The Person of Worship

Introduction

On a scale of 1-10, how well do you worship?

Notice I didn’t say, “How good is our worship?” How do you like worship today?

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” - AW Tozer

Worship is not just about music. It is about your attitudes, affections, and actions in relation to God.

― A.W. Tozer

2 Truths for the Encounter series:

2 fundamental truths about worship:

Everyone worships

Romans 1:25 ESV

because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

Your children worship

Your neighbors worship

Your spouse worships

The most vile criminal in our prison system worships

We were made by God to worship

The question is not, ”Will you worship?” but “HOW and WHO will you worship?” Will you do it poorly or will you do it well?

Worship lasts forever

Revelation 5:11–14 ESV

Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

rev 5:

prayer disappears

evangelism disappears

missions disappears

confession disappears

healing disappears

marriage disappears

“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't. Worship is ultimate.” - John Piper

The question is not “Will I worship?” The question is “Who and how will I worship?”

“I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven.” - AW Tozer

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” - AW Tozer

With these two truths in mind:

Psalm 150 ESV

Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!

The picture that we get from is that God alone is worth our worship.

God is worthy of our worship. (1-2)

The Person of our Worship

“Praise the LORD,” lit, Hallelujah

Hallelujah bookends this Psalm

This word of praise is the only word that is the same in all languages

13 times hallal is used.

Worship God because of who he is.

personal name of God used

“in sanctuary,” lit, holiness

The simple fact that God exists is reason enough to worship Him. The person of God is worthy of worship - he has nothing to prove.

ILLUST - Are there more starts or sand on all beaches? there are multiple stars for every grain of sand on all the beaches of the world.

There are also more molecules in ten drops of water than there are stars in the sky

There are also many more atoms in one grain of sand than there are stars in the sky.

The feeling your head has now is called AWE. It’s the feeling we get when faced with something that is beyond our minds comprehension.

Eternity past - eternity future.

God is all-knowing, all-powerful, everywhere present. We examine God as if he is the one who can even be studied.

The simple fact that God exists is reason enough to worship Him. The person of God is worthy of worship - he has nothing to prove.

Worship God because of what he has done.

“mighty deeds,” lit, “mighty strength” speaks of his power

“Excellent greatness” lit, outstanding eminence

Almost always used of God

Another time used of a cedar tree

Deuteronomy 3:24 ESV

‘O Lord God, you have only begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand. For what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as yours?

Imagine the miracles: (We have to use our imagination - our experiential side of our mind cannot do)

parting of the Red Sea

bread from heaven

walk on water

heal the sick

cast out demons

rise from the dead

Worship God because he calls us to.

You are to worship God if for no other reason than your Creator calls you to.

13 times we are told to “Praise the LORD” and the majority of those times it is in the imperative - listed as a command.

v.6 - it is in the Piel form - a form of intensity - PRAISE the Lord

While he has every right to, God does not just command us to worship him - he engenders us to worship him.

God could easily make us all worship him.

ILLUST - I could threaten my children, take away their possessions, make life difficult for them as a way to demand they love me. Or, I could woo their heart to mine. Cause them to see me with awe (correct them when needed, but this shows they are mine).

This is the way God calls us to worship. I wonder how many Christians have a fear-based worship rather than a love-grounded worship.

ILLUST - Why did God put the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden? Was it to taunt Adam and Eve? Was it to tempt them? Was it to cause them to fall? Was it to make a way to punish them?

Instead of commanding worship, God engenders worship.

To think we could ever refuse to use our breath in anything other than praise when we do nothing to manufacture or cause that breath is ridiculous.

How much of my (your) breath is spent in praising and worshiping the one who gives me breath, and how much is spent in other useless ways.

1 Very important truth:

Your view of God affects your worship of God.

If you don’t rightly view God, you will have a hard time rightly worshiping God.

Take time to know God rightly. Let your mind wander to AWE. Remember his acts of goodness to you.

Worship that is worthy of God. (3-6)

The Expression of our worship

we were made to worship

Worship God with everything you have.

Notice the list:

trumpet (notice it’s number one)

lute, harp

tambourine, dance

strings, pipe

cymbals (2x)

Everything that has breath.

Worship God with joy.

You can’t worship with everything and not have it give you joy.

this is the missional aspect of worship

why would anyone want to worship our God if it doesn’t seem we like it.

ILLUST - If you see a BK employee eating at McD’s you will probably not eat at BK. If all the employees at the Ford dealer are driving Chevy’s you’re not likely going to buy a Ford.

So for you, the one among your unsaved coworkers, family members, neighbors, don’t care to worship God or worship him well, why would they want to?

Worship God with every breath.

Lit, “all breath” praise the Lord.

V6 - The call to praise the LORD falls to those who have breath - the breath you are expected to use to praise God is the very breath you were graciously given by him.

To think we could ever refuse to use our breath in anything other than praise when we do nothing to manufacture or cause that breath is ridiculous.

we are joining a chorus in our worship.

How much of my (your) breath is spent in praising and worshiping the one who gives me breath, and how much is spent in other useless ways.

Conclusion

AW Tozer said:

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

But what if the thought of God is not really even on our mind?

(We talked about how distraction can be deadly for our lives of worship)

The most fundamental thing about you is that you are a worshipper - so the most fundamental thing you can do is worship.

And the question is not IF but WHO

And the action of response is SURRENDER (You cannot rightly worship without surrender - right worship demands surrender.

Pray

With everything that breathes