Worship That's Pleasing To God

Worship That’s Pleasing To God

3/24/2003 Psalm 95:1-11 Colossians 3:15-17 Psalm 96

One day two guys, Carlton and Andrew wanted to have a special worship service for the Lord. They could not agree on what exactly they should do in the order of service. Andrew said,” why don’t we worship God in the way God has told us to worship Him in the past.” Carlton said, “man that’s getting jake. It really does not take all of that, and I’ve got something new I want us to do for worship.”

Andrew said, “look man, I’m sticking to what I know God has told us to do. If you want to do something different, you are on your own. I’m out of here.” As he left Carlton yelled at him and said, “man you just trippin. There’s more than one way to worship God. I guarantee you God is going to like what I got in mind.”

Well they both had their worship service. After the service was over, God made it perfectly clear he was pleased with Andrew’s worship service and was totally dissatisfied with Carlton’s. God refused to accept Calrton’s new idea of church.

God told Carlton,” now go and do the right thing and your worship will be pleasing to me.” Instead of doing it, Carlton got so jealous that Andrew’s worship had been accepted and his wasn’t, that he took matters into his own hands. He jumped Andrew when Andrew was off guard and beat him to death. Andrew’s blood spilled all over the ground where he lay.

Carlton committed this vicious murder and did not feel bad about it in the least bit. He did it a l because He didn’t like the fact that Andrew was willing to do what God told him to do in worship. Now you might say, Pastor Rick, “I just can’t believe somebody would do that over worship.” Well read Genesis chapter four and put in the names Cain for Carlton and Abel for Andrew and you will see it’s all true.

There is something about the worship of God that we almost feel entitled to the right “to do it our own way.” How many times have you heard people say, “well I can stay home and worship God,” or “I don’t believe in doing that to worship God”, or “I don’t think it takes all that to worship God.”

Well at the heart of each of these statements is the attitude of Cain, “I will worship God in the way I please.” There’s nothing wrong with worshipping God in the way we please, so long as the way we please is in accordance with what the word of God tells us to do. There is a difference between our preference and God’s commandments. You may want to sing two songs, somebody else 8 songs. Well the word of God says to sing. Your preference will only determine which church you go to or which service based on how much singing is done. Neither person is right or wrong because both are singing.

We all want our worship to be pleasing to God, otherwise we would not worship the Lord at all. Therefore it is of utmost importance that we worship in the way God intended. No sooner than the church got started, there were some people who became so independent, that the first thing they did was stop coming together with other believers for worship. They did not understand the concept that we are the body of Christ.

The word of God deals specifically with the temptation to just go at alone by yourself with sister pillow or brother Lake Erie and a fishing pole. We are told in Hebrews 10:23-25 23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

God expects us to come to church for worship. When we read the book of Psalms, we are called numerous times to come together to worship the Lord. If we are in a living relationship to Christ, we know that to enter God’s presence, our lives need to be submitted to God. Satan will do all that He can to have us come to church with the wrong attitude.

There are probably more arguments and headaches on the way to church than anywhere else.. Why, because the devil wants you to come to worship angry, hurt, mad, resentful and full of unforgiveness. When these things are in our hearts, we may come together, but we will not worship.