Worship with your heart
Notes
Transcript
John 4:23-24
John 4:23-24
Worship with your heart
“A Heart Engaged in Worship”
John 4:23-24
23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
Pray.
Opener - We are all seeking experiences?
One of the latest crazes for those who are getting married is that you can give the couple, not a set of knives or blender, you can give toward their honeymoon experience.
On the gift registry are special extra excursions that the couple could do during their honeymoon if you gift that to them.
-If they went to Asheville, you could give them an evening at the Theatre to see a play, or to take a guided hike on private property to a special scenic view, or a couples massage …
-We are seeking less things and seeking more experiences
-We are becoming consumers of experience.
-We pay for experiences.
This experience seeking in our culture has had effects on the Christian Community.
-As Christ Followers we have become less interested in truth about God and more interested in seeking a spiritual experience with God.
-Many judge their church based how they were made to feel that morning at worship service versus being directed in the truth of the greatness of who God is.
With all that said,
-Experiencing God in your life is a really good thing.
-Worshiping God with your heart, sincerely surrendered to Him is a beautiful thing!
-True Worship only happens when your heart is engaged in worship.
-We have all been to a worship service or have had a daily devotional time with the Lord, where the truth was presented and the music was good - everything was orchestrated well, but we missed it because our heart wasn’t in it.
Transition - If our heart must be involved in worship - in spirit - what are the keys for worshiping God with my heart?
What are the keys for heart worship?
I. I must believe that … My heart will drift to sin and selfishness
Illustration - When I was in church youth group about every other year we would take a 2 hour drive to a spring fed river above Tampa to tube. We would drift in the cool water for about 4-5 hours. The larger group would eventually break into smaller groups and the groups would get separated.
If you wanted to leave your group and go to a group 100 yards behind you, you had to swim upstream.
-You found out very quickly that swimming upstream for 5 minutes in an inner-tube was really hard.
-That slow steady float downstream that didn’t look like much when you were floating with it, was difficult to fight against.
-In the moment you thought, “I wish I had a motor.”
I have thought so many times that the slow moving river was a great picture of the sinful pressure that we feel going against in our life as believers.
-There is a constant downward pressure in our lives.
-It comes from the sinful world, our selfishness, and Satan.
We have to daily paddling against it.
-You have to keep pushing for your heart to love the Lord.
-There are so many things competing for your affections.
Your flesh, your selfishness, desires its own way.
For God to have your heart. For you to worship God with your heart, you must believe that the minute you stop swimming up stream, you will drift backwards.
Jesus said moments before he was arrested in the Garden...
Matthew 26:41
41 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42
Paul struggled with his flesh and did not live a sinless life.
Romans 7:18
18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.
In the Hymn Come Thou Fount - we see that line that I can always identify with -
“ Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart, oh take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above”
“Prone to wander and leave God”
In the same song -
“Let Thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wandering heart to Thee”
We are singing - Take my heart and chain it to you God.”
I need your help because my affections find trinkets to be hypnotized with.
If I am going to learn to worship God I have to realize that my natural sinful desire is for my heart to - My heart will drift to sin and selfishness.
Transition - Have you ever spiritually felt really stuck in sin?
Have you ever felt like your heart was stuck and it was going to be hard to love God?
Here is the good news.
If I am going too engage in heart worship ...
II. I must believe that God’s Spirit can radically change my heart.
verse 24, He is Spirit
1. So what is the Spirit and Truth the passage speaks of?
Read versus - John 4:23-24
The truth this passage speaks of is the Truth of God’s Word. The truth we know about God informs of how great He is.
The more you know about God - the greater your potential worship is.
worship God
There are 2 different Spirits in this Passage
We see God who is Spirit “The Holy Spirit” in verse 24.
But there is a second kind of spirit in these 2 verses.
It is where spirit and Truth are brought together.
In this case in verses 23 & 24 we see the worshiper involved.
The word “spirit” in this case means a mingling of the spirit or soul of the person and the Spirit of God.
-Worshiping in Spirit is when your soul or your spirit is surrendered to and empowered by the living God.
-You as a human are at your very best when your spirit and The Spirit of God are are mingled together, your soul surrendered and cooperating with His Spirit following God’s Word -His Truth.
This is my favorite part - This doesn’t just have to happen on Sunday morning. It should happen in your average and everyday.
You can live and work with an attitude of worship where God’s Spirit and Truth are guiding and effecting each moment of your life.
Illustration Double Barrel Shotgun
Big game hunters (think Elephants and Rhinosaurus) have been known to use a Double barrel elephant gun.
The largest & most capable is the
700 Nitro Express - 1000 grain bullet, 2,100 feet per second, 8,900 foot pounds of force. (Over 3 times that of a 30-06).
-Each bullet (Round) costs $100 each.
Called the Nitro Express because the original ammunition used nitroglycerin as the bullet propellant.
The 700 Nitro Express is a side by side (double barrel).
-Barrel number one is to take the life of your prey.
-Barrel number 2 is to save your life. If you wound the elephant or cape buffalo.
Bullet #2 saves your life when you get charged.
