Sermon Central
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A Worship-Filled Heart
Contributed by Dennis Lee on Apr 17, 2023 (message contributor)
Summary: Worship is a broad topic, so I’d like to look at it through the lens of the prophet Isaiah’s encounter with God before His heavenly throne as found in Isaiah 6:1-8. From this encounter, I’d like to share several aspects about worship that will change our lives and relationship with God.
The person who understands the holiness of God is then constantly being changed into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. In other words, we cannot be like the rest of the world and presume that we are God’s people.
“But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people.” (Ephesians 5:3 NIV)
If we are going to be followers of Jesus Christ, then we must be serious about our pursuit of holiness. Therefore, we worship God because He is holy, and His holiness demands our complete attention. That is what a worship-filled heart does, its aware of the holiness of God but it is also aware of our unworthiness which is the next point.
Worship Reveals Our Unworthiness
St. Augustine said, “Before God can deliver us from ourselves, we must undeceive ourselves.”
Worship helps us understand that we are sinners, and of our need to seek God’s forgiveness. In Isaiah’s vision, after the angels’ proclamation of God’s holiness and His almighty power, Isaiah cries out in confession.
“Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5 NKJV)
We cannot come into the presence of God without first becoming aware of His holiness, and then of our own unworthiness. Paul reveals this reality.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23 NKJV)
As people with a fallen and corrupt nature, and who have fallen short of God’s glory, that is, short of God’s holy and righteous standard for life, it’s impossible for us to approach God’s presence without being aware of our own sinfulness.
Our problem is that we compare ourselves to others, and usually with those we consider to be worse than we are. But when we compare ourselves to the holiness of God, then the wall of self-deception comes crumbling down.
And when this happens, we need to confess our sins so that God can forgive us. This is seen in what happens next after Isaiah’s confession.
“Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged’” (Isaiah 6:6-7 NKJV)
Talking about our sinful condition, the Apostle John said, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8-9 NKJV)
Concerning his encounter with Jesus, Samuel Brengle, a commissioner with the Salvation Army, wrote, “I saw the humility of Jesus, and my pride; the meekness of Jesus, and my temper, the lowliness of Jesus, and my ambition; the faithfulness of Jesus, and the deceitfulness of my heart; the unselfishness of Jesus, and my selfishness; the trust and faith of Jesus, and my doubts and unbelief.”
