by Mrs. Anastasia Rebello
Isaiah 1:11-1:16
Worship is a broad term. It is often misunderstood. “Anything you do, that brings pleasure to God is an act of worship” That’s a boiled down definition of worship. It means nothingness in ourselves but everything we do is for God.
What happens when that is not the case?
Worship can become less than that. I would like to give you a little background on state of worship in Israel.
Read Isaiah 1:11-16
In this message we are confronted here with God’s serious displeasure at what the Israelites had made worship. It had become empty and hollow. From this passage we learn three things that don’t matter in worship and the one thing that does matter.
- EXTERNAL FORMS do not matter : The Israelites had the form of worship down pat. They knew it inside and out. They could worship in their sleep.
- ORDER of SERVICE does not matter : There has been a longtime tension between so-called liturgical worship and so-called free worship. The order in which we do things is merely an external form.
- STYLE of MUSIC does not matter : God doesn’t care what kind of songs we sing. Music styles are always changing.
- CHURCH GOING does not matter : Church attendance doesn’t matter. God asks in verse 12, “When you come before me, who ever gave you the idea of acting like this, running here and there, doing this and that—all this sheer commotion in the place provided for worship?
Worship is not a “GET OUT OF JAIL FREE” card
Do you know what this is? Hold up the Card. In the game of Monopoly you can get a “Get Out Of Jail Free” Card so if you get in trouble, you can use it. Church attendance is not that way.
- PERFECT ATTENDANCE does not matter : Perfect attendance will not be rewarded as in high school. Just showing up at church week in and week out isn’t going to cut it. That is not what worship is all about.
- MERE PRAYERS do not matter : The Israelites had also become quite proficient at praying. They would pray with hands outstretched in piety because….
Prayer does not work without COMBUSTION. What happens when there is no gas in a car and you try to start it? Nothing happens, because there is no fuel. Fire cannot burn without fuel. Prayers also require fuel. Prayers that are lip service or routine have no fuel.
Prayer and CONDEMNATION are INCOMPATIBLE God says that he isn’t going to listen to their prayers. Why? Verse 15 says, “Because you’ve been tearing people to pieces, and your hands are bloody.” God is talking about what is done away from the worship service. James 3:9-12 says, “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. “You can’t have fish aquarium that is half fresh water and half salt water.
Our HEART must be RIGHT with GOD. The heart of worship is our heart. We can do all the right things, but that doesn’t matter if our heart is right with God. Our life must be in order, for us to worship. Otherwise we are spouting salt and fresh water out of our mouth. Worship that is not offered in the right motivation and with the right heart is an offense to God. God is offended by insincere, false or half-hearted worship. If we are like that we’d be better of staying home. How’s your heart today? Is it right with God? Is your worship real today?
After we learn about the misconceptions of worship let us learn how to lead a life of worship one of the best examples is Abraham Genesis 22:1-22:14
Background.
- a. At the age of 75 Abraham was called by God
- b. Read 12:1-4a. The Bible tells us that Abraham was a friend of God
- c. Abraham’s journey with the Lord was cyclical, full of spiritual peaks and valleys.
A. In his life, we see…
- Faith – Leaving His father’s household to go to a Land yet unseen. At God’s command
- Failure – Fathering a child (Ishmael) by His wife’s handmaid Hagar.
- Courage – Leading an alliance to go and rescue Lot and the people of Sodom while destroying 5 Kings.
- Cowardice - On more than one occasion he lied because he was afraid of being killed because of her beauty.
- Prayer – He interceded and appealed to God not to destroy the righteous of Sodom with the sinners.
- Patience – He had to learn to wait 25 years for the fulfillment of God’s promises, He was 100 years old when the son of promise, Isaac, was born.
B. Abraham’s walk was real before the Lord…
- By this time in our text God had been preparing, moulding and shaping him for more than 40 years to be a father of a nation.
- God through the circumstances of life and skillful leading had shaped the heart of Abram in chapter 12 into the heart of Abraham (Father of a multitude of nations) in chapter 22.
- But now it was time to put the years of development to the ultimate test.
- At this time Abraham was approximately 115 years old and his beloved son of promise Isaac was between 15 and 17 years old and he was asked to sacrifice him. Abraham did not doubt God even though it may been hard on him.
- Today’s text centers around a worship service, Abraham’s life was worship
C. There are certain Burdens we carry & sometimes that is what we worship
We become like what we worship. If we:
- Worship possessions…become a materialistic person.
- Worship money… become a greedy person.
- Worship Sex… become a lustful person.
- Worship Power… become a corrupt person.
But…
D. The Hebrew word for Worship means:
- To bow down, to prostrate ones self, as an act of respect before a superior being.
- It means to surrender or to fall down in submission
- Worship is Worth-ship.
- Worship is service of God expressed, not only in religious gatherings, but also in every area of life.
This reminds me of a story of an old man who put a child on his knee and told the child to seek God while he was young. He told him to pray and to love God every day. The child looked up at the old man and asked, “But why don’t you seek God?” The old man was deeply moved and answered, “I would child; but my heart is hard.”
Some of us are like the man in the drama this evening. We’re waiting for a better time to get serious with God. This is dangerous. Don’t put off what you know to be right. The Bible says that now is the day of salvation. Now is the time.
Thomas Dorsey had it exactly right when he taught people to sing,
“Precious Lord, take my hand,
Lead me on, let me stand;
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn.
Through the storm, through the night,
lead me on to the light.
Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on.”
Worship gives you a bedrock place to stand, in the holiness of God.
E. In Living Life of Worship, we see…
- Life of Worship will be tried and tested
- Life of Worship comes with a cost
- Life of Worship is ordered by obedience
- Life of Worship is fueled by faith
- Life of Worship is Secured by His Sight
Are you willing…? Pray