Sermon Manuscript061106

Sermon Manuscript – 6/11/2006                         Robert Hutcherson, Jr.

Sermon: “True Worship”

TEXT

Isaiah 6:1-8

Every Sunday millions of Christians gather together for the purpose of worshipping God. They meet together in many different kinds of churches: big churches, small churches, city churches, country churches. Some meet in multi-million dollar sanctuaries; some meet in rented facilities. Some have loud worship services; some prefer a more contemplative atmosphere. Some churches sing only traditional hymns; others sing contemporary worship choruses. I could go on and on listing the different types of worship services that are going on right now throughout the country, and in spite of the many differences there is one common denominator: millions of Christians have gathered today to worship the Lord. But hear me this morning. All of these millions of worshippers fall into two categories: Those who have a worshipful experience, and those who simply go through the motions.

Now almost without exception, those people in the second category really want to be in the first category or they wouldn't be in church. The problem is that there are obstacles standing in their way. Perhaps the obstacle is doubt or confusion or fear or unconfessed sin. Whatever the cause, there are many Christians who want church attendance to be a dynamic experience, but week after week they go home feeling empty and bored.

Yet the amazing thing is that in that same service there will be many who go home exhilarated knowing that they have been in the presence of the living God. Some people will leave saying that this was the greatest worship experience of their lives. And some will leave wishing they had spent their time somewhere else. Sometimes its hard to believe the different responses from people who participate in the same service.

Why is it this way? First we must remember that the most important element in the worship service is the heart of the person attending worship. Jesus said, "Those who worship God must worship in spirit and truth." .There are two extreme aspects of God's nature. One is the fact that God is above and beyond anything earthly or natural. The other is the fact that God is present in every part and every moment of the created universe. Both extremes are absolutely true. In our modern day church, we tend to emphasize the immanence of God. We teach mostly that God is present, reachable. And it's true that He is our friend; He is our personal savior. We sing songs like "He walks with me and talks with me and tells me I am His own." And it's absolutely true. The problem is that we have neglected the other characteristic of God's nature. We have ignored to some extent the idea of God's holiness, His awesomeness, His majesty.

And if you listen to some theologians it's understand-able why pastors don't speak as much about this side of God. We don't want to scare people off by talking about God as being "wholly other." It's scary to think about God as not being one of us or even not being like us. But my friends, He is beyond anything that we can imagine, greater than we can comprehend, more magnificent than we could ever describe. He is good beyond description, powerful beyond description, holy beyond description . Worship begins with reverence. Worship begins with having the right attitude toward God. He is not the big guy. He is not the man upstairs or some impersonal higher power. He is the Absolute God and His is worthy of all our praise and adoration.

Worship is an act of confession. In Luke 5, Jesus told Simon to put his net into the deep water. Simon answered by saying that they had worked all night and caught nothing, and continued by saying, "Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets." Simon wasn't exactly enthusiastic about it. But you remember what happened next: "they caught so many fish that their nets began to break. In fact, when they began to load the fish into the boat, there were so many that the boat began to sink. Peter realized then that he was in the presence of not just a man, but the living Christ. His response is in vs. 8. He fell down at Jesus' knees saying, "Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."

 There is something about being in the presence of God that makes us aware of our own unworthiness. Isaiah came to that realization. He exclaimed in vs. 5, "Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips..."

Do you know what Isaiah is saying. First, he says, "Woe is me..." Do you know what that means? "I am lost." Second, he says "I am lost because I have sinned." Then he says, "I have sinned because I am by nature a sinner." That's what it means when he says I live among a people of unclean lips. Isaiah recognized that his guilt was genuine. He recognized that he was guilty not only because he was unclean, but because his people were unclean as well. Isaiah's response to God was the same as Simon's response to Jesus. Confession. The word confess literally means to say the same thing. It is an agreement with God. When we confess we are saying the same thing about ourselves that God says, and friend, I want to tell you that the result of confession is God's grace. I John. 1:9 says, If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin."

And that is the third element of true worship. Worship is an act of grace. Look at vv. 6-7. Worship is not something we do on our own for God. We cannot worship without His help. We cannot worship without His grace. A simple definition of grace is undeserved mercy. When Isaiah admitted his own sinfulness, the angel touched the coal to his lips. This is symbolic of what Christ has done for us. Through His death on Calvary's cross, our sins have been blotted out and our guilt has departed. "We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."

Toward the end of Jesus' ministry he did an amazing thing for the disciples. As an expression of love, he washed each of his disciples' feet. He did this in the same fashion that a slave would serve a master. When He came to Peter, Peter refused. "You will never wash my feet," he said. Jesus responded, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." Peter learned a lesson about grace. "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." The lesson is that we can only be made worthy by an act of God's grace. There is nothing we can do to earn it or deserve His mercy. We can only receive it or reject it. But friend, you must receive His grace if you want to have a relationship with Him.

But we need to realize as well that experiencing God's grace is an ongoing process in our lives as Christians. Salvation, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior is only the beginning of God's work of grace in us. That work continues as we live day by day, and that brings us to the last element of true worship.

Worship is an act of service. Look at vs. 8. Worship is more than just singing a few songs and listening to a sermon. It's more than just following a ritual. Worship is a lifestyle. Think about this. When two people get married, they publicly vow to love, honor, and cherish one another until they are parted by death. The success of the marriage is dependent upon the couple's commitment to this vow. It doesn't matter how much money was spent on the ceremony; it doesn't matter what was the color of the bridesmaid's dress; it makes no difference how many people were in attendance. These are all irrelevant. The ceremony is not the marriage. If the bride and the groom are not serious about the wedding vow, then the whole event is a waste of everyone's time. A good marriage isn't determined by a fancy ceremony; it is determined by the commitment the bride and groom have for one another. In the same way, the music, the prayers, the scripture reading, and the preaching you have heard this morning are merely "pomp and circumstance" if you leave without a stronger commitment to serve God.

The apostle Paul said, "I appeal to you therefore, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." Some translations conclude that verse by saying which is your spiritual worship. Worship begins with a right view of God that leads to a right view of ourselves that leads to confession of sin that leads to acceptance of His grace. Then worship ends with a commitment to a life of service to him.