This big gun reminds me of how God’s Word and God’s Spirit work together.
The first barrel is like God’s Word. More than enough to handle any problem you have.
The second barrel reminds me of God’s Spirit - God’s power.
The Spirit of God is an exponential power - where God has given Himself (He is Spirit) to Christ Follower.
And - When both barrels are fired side by side - there is a combined force that is so overwhelming, nothing can stand against it.
When God’s Word (TRUTH) and God’s Spirit operate in unison mighty worship happens.
2. True worship only happens when the Christ Follower’s Spirit is empowered by God’s Word and God’s Holy Spirit.
This is why you cannot EFFORT yourself to worship.
You surrender yourself to worship.
You surrender, you ask God to fill and empower your Spirit to worship.
This is why singing is not by itself worship.
Sam Storm -The Gospel Coalition
“It’s the Holy Spirit who awakens in us an understanding of God’s beauty and splendor and power. It’s the Holy Spirit who stirs us to celebrate and rejoice and give thanks. It’s the Holy Spirit who opens our eyes to see and savor all that God is for us in Jesus. It’s the Holy Spirit who, I hope and pray, orchestrates our services and leads us in corporate praise of God.”
We worship because God created us to worship and empowers us to worship.
God created you.
God awakened the Christ Followers dead heart.
God gave you the gift of faith and the ability too use it.
God saved you.
God placed His Spirit inside of you.
God’s Spirit activated your soul to empower you to worship.
God provided His Word and others to teach you to about Him.
God has chosen to bring glory to Himself by inviting you to be a vessel of worship.
God has chosen to use you to bring honor to the King.
God really has chosen to use broken vessels to have praise on your lips.
God’s Spirit is who radically changes my heart.
Transition - So what is my part? What Can I do?
III. How do I worship? How do I engage in worship with my heart ....?
1. Ask for it.
14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.
God desires you to worship Him with your whole heart.
-Ask for it & keep asking. God will help you learn to worship.
2. Challenge your heart - Sometimes God convicts us and helps us see that we are worshiping the wrong thing. Tell your heart. Hey - We are worshiping the wrong thing. Look to Christ.
-Better is one day in your house then a thousand elsewhere.
Psalm 84:10 - One day in your house is better than a thousand elsewhere.
3. Seek it - Be intentional, In your daily time with the Lord, in private, with no one around worship Him.
-Take your earbuds and sing in your head along to your favorite worship song.
-In your time with the Lord turn to Psalm 40. Read a line and praise a sentence in prayer. Read a line and praise a sentence in prayer. Be intentional
4. Be Prepared - Ready your heart for corporate worship.
-On Saturday night, go to bed on time.
-Spend time with God preparing your heart for Sunday.
-Sunday morning, prepare your heart.
Illustration - You prepare your clothes before you leave for church. You prepare your beautiful faces. Prepare your heart.
Transition?
IV. Believe that Whole Hearted Worship Deeply Effects My Life
When God is your 1st love and your worship Him with all of your heart it takes the pressure off.
-Your career, Your career & success is important, but it no longer holds the promise to satisfy your heart.
Why? Because
-Your kids - They aren’t performing in ball or in school so that you feel satisfied in being a good mom or dad. God had your heart and your worship. Your children don’t have to feel the pressure of doing well to meet mom or dad’s emotional needs. Why? God has their parents heart.
-Your Marriage, When God has all of your heart your spouse doesn’t feel pressure to try and follow culture and fill your heart in only places God can.
-When God has all of your heart you are more satisfied with your spouse. Part of your heart is already full from God.
-When God has all of your affections your spouse is less insecure because you love Jesus, not the next hot thing that trots into their life.
-I’m very secure in my marriage because Susan loves Jesus more than she loves me.
-Praise God.
-There are days I don’t even like me. She loves me because she loves Jesus.
Pause
We’ll end with this.
The Westminister Catechism asks this question.
Q. What is the chief end of man?
-If we could boil life down to one thing what is the essence of what we are to do?
Answer - … to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
Lift His name high and enjoy Him.
-In your worship of God, He wants your heart to savor Him. To enjoy him.
Illustration - This past Thursday I decided I would go by The Bistro and got 2 pieces of strawberry cake. The 1st piece was for Susan. Pause -The second piece was for Susan.
I brought them home and Susan fussed at me for bringing her 2 pieces. That’s too much.
It took he 3 days to eat 2 pieces. Why?
She loves the cake so much she wants to spread it out.
She wants to savor the flavor.
MEN - You do the same thing was a large steak cooked perfectly.
You take your time eating it - not fast - you savor the flavor.
More importantly than food.
You and your spouse have a child. A little miracle comes out of mom. You cry for joy. You savor the moment after the birth as you hold your new baby.
Even more importantly than having a child...
-God calls you to sit and savor Him.
-To consider His goodness and love.
Here is your homework - Go home and this afternoon or this evening spend some quiet time with the Lord. Tell Him you love Him. Tell Him why you love Him.
Think about His goodness and greatness. Sit in the moment. Savor the Savior.
Pray