What is Worship?
Scripture tell us that we were created for God’s glory and to proclaim his praises (1 Corinthians 10:31; Ephesians 1:11-12; 1 Peter 2:9). We exist to worship God, and in order to be genuine, this worship must come from the heart. It must be a genuine expression of our real feelings. As believers we have been led to believe that worshipping God is a programed time in a service known as "the worship time". What happens during this time is from an agenda that is developed by man, what to sing, when to sit, when to stand, when to raise hands, when to clap, when to audibly say praise words...etc. True worship is to live worshipfully living life, and life is not what happens in or lived in event-driven-meetings.
God is not some egotistic VIP who gets satisfaction form subjects performing accolade adoration during a 20 minute worship time in a programmed-event-driven meeting. I am not suggesting that you cannot worship in a meeting but, what takes place in the worship time is not necessarily worship. If it is lip service, if you do it because of someone’s prompting, if you do it because it is part of the agenda, it is not of the heart and it is not true worship.
The scriptures say; "Let every thing that has breath praise the Lord". How does everything that has breath praise the Lord? The only way that everything that has breath can praise the Lord is by doing what they were created to do. The only creature created by God that has breath, yet fails to praise God is man! Man was created to worship God, a "worship time" in a service does not fulfill what man was created to do. Worshipping God is engulfed in our daily living, we are to live by faith, what ever we do in faith is worship unto God. What ever we do of self, or to follow some man's agenda of prescribed worship is not worship unto God and is worshiping God in-vain!
How do we help people get to this point of life living worship? I think we are simply unable to achieve such a task. It is God who changes people’s hearts; it is God who transforms a person, who leads people to a relationship, who touches people with love and grace. It is not enough to describe or preach God’s amazing love and his astonishing grace, we are to demonstrate His love and grace as we live a life of adoration and dedication to our Savior, but after all is said and done, it is God who changes each person’s heart.
Jesus loved and was committed to people...he loved the lost, and he reprimanded people who thought they were religiously superior to others (a feeling that usually stems from a works-oriented approach to worship). He was committed to a close relationship among believes...His disciples related not just individually to Him as students to their teacher, but also to one another. Jesus formed them into a group, a body, that would in time give itself mutual support, a community that would reach out to people in love and understanding.
The passion for worship in daily living has the potential for making our every day environment a better place through small everyday expressions of admiration, appreciation, gratitude, kindness, understanding, compassion, love, and friendliness both in across-our-path encounters with people and by going into the "difficult places" where people live. This is Living Like Jesus...a worshiper unto God.
God is not some egotistic VIP who gets satisfaction form subjects performing accolade adoration during a 20 minute worship time in a programmed-event-driven meeting. I am not suggesting that you cannot worship in a meeting but, what takes place in the worship time is not necessarily worship. If it is lip service, if you do it because of someone’s prompting, if you do it because it is part of the agenda, it is not of the heart and it is not true worship.
The scriptures say; "Let every thing that has breath praise the Lord". How does everything that has breath praise the Lord? The only way that everything that has breath can praise the Lord is by doing what they were created to do. The only creature created by God that has breath, yet fails to praise God is man! Man was created to worship God, a "worship time" in a service does not fulfill what man was created to do. Worshipping God is engulfed in our daily living, we are to live by faith, what ever we do in faith is worship unto God. What ever we do of self, or to follow some man's agenda of prescribed worship is not worship unto God and is worshiping God in-vain!
How do we help people get to this point of life living worship? I think we are simply unable to achieve such a task. It is God who changes people’s hearts; it is God who transforms a person, who leads people to a relationship, who touches people with love and grace. It is not enough to describe or preach God’s amazing love and his astonishing grace, we are to demonstrate His love and grace as we live a life of adoration and dedication to our Savior, but after all is said and done, it is God who changes each person’s heart.
Jesus loved and was committed to people...he loved the lost, and he reprimanded people who thought they were religiously superior to others (a feeling that usually stems from a works-oriented approach to worship). He was committed to a close relationship among believes...His disciples related not just individually to Him as students to their teacher, but also to one another. Jesus formed them into a group, a body, that would in time give itself mutual support, a community that would reach out to people in love and understanding.
The passion for worship in daily living has the potential for making our every day environment a better place through small everyday expressions of admiration, appreciation, gratitude, kindness, understanding, compassion, love, and friendliness both in across-our-path encounters with people and by going into the "difficult places" where people live. This is Living Like Jesus...a worshiper unto God.
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