The Heart of Worship

Oh that they had such a heart as this always, to fear me and to keep all my commandments, that it might go well with them and with their descendants forever!

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 ESV

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Your heart can only worship one God (4)

Deuteronomy 6:4 ESV

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

English Standard Version

Or The LORD our God is one LORD; or The LORD is our God, the LORD is one; or The LORD is our God, the LORD alone

You cannot worship God half-way - it’s all or nothing.

The world around the Israelites (both Egypt and Canaan) was built on a culture of many gods - a different god for different areas of life.

This statement - repeated daily by the Jews - was a reminder that there is only ONE God.

We’re no different - we live in a world built on a culture that offers many gods to run your life.

I fear we’re no different - we live in a world built on a culture that offers many gods to run your life - each god offering to run a different part of our lives.

What do we sacrifice to for:

peace

joy

health

These are our functional idols - they might not be our confessional idols, but we these are the gods we turn to instead of God.

If it were gone from your life you would have no ________ .

ILLUST - Brooks would not let go of his c

Jesus said:

Matthew 6:24 ESV

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

You cannot cling to Christ while holding your idol.

ILLUST - Brooks would not let go of his crackers when he fell off the couch - broke his elbow. His love for his crackers caused him a good deal of pain.

**Sometimes we are the same way - we are so enamored with the things that bring us pleasure that when we start to fall we haven’t the good sense to let go of it and hold to that which will actually save - and it often causes us a good deal of pain.

** What if, in every area of our lives, we had only one Master - a Jesus-first life.

We worship individually together. (4-5)

Hear, O Israel: . . . our God. (addressing the whole group)

You shall . . . (singular pronouns)

Worship is less like band and more like soccer.

ILLUST - If I stopped playing in band it would have little affect, if I stopped moving in soccer, the whole team suffered.

Worship is an individual practice that happens in a team setting.

ILLUST - Andre Messi is perhaps the greatest soccer player but he cannot win the game alone.

There will come a time when you will stand before God alone. - let that sink in. You will stand before God alone and answer re: the way you worshipped here on earth.

(GOSPEL) - When you stand before the God of all Creation, are you confident that your worship now will be accepted?

You cannot come to God except through Jesus.

**You alone are responsible for your worship; however, your worship does not affect you alone.

All the commandments for Israel were the same - they had the same way to come to God - just as we have one way to come to God through Jesus.

Two truths flow from this concept:

idols in your life / sin in your heart can have radical implications for people in your life.

Ex. - Sin of Achan affected the whole camp.

If you do not have a Jesus-first marriage, you are either bringing an idol into your home or you are making your spouse an idol - which is a weight they cannot bear.

You can help others worship.

this is discipleship

This is what we mean when we say that we walk together for the next step in a Jesus-first life.

A heart of worship requires your complete surrender. (5-6)

English Standard Version Chapter 6

5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

Your hands will not release the idols of your life until your heart is set to surrender.

This verse is saying we are to love God from our ‘heart’ - the seat of our lives.

We are to love God with all of our being - heart , soul, and mind.

There is not to be any part of our lives that is not surrendered to God.

Matthew 22:36–38 ESV

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.

Worship requires surrender.

This is the greatest thing you can do for God

Matthew 22:36–38 ESV

Perhaps the greatest reason for a lack of surrender is a fear of losing control.

Do you have an area of your life where control is an issue? It’s most likely that area of your life that brings you the greatest anxiety.

Money

Job

Marriage

Children

Idols of control are nothing more than placebos for peace - they don’t last because they are not real. The only remedy is surrender.

ILLUST - Jesus Take the Wheel!

Control is an empty illusion - what do you actually control?

Money, Job, Marriage, Children, etc.

Your hands will not release the idols of your life until your heart is set to surrender.

Don’t miss this point - you are to LOVE the Lord your God not simply obey (to love God is to obey)

Unless men see a beauty and delight in the worship of God, they will not do it willingly.” - John Owen

You are able to surrender when you either feel completely overpowered or perfectly protected.

I want you to fall so in love with Jesus by fully grasping what he can do in every area of your life and how he wants to do it so you can have life that you are joyfully willing to surrender.

**The only thing you can control is your surrender of control! - your worship.

Control is an empty illusion

The world needs true worshippers. (7)

English Standard Version Chapter 6

7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise

Your children need to see you worship - not hear you sing worship songs - they need to see you operate every area of your life in complete surrender to Jesus.

Doing anything less is to pass down a family idol .

How many of you would hand your son or daughter an idol and tell them to run to it and ask it to help them when things get tough.

You do that very thing if Jesus is not first in everything.

More than this, the world longs to see true worshippers - believe me.

True worship is attractive

Perhaps the reason some mock and do not care to know about the God you worship is because they do not see you worship your God - not functionally anyway -

They don’t need to hear about your worship, they need to see how you worship.

the Jesus mugs helps, but they need to see Jesus

when you ‘sit in your house,’

when you ‘walk by the way,’

-when you ‘walk by the way,’

when you ‘lie down,’

when you ‘rise,’

when you get passed over for the promotion

car needs to be repaired and you don’t have money

etc

*This is so important because this are the areas of life they share with you and your worship of God in that moment allows them to see Jesus at work and gives them an opportunity to compare their idol to the risen Jesus Christ.

Your worship is every day in every way. (8-9)

English Standard Version Chapter 6

8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

I always put on a watch, and unlike some of my boys, I always wear my pants outside the house.

‘sign on your hand’ and ‘frontlets’ (phylacteries) were meant to be reminders but quickly became legalism as items worn because they were commanded and not for devotion.

If your heart is one of worship it will beat throughout your everyday

“If you’re not worshiping God on Monday the way you did the day before, perhaps you’re not worshiping him at all.” - A.W. Tozer

*maybe you need a daily reminder of your object of worship

This is why a daily time in Scripture is important - it’s not a ritual, it’s not a religious habit - it’s reminder, a sign on your hand, to turn your gaze and your worship from any idol and back to Jesus.

Conclusion

Unless men see a beauty and delight in the worship of God, they will not do it willingly.” - John Owen

Too many of us believe the lie that if we surrender we lose (control), when in reality, surrender is the only way to truly gain (peace).

If the heart of worship is total surrender the action, then, must be release.

You can’t hold on to Jesus while gripping an idol.

I’ve had to confess that I needed to release my belief that I could control the church.

“Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling”

- Rock of Ages

Release idols of sin

Release idols of control

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