KNOWING THE LORD WE WORSHIP

INTRODUCTION

SERMON: KNOWING THE LORD WE WORSHIP

December 2nd, 2018

When people lose the capacity of amazement and wonder they lost the capacity to worship. By losing the capacity of amazement and wonder I do not mean that you cannot be amazed and cannot stand in wonder of something. To be a living being is to have the capacity to stand in wonder or be amazed.

What I mean by the loss of this capacity to stand in wonder and to be amazed is to have been robbed of the sight of the One you were created to be amazed by and to stand in awe of!

To worship is to stand in awe of or be amazed by something or someone. By worship I do not want you to confuse the activity we call worship with the heart of what Worship REALLY IS! A DEFINITION OF WORSHIP THAT FITS THE WHOLE OF THE MESSAGE OF THE BIBLE IS THIS – WORD – SEEING GOD!!!!!!!!

Oh yes, think about that and hear what I am saying to you. NEVER AGAIN, SHOULD YOU SPEAK OF WORSHIP AS AN ACTIVITY THAT IS VOID OF THE REALITY OF SEEING GOD!

Into the chaos of moral and social and spiritual confusion what did God give Isaiah?

· He did not first give him a song

· He did not first give him a word

· GOD GAVE HIM A TRUE SIGHT OF HIS GLORY!!!!!

Isaiah 6:1

(ESV)

Isaiah 6:1 ESV

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

What is it that the church needs today? What is it that this loss of awe and amazement in the souls of so many need today

· It is not a song

· It is not a sensational feeling

· IT IS A SIGHT OF THE ONE AND TRUE GOD!

A true sight of Him by the eyes of the soul would leave us speechless. It would leave us speechless because the sight of God EXPOSES! This exposes all of our insecurities, our fears, our private failures - our sins; The sigh of God is a mirror - a true and accurate mirror - of our souls reflecting back to us all that we are.

· This was Isaiah’s response

Isaiah 6:5 ESV

And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

· This was Peters response when he saw the glory of Jesus in the miracle of filling his nets with fish:

Luke 5:8 ESV

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”

· This was John’s response –

· This was John’s response –

Revelation 1:17 ESV

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last,

(ESV)

If these responses seem odd to us or they are not our ongoing and common experience it is because we have lost the essence of true worship. it is because we have lost our

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead….

If these responses seem odd to us or they are not our ongoing and common experience it is because we have lost the essence of true worship. it is because we have lost our

We have lost true worship because our soul has lost the sight of the True God – the capacity to stand in awe and be amazed at the the true God. I say true God because all of us were made to be in awe and to stand amazed – we were created like that for God. So our inability to stand in awe of the true God only means that we will make and manufacture other gods to be in awe of!

· Some are in awe of and amazed at themselves

· Some are in awe of and amazed at their looks

· Some are in awe of and amazed at education and their minds

· Some are in awe of and amazed at their children’s accomplishments

· Some are in awe of and amazed at their future goals

AND HERE THIS CLEARLY:

WHATEVER YOU ARE IN AWE OF AND WHATEVER YOU ARE AMAZED AT IS WHAT AND WHO YOU WORSHIP

We manufacture worship because we serve a manufactured God. When the people of God constructed the golden calf the scripture tells us (at least in Acts) that they "worshipped the god of their hands."

What is it that we need most? To be awed and to stand jaw dropping awe of the Lord's spender, His worth...His glory.

· What Is It that A Person Crippled By Their Past Needs – a true sight of God

· What is it that a person struggling with insecurity needs – – a true sight of God

· What is it that a person who hounded by anxiety needs – a true sight of God

· What is it that a person who needs to experience/feel loved – a true sight of God

· What is it that a person who is overcome often by sin needs – a true sight of God

WHY IS A SIGHT OF GOD NEEDED? BECAUSE WORSHP REDIRECTS YOUR SIGHT OF YOUR SOUL FROM DISPAIR, DISGUST AND DOUBT TO THE SIGHT OF YOUR LORD

Psalm 73:16–17 ESV

But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

(ESV)

16 But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, 17 until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

The Lord has led me to this series on worship because he loves you too much to watch us give ourselves to the worship of other gods that leave us empty in this life and hopeless for the life to come.

If you will worship him with your hearing – listening to his voice god will change your life

God wants to redirect your sight today so away from those lesser gods of our own making, to himself so that he can reposition your soul to live and be overwhelmed by his nearness.

