn or lifting our voices together in a praise chorus.
God has given us all that we need to know about worshipping Him on the pages of His Holy Word. And worshipping Him His way requires Attendance, Sacrifice, Praise and Examination.
May we see Him for Who He is and offer Him the worship that He desires, deserves and demands and may we worship Him... HIS WAY!
