• Worship is not a human invention. Rather, it is a divine offering.
• Worth + ship = worthy of reverence and honor
• When we worship, we declaring God’s worth. (Rev 5: 12-14)
• Worship is an act of honoring God because of His great worthiness to be honored.
C. Why Do We Need To Worship?
1. God commanded it.
• We want to be obedient to God.
2. God is worthy of it. (Rev 4 .11, 5; 11.12 and 7:11, 12)
• He is our Creator and our Lord
3. Worship brings us into His presence.
(Ps 100.4) Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him, bless his name.
• We became aware of His glory and greatness, of His majesty and power.
• We turn our attention from lesser things and focus on that which is ultimate.
4. Worship gives us His perspective on our situation.
• When we are in presence, we understand His power and ability.
5. Worship allows the Holy Spirit to transform our lives according to His purposes.
• Through worship, the Holy Spirit redirects our focus onto God and away from ourselves.
• In worship, the Holy Spirit gives us fresh experiences of God’s love and mercy.
• During worship, the Spirit gives us direction for the future. He can speak to us more clearly because our spirits are more finely tuned to Him.
• In the midst of powerful praise and worship, the Holy Spirit reveals the presence of the enemy and exposes his schemes/devices.
• Through wholehearted worship, the Holy Spirit changes our hearts and leads us into obedient lifestyles.
D. How Can We Develop A Worshiping Spirit?
1. We must have a meaningful relationship with God.
• Authentic worship of God can only be found in a relationship with Jesus Christ.
- Salvation is the first step in developing a worshipful heart.
- The only access to Father is through Jesus.
2. We must yield to the Holy Spirit.
• Worship of God is the work of the Holy Spirit in the spirit of man.
- When we yielded to the Holy Spirit in our life, worship will be the result.
3. Our thoughts must be centered on God.
• Worship is the natural overflow of a mind filled with God’s Truth.
- When we meditate on the Word, we discover more about Him.
4. We must have an undivided heart.
• God and God alone is the focal point of our worship. (Ps 108.1)
5. We must have repentant heart. (James 4.8; Ps 66.18)
• Public worship is only a manifestation of private worship.
• Worship in the power of God enables the church to be the church.
A. Reflect on the following aspects of worship and examine your own worship life.
(Source: Stormie Omartian’s ‘The Prayer that changes everything’)
Worship is:
1. Not just a song; it’s a way of life. It’s not just for musicians and good singers, it’s for everyone. It’s not just 20 minutes once a week. It’s an ongoing daily attitude that reminds us of His greatness and our dependency upon Him.
2. Coming in contact with the holiness of God by the power of the Holy Spirit and letting the beauty if His holiness rub off on you and make you beautifully holy and wonderfully whole.
3. Surrendering your life to God so that He can be powerful in you and demonstrate His power through you.
4. Fulfilling your purpose. When you are praising God, you are not just fulfilling a duty, putting in time, doing what is expected of you. You are opening a door, behind which you will find His purpose and destiny for your life.
5. Embracing God in all His glory. When you do, His radiance will illuminate the dark places of your soul, warm the cold places of your heart, and shine a light in your path.
6. Entering into God’s presence expecting His love, peace and joy to overtake you no matter how you feel at that moment. It’s proclaiming that He is bigger than anything you face.
7. A sacrifice because it is not something we naturally do. We have to want to do it. We have to decide to do it. We have to take time to do it. We have to make the effort to do it.
8. A place where we can drown out the voices of fear and doubt with a flood of adoration and praise. And as we come before the Lord, He reminds us of all that He is, and that increases our faith.
9. An act of faith where we demonstrate to our heavenly Father that although we don’t always see His answers to our prayers, we still know His plans for us are for good.
10. Without full impact and power if we have unresolved issues with another brother or sister in Christ. True worship can only take place when we are free from animosity, bitterness, anger, or forgiveness.
11. Our greatest weapon of warfare. When we praise God in the midst of an enemy onslaught, his attack is weakened and he must flee.
12. Something we do for God, but in the process He gives far more of Himself to us that we can ever give of ourselves to Him.
B. Practical ways to begin cultivating a daily lifestyle of worship:
• Make it a regular habit during the next few weeks to offer the Lord a “sacrifice of praise”.
- As you pray, read the Bible, do the dishes, take a coffee break or go for a walk, let your heart flow out toward God in praise. You can use the Psalms as a starting point to help you enter into praising God.
• Take some time during this week to revere God’s name.
- Let the Spirit remind of the various names of God in the Bible and aspects of His character that these names reveal. Praise God for all that He is.
• Take time to receive from God in worship.
- Sit or lie in a comfortable place and listen to some worship music.
- Be alert for those words and images the Holy Spirit wants to impress upon you.
- Let your heart flow out to God in surrender and thanksgiving.
• Imagine yourself worshipping God in heaven along with His angels.
- Focus on God’s holiness and tell Him He is worthy of your praise.
- Take your pride, accomplishments and whatever concerns you have and lay them at God’s feet in surrender to Him.
• As you attend corporate worship in the next few weeks, practice the presence of God on the way to the church/small group as a means of preparing your heart for worship.
- Pray silently for those you see around you.
- Thank God for the day and all its possibilities.
- Ask God to bring to your mind things you should know about yourself and others.
