Introduction: (To introduce this sermon I showed a video clip from Screenvue. The clip showed a group of believers gathered in a house church in Southeast Asia for worship. As they worship they listen to scripture reading. They mouth the words to a hymn. The importance of using discreetion is obvious. Such believers do not need to draw attention to themselves. After viewing the clip I asked the congregation if the believers worshipped. I pointed out: the believers had no building in which to worship, no musical instruments, no pews, most of them had no Bible and they sang songs without singing the words out loud. The point of this exercise was to raise questions about real worship.)
What is real worship? Some people think real worship lccurs in a certain style of building. Some people think real worship occurs by using certain instruments. Some think real worship is a certain style of music. Some think real worship is a certain emotional experience. Today, I am going to examine two verses of scripture that will challenge your concept of worship. In so doing I want to share another proposition. I want to show how you can improve your lifestyle through real worship. Look at the two verses. They are found in Romans 12 verses 1 and 2. “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” (NASV) In order to digest this truth I want to break these verses down into three truths. Lets look at them individually.
I. look at the motivation for real worship. Obviously, real worship is not practiced by everyone. There are many people not in worship today. Many people do not believe in worship. Many people do not take the time to worship. Some people who come to worship do not worship.
Joke: In any endeavor, motivation is important. Late one night, a man had gone to a party and had too much to drink, so he decided it would be best to walk home. He found a shortcut through a poorly lit cemetery and, in the darkness, stumbled into an open grave. He tried to climb out but the walls were too slippery. Again and again he fell back into the grave. Finally, in exhaustion, he settled in a corner to wait for sunlight.
A few minutes later, another man in the same condition was cutting through the cemetery and fell victim to the same grave. He, too, tried desperately to climb and claw his way out, and he was equally unsuccessful.
As he was about to give up in hopeless resignation, he heard a voice from the darkness of his pit: The first victim said "You may as well give up. You’ll never get out of here."
The second man made it out! He was motivated!
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Paul Decker)
So, what motivates a person to worship. There are two answers found in the first phrase of verse 1.
A. The first motivation to worship is a changed heart. When Paul wrote these words he spoke to “brethren”. That is a term used in addressing fellow believers. Paul uses the connecting link, “therefore”, to connect to the previous chapters. In Romans 1-11 Paul had discussed the meaning of salvation. He had discussed the meaning of following Jesus. (Refer to Rom. 10:8-11) The teaching of these chapters is that Jesus Christ will change your heart. Jesus Christ will motivate you to a new way of thinking. Worship is unnatural for man. We have a natural bent to be selfish. We have a natural bent to be self focused. When Adam and Even sinned they wanted to be like God. Instead of worshipping God they wanted to be like God. A believer is a person whose motivation has changed. Instead of living for self he lives for Jesus. Instead of living for self he lives to serve God. The motivation to worship is a changed heart.
B. The second motivation to worship is discovered in the phrase “by the mercies of God.” Worship is a response to God’s goodness. God responds to us in goodness. He takes the initiative. What do we mean, responding to God? An example from marital and dating life will help our understanding. Let’s suppose your wife, husband, boyfriend or girlfriend gives you a kiss. Are you going to slap them or hit them in response to their kiss? Generally not! You are going to respond by returning their kiss. Even so, God expects us to respond to his love. We were created to love God. We were created to worship God. ”
Quote: Robert Webber wrote a book entitled Worship is a Verb. In this book Webber says “As we go through the experience of meeting with God…we are to respond. But response is not just singing a hymn, not just saying a creed, not just saying a prayer. Response…must be a powerful inner experience of actually being in the presence of God. When we sing a hymn or say a confession or prayer, we are not singing or saying words, but expressing a feeling, bringing our souls, truly responding and communicating to the living and active presence of a loving and merciful God.”
(SOURCE: Robert Webber. Worship Is a Verb : Eight Principles for Transforming Worship. Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1998. pg 114. Contributed to Sermon Central by Darren Ethier)
Illustration: After the Israelites had crossed the Red Sea they worshipped as a response to God’s deliverance. In Exo. 15 we read where they sang, danced, shook a timbrel and worshipped God. That emotional experience was a response to the actions of a loving God.
II. Understand, worship is a lifestyle.
A. Worship affects everything you do. Paul instructs us to present our “bodies.” to God. Many people in the Biblical world compartmentalized life. For instance, many people believed that whatever you did in the body had no impact on your spirit. They thought you could sin all you want in the body and it would not affect your spirit. In this verse Paul makes it clear that presenting your body to God is an act of worship. Worship is everything you do in life. It is not limited to what you do in church. The way you treat people is an act of worship. The way you talk is an act of worship. Your morality is an act of worship. The places you go is an act of worship.
