Engaging Worship

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Main Idea

Every aspect of our lives is an act of intentional worship

What comes to mind when I say the word Worship?

• A genre of Christian music?

• The singing part of Sunday mornings?

• A moment of praise during a certain circumstance?

• Is it a posture, like when you physically bow down in prayer?

Outline & Passages

I – What is True Worship?

II – It is the Air of Heaven

III – It is the Posture of Man

IV – It is a Way of Life

V – It is Our Corporate Identity

Romans 12:1 ESV

¹ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

I – What is true worship?

The term worship is mentioned 79 times in the New Testament in the ESV translation & 188 times in the entire Bible and is used in a variety of ways, so before we get in too deep, let’s be sure we are on the same page with its meaning. The point I want to drive home today is that every aspect of our lives is an act of intentional worship, so I want to begin by making sure that we see this in scripture and collectively agree with the definition of the term.

The Lexham Theological Wordbook describes worship as,

“ the reverential response of creation to the all-encompassing magnificence of God,”

and then goes on to say,

“In the OT, worship encompassed a variety of activities. Bringing forward an offering to God was an act of worship. Bowing down in the presence of God was an outward display of an inner attitude of reverence before the Creator. The verb used there could indicate that a person was “lifting up” or “exalting” God with praise. Together, these last two terms provide a rich image of worship: People both bow before God and lift him up in praise and wonder.”

The New Bible Dictionary defines worship this way:

“‘worth-ship’: originally referred to the action of human beings in expressing homage to God because he is worthy of it. It covers such activities as adoration, thanksgiving, prayers of all kinds, the offering of sacrifice and the making of vows.”

But, I think the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary describes it the best way. They simply state that:

“Worship is the human response to the self-revelation of the triune God.”

And may I add to it that it is the only appropriate and correct human response to the self-revelation of the triune God.

Hopefully, you can see why it is important to take the time to hammer this out. If you came in this morning thinking that worship is simply Sunday morning singing, then today should broaden your thinking to encompass all that scripture reveals worship to be. If we limit ourselves to singing only, then we will miss out on so much of the depth and richness that worship brings to us and the honor it brings to God.

So, with that established, let’s move on to what scripture actually shows us about the nature of worship.

II – It is the Air of Heaven

The Angelic host worships God continually:

Isaiah 6:2–3 ESV

² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”

Revelation 4:8 ESV

⁸ And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

and to put it very plainly:

Hebrews 1:6 ESV

⁶ And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”

The glorified saints worship God continually:

Revelation 4:10–11 ESV

¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

¹¹ “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

And there are so many more places in scripture that describe the worship that is taking place before God’s throne. It is what the heavenly hosts are doing. It is what the saints of old are doing. And, it is what we will be doing when we get there. The very air of heaven is the worship of the God who created it because he is worthy of it. Isn’t that magnificent to think about?!

Even the fullness of creation declares His glory and the skies proclaim his handiwork as Psalm 19 says. His glory is woven into all that we see and invokes praise and adoration. The worship of the Almighty God of creation is the air of heaven and the fabric that knits together the physical creation. It is yet another way of saying that from Him, through Him, and to Him are all things. That is the foundation for the next point.

III – It is the Posture of Man

For all his quirks, Loki got a few things right. In the first Avengers movie, he tells a crowd of terrified citizens that being ruled over is humanity’s natural state and that it is “the unspoken truth of humanity, that you crave subjugation.” Now, that was not meant to be a truth that we are to accept. That was just his way of ruling over them, but there is an element of truth to it, isn’t there?

If the heavens and its population worship God and declare his glory, it makes perfect sense that we were actually designed to do the same. And, as it turns out, that is exactly what scripture tells us. In Isaiah 43, God is comforting His people with promises of His provision, salvation, and love. That is true for those in the gathered assembly and those who are far off, saying:

Isaiah 43:7 ESV

⁷ everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

Why were we created? Was it so that God could have people to love (as is commonly said today)? No, that is a man-centered way of thinking. We were created for God’s glory. He is glorious and the more we see it, the more we want to worship Him in that new understanding.

