Real Worship
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23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
Big Idea: Every believer is a worshipper—and a believer lives to worship.
Worship is more than a song—it is more than watching others sing—it is more than a church service.
It is being in the presence of God continually—a natural response to the love of God when He (and as He) lavishly pours out His grace upon person of faith—the person who believes in His Son, Jesus Christ.
One of the great symbols of worship is the upraised hands.
1 Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
2 Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the Lord!
Illustration: A person needs volunteers—those volunteers are recognized by their upraised hand.
Draw attention to the banner with the worshippers in the background.
Offer God Your Whole Self.
Offer God Your Whole Self.
Worship is about surrendering your whole life to God.
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Worship is setting aside your preferences and focusing on what God wants in your life.
Selfishness hinders real worship. It is not about you!
Worship is about you presenting to God everything—your whole life—your plans, your hopes, and your dreams.
It is this kind of surrender that God considers holy and pleasing.
A surrendered life is a life open to true and proper worship.
Illustration: Not only does the upraised hand symbolize surrender, it also demonstrates something else we need to offer God.
Offer God Your Praise.
Offer God Your Praise.
Praise is a sign that you ascribe genuine worth and appreciation for something or someone.
15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.
Here is another act of worship—of spiritual sacrifice which pleases God: praising Him and thanking Him for all that he is and all that he has done.
As we choose to think about God and to recall His blessings—and then thank him for these blessings—we are keeping ourselves properly aligned with reality—with what is real.
When we offer God our praise, we are, by faith, asserting the truth that we are blessed beyond anything that we could ever deserve!
In spite of our rebellion against God, which deserves his wrath, he has forgiven us, adopted us into His family, guaranteed us eternal life, given us a significant role in his purpose, indwelt us with His Spirit, provided us with Christian friends—the list goes on and on.
But, praise in not merely an event (like a worship service)—it is a way of life. We continually offer our praise.
Illustration: as we continue to use the symbol of the upraised hand—we see that a raised and can indicate an offering of something to someone.
Offer God Your Material Resources.
Offer God Your Material Resources.
Worship is not just surrendering spiritually, it can also include the giving of what we have for His glory.
16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
In this passage from Hebrews, we see another way in which we can worship God: sharing.
“Sharing” means to the generous giving of our material resources to God’s people and God’s work.
When we give—whether it is our tithe and offerings, or to the support of our missionaries—or to help others in need—we need, as believers in Christ, to do this giving in the attitude of worship.
Illustration: Finally, another way in which upraised has symbolize worship is a hand that extends help others.
Offer God Your Service to Others.
Offer God Your Service to Others.
In this same passes from Hebrews we see that the sacrifice of worship involves doing good.
Doing good are those actions of loving-service to other people as representatives of Christ.
When we relate to the people God brings into our lives with Christ-like, sacrificial love, God regards this as an expression of our worship to Him.
2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Conclusion
Worship is more than a song—and it is definitely not entertainment.
Worship is about continuously living in the presence of God—where are words, our actions, and our attitudes display a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Next Week
Do you know that God has given you a mission—a purpose for living? He wants you to be a part of what He is doing in this world.