So how do we begin this journey?

Open your Bibles to

Mark 12:28–31 ESV

And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

This text informs and instructs our worship in the following ways: worship – before it is an activity it is

I. CONTEMPLATING THE BEAUTY OF GOD’S GLORY

If we are to worship truly we must think biblically about God.

As one man said: The essence of idolatry (spiritual adultery) is to have thought about God that are not worthy of Him.

We cannot exausht God here, nor for all of eternity, but we state some truth about God here that can impact the soul to see Him truly.

A. HE IS THE LORD

i. Use Lordship as a creator n sermon see

SOVEREIGN

1. THE SOVEREIGN AS CREATOR

In the beginning God spoke to NOTHING and it became SOMETHING!!!

In six days he created the world and all things in it –

Psalm 24:1 ESV

The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,

But don’t think small about this and think only of the earth!

a. Stars – you can’t number them but He made them

Number of galaxies; each galaxy contains millions to billions of stars, all contained together isolated from other galaxies.

You cant even name all the stars that you see, but God names the starts in the 2 plus trillion galaxies in space

WHY? THEY ARE WRK OF HIS HAND!

b. Made you in His image

i. Paton something

1. When you paton something that something is YOURS, exclusively

2. Now people can do knock offs and even try to steal your patton, but the reality is that there is only oe who holds the paton to the idea and that is the one whose name is on it

3. God created you and that act of creating you was his paton on you.

a. You and the devil may try to create knock offs and even try to steal the paton, BUT THE CRAZY THING ABOUT THAT IS THIS

You don’t know yourself fully – he does

You don’t know the number of hairs on head – He does

You don’t know your future – He does

You don’t know the reasons for your past – he does

You don’t know the next five minutes of your life – He does

HOW- HE’S GOT THE PATON ON YOU – HE CREATED YOU - YOU BELONG TO THE LORD

Revelation 4:11 ESV

“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.”

(ESV)

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.”

HE IS WORTHY NOT ONLY BECAUSE HE CREATED YOU AND I BUT, IN THIS MOMENT, HE IS SUSTAINING YOUR LIFE – RIGHT NOW:

Hebrews 1:3 ESV

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

- He… upholds the universe by the word of his power….”

THIS IS WHY THE PSALMIST IN RESPONSE TO THE CREATIVE POWER OF GOD SAID IN

Psalm 95:6–7 ESV

Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today, if you hear his voice,

Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! 7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

2. THE SOVEREIGN IN HOLINESS

a. He is distinct from his creation

Isaiah 6:1 ESV

In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

HIGH AND LIFTED UP

PRACTICALLY: I am not like that king – or any other king

THEOLOGICALLY: Creator –Creature distinction

See, The difficulty with this for us is that we do not like the unfamiliar.

i. We don’t like when God does not make sense to us

ii. We don’t like when God denies us what we love

iii. We don’t like when God does things we w/n do

iv. SO WE SOLVE THE PROBLEM BY MAKING GAD FAMILIAR – LIKE US

1. Thinks like us

2. Does like us

3. Loves like us

4. Etc

So we think of God and begin to see God in ways that are familiar and comfortable to us BUT WHEN WE DO THAT WE LOSE THE TRUE GOD BECAUSE HE IS NOT LIKE US – NOR ANTYHING THAT WE CAN CONCEIVE –

Isaiah 55:8 ESV

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.

· God has always been and you once were not

Psalm 90:2 ESV

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

· God never changes but you always change

Numbers 23:19 ESV

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

(ESV) 19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

· God knows all things perfectly you don’t know all things and what you know you don’t know perfectly

Isaiah 46:9–10 ESV

remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

(ESV)

B. HE IS ONE IN THREE

B. HE IS ONE IN THREE

Explanation

1. What we don’t mean

a. Three Gods (Tri-theism)

b. Manifestations (Modalism)

i. God manifested himself in three ways

1. Ceased to be God to become the Son

2. Ceased to be the Son to become the Spirit

2. What we mean?

a. One God in essence; three in personality

WE MAY NOT FULLY UNDERSTAND THIS BUT WHEN WE SEE IT AS AN EXPRESSION OF GOD’S LOVE TO US THEN OUR HEARTS WILL UNDERSTAND EVEN WHEN OUR MINDS CANNOT COMPREHEND