That is what Eden was like. God would walk freely in His presence and worship Him in person. Could you even imagine?!

But sadly, sin entered into the world through Adam and the craftiness of the serpent and our worship became broken and misguided. The worship and honor that is due to God have been twisted and adulterated.

That is why, for example, we see the first four commandments pertaining to God Himself:

1.     No other Gods

2.     No graven image

3.     Don’t take God’s name in vain

4.     Honoring the Sabbath, because it is a day to the Lord

Why did he design it that way? Because in our sinful state, we are prone to turning to other Gods (then it was literal gods. Today, it could be the idol of money, sex, or power). We want to latch onto something tangible and that will allow us our sinful pleasures. We too easily use our tongue to promote sin and curse God by using his name and titles in unworthy manners, and we take what is honoring to him and make it about us.

We still worship, because that is the way we are made. Only now, we worship anything or anyone but the one who deserves it.

In the book of Romans, Paul was exalting ancient Israel because they had all of the covenantal blessings:

Romans 9:4 ESV

⁴ They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises.

And yet, what do we see throughout the Old Testament and New Testaments?

• We see Isaiah chastising people, pointing out the absurdity of their idol worship; how they take a log of wood and use part of it to make a fire that cooks their food and craft an idol with the other half and bow down to it.

• We see over and over again how Israel abandoned their rightful worship of God and turned to the gods of the nations around them.

• We see the Greek world in the book of Acts, and how there was widespread worship of the Greek Gods like Artemis in Ephesus, how the crowds in Lystra tried to worship Paul and Barnabas after witnessing a miracle, or how Paul walked among an entire city filled with idols in Athens and took one idol made to an unknown god and turned it into a gospel proclamation in his famous sermon in the Areopagus.

• We also see this in the future. In the book of Revelation, we see everyone being commanded to worship the Beast.

The truth of scripture is that we were created to be worshipers.

And lest we be too hard on the Israelites or Greeks, we will do well to remember that in our own lives. It was true for them, and it is true for you.

You were created to be a worshiper. The million-dollar question is: what or who are you worshipping?

Think outside of Sunday mornings. What do you spend your money on? How do you entertain yourself? What is the first thing (or person) you think of when you wake up? When you go to bed? What type of music dominates your ears? What shows and movies fill your eyes? What thoughts run through your mind? What do you take delight in? What do you hold as sacred? Who do you hold sacred? What can’t you live without? Where does your security come from? Do you open your bank account statement or stock portfolio more often than the Bible?

Was Jesus anywhere in your answers?

I hope you are beginning to see how every aspect of our lives is an act of intentional worship, whether it is for God or something else. Because the truth of scripture is… worship is a way of life.

IV – It is a Way of Life

In the Old Testament, most of their lives were centered around Jerusalem and the sacrificial system. We see this all the way up through the book of Acts where Jews from the surrounding regions traveled to Jerusalem for the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost to offer sacrifices during the harvest festival. During that festival, they had to worship and sacrifice (which is an act of worship) there in the holy city.

Now, contrast that with what Jesus told the woman at the well in John 4:

John 4:21–24 ESV

²¹ Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. ²² You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. ²³ But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. ²⁴ God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Identity

Notice again how people are defined by who they are and by what they are doing. The worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. They have an identity of being worshipers… that is who they are, and they will worship.. which is what they are doing. Correctly, I might add, because they are worshiping God in the right way. Were they just singing? No, of course not. It filled every aspect of their lives because it was their identity. They were worshipers.

We see this throughout the scriptures as well. Consider Lydia for example. Lydia is a woman we find in Acts 16 when Paul traveled to Philippi. She was an important woman in that community and a seller of purple fabrics, and she was also a worshiper of God. And as Paul spoke, the Lord opened her heart to respond to the gospel message. Again, we see worship as an identity of the individual.

