Worship Defined
What is
worship? Is it just what you do in a church service? Or can you worship
anywhere?
Here are
some thoughts on worship:
“Those
who wait on the LORD shall renew
their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and
not be weary. They shall walk and not faint” (Isa. 40:31). What a promise! When
we wait on God he strengthens us. Our spirit soars like an eagle. “He gives
strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (v. 39). Worship is
waiting on God. We bow before him, we praise him, we glorify him and he
strengthens us.
Worship lies at the
heart of the Christian faith. Moses and the Israelites worshipped God, and his
presence, his glory, filled the tabernacle and covered their travel—as a cloud
by day and as fire by night. (Exodus 13:21) Moses spent days in the presence of
God and his face glowed. (Exodus 34:29) Jesus worshipped regularly in the
synagogue, taught his disciples to pray and told the woman at the well to
worship “in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24 ).
The New Testament church worshipped together with
songs and teachings from scripture. Paul told the Colossians, “Let the word of
Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all
wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in
your hearts to God” (Col. 3:16). Paul stressed orderly worship that would teach
and enlighten us.
Worship
connects us with the presence of God. True worship, opening our hearts to God
and praising him, is fearful and astonishing. It changes us. Worship is as vital to our faith as breathing is to our
bodies. We bow in adoration, devotion, respect and awe. God is holy and
eternal. We are finite. We humble ourselves in this holy encounter. We meet God
weekly in corporate worship, as a church body. The fragrant aroma of his
presence in us and in the church increases in proportion to our prayer and
worship. ( Changing Churches pg. 101-102.)
Here’s another excellent definition of worship:
“In worship the conscience is quickened by the holiness
of God, the mind is fed by the truth
of God, the heart is opened to the
love of God, and the will is devoted
to the purpose of God.” William Temple,
clergyman
How do you spell Worship? How about this?
Wait on the Lord. “They who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” (Isaiah
40:31)
Open your heart to God. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not
on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)
Repent of your sin. Humble yourself before him. Rid yourselves of all malice and all
deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. (1 Peter 2:1)
Silence all but his word and presence. We must silence
the world and our inner dialog. "Be still and
know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).
Humble yourselves before him. He is holy, we are not. “Holy, holy, holy is the
Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” (Isaiah 6:3)
Involve your body, mind, will and emotions in
adoration. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you
teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16)
Praise his name.
“Sing praises to God, sing
praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.” (Psalm 47:6)
Here’s a
dictionary definition I just found. “Worship is to honor God with extravagant
love and extreme submission.” We worship an amazing God. We must be extravagant
in our love and extreme in our submission to our Holy God.
Blessings,
Dottie