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Love is An expression of His character

a. He so loved us that He gave, that we, in darkness and far from Him could be brought near

SEE THIS LOVE FOR WHAT IT IS: CODESCEND

Like an adult who talks gibberish to a baby to get the baby to smile: They are still an adult, but what matters at that moment is the joy of the baby

This is how John is describing God’s love for us

In this amazing and Incredible love we SEE THE THREE IN ONE

We see the Trinity of God as we think through the process of

o “God so loved… (This is the Father)

o "...gave His only Son (This is the Son)

o “…have eternal life (This is the gift of the Spirit in our souls)

TRANSITION

While this may cause many to doubt and to be skeptical; those whose hearts have been captured by the Lord will be moved to a much different and eternal response: Celebration. THIS IS THE FINAL POINT: SEEING THE LORD – THAT IS, Dwelling on our contemplation of all that God is AND all that he has shown to us, WILL MOVE US TO

II. CELEBRATING THE BOUNTY OF GOD’S GRACE

A. Talk about celebration

a. commemorate, observe, mark, keep, honor, remember,

b. memorialize: preserving the memory or remembrance of God

Worship is the weapon of heaven that allows you to preserve

You don’t celebrate something that has not happened. You only celebrate something that has already taken place. So celebration is a present act based on a previous event

o Anniversaries: celebrations of the event of the marriage

o Key point: If you are not celebrating God it is because you

CONTEMPLATING THE LORD ALWAYS LEADS TO THE CELEBRATION OF THE LORD.

THE MORE YOU REMEMBER THE LORD THE MORE YOUR CELEBRATE THE LORD. AND MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT THIS: A TRUE CELEBRATION OF IS

INCLUDES SINGING BUT IS BEYOND THAT

INCLUDES THE EMOTIONS BUT IS BEYOND THAT

INCLUDES FELLOWSHIP BUT IS BEYOND THAT

· NO BELOVED, DO NOT BE DECIEVED BY THE EMEMY – TRUE CELEBRATION OF ALL THAT GOD IS AND HAS BEEN AND DONE FOR YOU IS EXPRESSED IN A LIFE TOTALLY GIVEN AND DEVOTED AS A LIVING SACRIFICE.

Romans 12:1–2 ESV

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. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

: REASONABLE WORSHIP (RATIONAL – MIND)

REASONABLE WORSHIP (RATIONAL – MIND)

B. As one man has said:

“Celebration is the completion of worship”

SO, GET THIS, WORSHIP IS NOT OVER WHEN YOU LEAVE THIS BUILDING. IN FACT, KNOW THIS – WORSHIP – TRUE WORSHIP THAT IS THE RESPONSE TO THE SIGHT OF GOD IS NEVER OVER BECAUSE ALL DAY, EVERY DAY, WE ARE TO BE LIVING SACRIFICES ON THE ALTAR OF THIS WORLD IN THE HONOR, COMMEMORATION, REMEMBRANCE AND FAME OF THE LORD.

WHY IS MY LIFE AS A LIVING, DAILY, SACRIFICE THE COMPLETION OF MY WORSHIP?

BECAUSE THE SACRIFICE OF HIS LIFE WAS THE COMPLETE END OF MY SIN!!

SO WHAT IS LEFT FOR AND WHAT RESPONSE MUST I GIVE TO GOD THE FATHER WHO CHOSE ME FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD? – TO PRAISE THE GLORY OF HIS GRACE

SO WHAT IS LEFT FOR AND WHAT RESPONSE MUST I GIVE TO GOD THE SON WHO REDEEMED MY LIFE WITH HIS LIFE? – TO PRAISE THE GLORY OF HIS GRACE

SO WHAT IS LEFT FOR AND WHAT RESPONSE MUST I GIVE TO GOD THE SPIRIT WHO SEALED THE LIFE OF SALVATION WITHIN ME?– TO PRAISE THE GLORY OF HIS GRACE

III. LIFE GROUP APPLICATION QUESTIONS

1. What one truth captured your heart and mind from the message today? 2. How is your worship challenged and encouraged today? 3. What steps will you take to become a living sacrifice (Share this with one or two people to be encouraged this week)

B. How is your worship challenged and encouraged today?

C. What steps will you take to become a living sacrifice (Share this with one or two people to be encouraged this week)