Far be it from us to suppress our identity in a world that is hostile to God. We should never hide who we are just because it might offend or upset someone else, especially in a time like this where there is so much confusion around this topic, whether it be gender, sexual orientation, career, or otherwise. Our identity was meant to be just that… an outward display of an inward reality. You are a worshiper of Jesus. Let that light shine!

But, that is not all scripture has to say. It also shows us how to worship in the different areas of our personal lives, and I want to highlight three of them today. They are:

1.     Adoration

2.     Submission

3.     Enjoyment

Adoration

Adoration comes in the ways we would normally associate with worship, namely, singing and declaring. We do that on Sunday mornings, we do that in the shower, on the car ride to and from work, or any other time we praise God for who he is. When your words of praise are paired with melody, that is singing, and when you are simply lifting your voice to heaven, then you are declaring His glory.

The Psalms were Israel’s hymn book and are filled with a wide array of worship – from God’s graciousness, to His protection, His sovereignty, and His just wrath against sin. There are psalms of thanksgiving, lament, praise, and trust. They are incredible guides for us to express our adoration of our great God. We can sing them, or use them to declare His great worth. If you want to explore these further, I would suggest Ps 29, 66, 81, 96, 100, and Ps 103.

Submission

We also worship God by submitting to His authority. During Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, Satan asked for Jesus’ worship and in return, he would give Jesus the authority of the nations to him. In reply, Jesus quoted from Deut. 6:13, saying:

Luke 4:8 ESV

⁸ And Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’ ”

Worship and serving are directly linked here. A servant is in submission to his or her master and in our relationship with God, it is a beautiful act of worship to submit to Him.

We also see this in our submission to certain spiritual disciplines such as prayer and fasting:

Acts 13:2 ESV

² While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

In fact, our submission and obedience should be so encompassing, that our lives should reflect a type of sacrifice like what we see in the Old Testament. But, instead of submitting to God’s authority and obeying the ritualistic commands of blood sacrifice that died on the alter, we are to offer our very bodies – not as blood sacrifices that die – but as living sacrifices:

Romans 12:1 ESV

¹ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Romans 12 really shows just how far-reaching our worship really is. In all aspects of life and everything we do with our bodies, it should be considered a willing sacrifice – the sacrifice of selfish desires, immorality, power in a job, security in a big bank account or gated community, our comfort zones for the sake of going to those who are lost – all of those things are living sacrifices done with our physical bodies. We offer up our very selves as an act of submissive, obedient, spiritual worship. And it is worth it, because the outcome of such a sacrifice is holy, pleasing, and accepted by our Heavenly Father.

Enjoyment

We also worship God by enjoying the good things He has given us. When we appreciate Him as we look at a beautiful piece of art, stand in amazement at the glory of a sunrise, be filled with joy at the sound of a baby’s giggle, or delight in a perfectly crafted cheeseburger. God made this world as a place for us to enjoy and for us to discover more about him at every turn and it is actually a worshipful thing to acknowledge Him in those moments. Consider what Paul says:

1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV

³¹ So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Colossians 3:17 ESV

¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

That is at the center of the title of our core value: Engaging Worship. We don’t just see worship as an individual act. We engage in worship in everything we do. And we do this, not only as individual believers, but corporately as well.

V – It is Our Corporate Identity

As we gather on Sundays, we engage in worshiping together as a church body by:

• singing

• giving our tithes and offerings

• through the preaching

• and in participating in the sacraments

The entire service of the gathered assembly is an act of worship.

Colossians 3:16 ESV

¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Hebrews 10:25 ESV

²⁵ not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Conclusion

So don’t fall into the shallow trap that engaging in worship means that you sing 4 or 5 songs one day a week. Rather, marvel at how the host of heaven is worshiping God right now… of how the whole of creation declares His glory, and how you and I get to join in on that chorus, praising God in our adoration, submission, and enjoying His good pleasures.