Abraham's Attitude Of Worship

ABRAHAM’S ATTIDUDE OF WORSHIP

GENESIS 22. 1 - 14

One of the things that I believe is desperately missing in the church today is an attitude of worship. In almost every church that I have been in, I see less than worship. I see many churches that are programmed, that are systematic, that are routine. Change something, and they will either throw you out or quit the church. Part of the problem comes from a lack of attitude. We do not have the right attitude about worship in our churches today. We come asking God what He is going to do for us instead of coming seeking what we can do for Him. I believe that one of the best attitudes toward worship can be found in this text. It is Abraham’s attitude toward and of worship.

1. COMPLIANT IN HIS WORSHIP. HE WAS OBEDIENT TO GOD.

„³ God’s directive was clear - go, worship, and sacrifice your son.

„³ Abraham was unwavering. The Bible says he rose up early in the morning and went.

„³ He didn’t complain about having too much to do, about the temperature, about the preacher, about the Sunday School, about this or that, about the request of God, about not being able to do this or that, He simply went.

„³ A lot of folks say that they don’t come to the worship services because they are too long, because they are too loud, or to quiet, because they are too much of this or that.

„³ Obedience says that if God says to go worship, I’m going to worship. God has said go worship. If we are to be obedient, we will go worship.

„³ When it came time to worship, Abraham was obedient. He was obedient to the commands and requests of God.

„³ Abraham didn’t have to go. It wasn’t something that he had to do. God didn’t say do this or die. God was testing Abraham. Testing his obedience.

„³ It is true that you don’t have to go to church to be a Christian. Nowhere can I find in the Bible that salvation is a direct result of going to church. No where does it say that if you don’t go to church that you can’t be saved. But, I do believe that the Bible supports the following statement - if you are a Christian, you will go to church. You can’t help it. It is born within you the day you are born again to gather together and worship God in Spirit and in truth.

„³ You cannot worship God, you cannot be saved, you cannot please God if you are not obedient to what He tells you to do.

2. CONSISTENT IN HIS WORSHIP. HE WORSHIPPED IN GOOD TIMES AS WELL AS BAD

„³ Abraham had just finished a worship service at Beersheeba (21.33). times were good for Abraham. He had received the well of an oath, he was living prosperously. Several years before that, Abraham was worshipping at the birth of Isaac, the son of promise, the seed that will be the everlasting name of Abraham, the seed by which Abraham would be the father of many nations.

„³ When times were good, Abraham worshipped. He praised God, he lifted up his hands, made sacrifices to God, built altars, planted groves, prayed, and worshipped.

„³ Christians are like that sometimes. When things are okay, we want to worship. The world is quite the opposite. When things are okay, they see no need for God, they see no need to come into His presence. Only when situations are not so good, do they want to refer to God in an holy and reverent fashion. They talk of prayer when times are bad, when tragedy strikes, when disease plagues them. It’s hard to talk to someone you are not on speaking terms with.

„³ at this point in Abraham’s life, things got a little rough. God started to not make sense. Was God reneging on His promise? God had promised that in Isaac (not any other) Abraham’s seed would be called. God had given Abraham this son by promise, and made a promise through this son.

„³ Now, God had called on Abraham to go and kill his son. Not as a martyr, not as a criminal, not as a liar, not as a disobedient child, not as a stubborn son, not as a rebel against God, not as an idolater, but as a sacrifice. Abraham might have felt justified if it were for other reasons, but just as a sacrifice. Seems contradictory to God’s promise.

„³ What did Abraham do - he rose up early and went.

„³ Too many Christians are looking for an excuse not to worship - you let something be said that offends them, something be done that they don’t agree with, someone be noticed that they don’t like, something be changed that they don’t like, and they disappear -