Illustration: Last Monday night a group of guys discussed our behavior when we are competing. In case you haven’t noticed, men are competitive creatures. Sometimes competition brings out the animal in us. We need to be reminded that our behavior on the athletic field should be an act of worship. A good example of this is the football player who points upward when he scores a touchdown.
B. Every believer can worship. Worship is not for the spiritually elite. The language Paul uses in verse 1 was taken from Old Testament. In the Old Testament the priest would present animals on the altar as a sacrifice to God. In the New Testament things changed. Every believer is his own priest. We are to present our lives to God. You do not need a priest to represent you. As Baptist one of our key doctrines is the priesthood of the believer. Every believer is a priest. Every believer can stand before God in worship and prayer. Worship is not for the spiritually elite. You have the same standing in prayer as the pastor. People sometimes make comments that imply I have a closer connection with God because of my position. That is not true. Romans 12 verse 1 verifies the untruth in this statement.
C. Worship is a voluntary offering to God. Paul encourages us to “present” our bodies a living sacrifice.
Illustration: When I was in college the Vietnam War was in full swing. At that time our nation was using the draft to enlist soldiers. My draft number was high; therefore, I was never drafted. However, I saw many young men who had low draft numbers. I will never forget one fellow who had a draft number in the top 10. He was drafted and was scheduled to report for duty and head to Vietnam. The night before he left he got “dog drunk.” He was not a happy camper about going to war. He was not a willing participant.
D. Worship is about life. Paul instructs us to present our bodies a “living sacrifice.” According to this verse, the point at which you live the most is when you worship God. You were created to worship God. That is life. Winston Churchill once said, “You make a living by what you get…you make a life by what you give.” If you want you to make the most of your God-given life, give it back to God.
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Kory Wilcoxson)
III. Real worship will make you a better person.
A. It will make you a better person because it will change your morals. In Romans 12:2 we read “do not be conformed to this world.” Bible scholar J.B. Phillips translates this phrase in the following manner…”Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into it’s mold.” Consider these examples.
Example: Let’s suppose a man get’s addicted to pornography and it causes him major problems in his marriage and his sexual relationship with his wife. In addition it introduces temptations he never thought imaginable. Real worship and submission to Jesus Christ can turn his mind from the world’s ways to a better morality. Is that not good?
Example: Let’s suppose a man get’s addicted to alcohol and spends all of his family money buying alcohol. In addition, he cannot hold a job because he stays drunk most of the time. Real worship and submission to Jesus Christ can turn his mind from the world’s way to a better morality. Is that not good?
Example: There has been much talk about taking the “Ten Commandments” out of public display. If we obeyed the “Ten Commandments” and worshipped the Lord God of Heaven and saw stealing, murder, adultery and lying decrease…would that not be a good thing?
Real worship improves morals.
Illustration- One of the most dramatic examples of this truth is found in the story, “Mutiny on the Bounty." This is the familiar story made famous in a book and motion picture. A group of nine rebellious mutineers overthrew their captain, Captain Bligh. These men along with the Tahitian men and women who accompanied them, found their way to Pitcairn Island, a tiny island in the South Pacific. It was only two miles long and a mile wide. Ten years later, alcohol and fighting had left only one man alive--John Adams. Eleven women and 23 children made up the rest of the island’s population. You never hear much about the rest of the story. It is remarkable. After the island people had virtually destroyed themselves John Adams came across a Bible in the bottom of an old chest. He began to read it and God’s Word reached into the heart of that hardened murderer on that tiny island in the Pacific Ocean. The words from the Bible changed Adam’s life. The peace and love that Adams found in the Bible replaced the old life of quarreling, brawling, and liquor. He began to teach the children from the Bible until every person on the island had experienced the same amazing change that he had found. Nearly every person on Pitcairn Island became a Christian.
(From Signs of the Times, August, 1988, p. 5.) Worship and obedience to God will change morals.
B. It will revolutionize your thinking. Paul refers to “renewing your mind.” The NLT translates this phrase “but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” The word transform is the word from which we get our word “metamorphosis.” Metamorphosis is that special thing which occurs when a caterpillar spins a cocoon and after a period of time a beautiful butterfly emerges from the cocoon. Worship will revolutionize your thinking.
Testimony: The first thing I do every morning, before leaving home, is spend time in private worship before God. I will read my Bible, maybe sing a hymn, pray, meditate and reflect. That is the most important time in my day. If you want something that will enrich your day, begin with God. Start by taking 15 minutes to fellowship and worship Him. It will change your life. When Judy and I were preparing to move to Fairhope I went for about 3 days without having my quiet time. I began to notice that something was wrong in my life. I was grumpy. Things did not flow for me. I realized I was missing my worship time with God.
One of our popular songs illustrates this truth. Matt Redman wrote the song. He led worship at his church in England. His pastor took him aside and told him that he could not lead the worship at church until his attitude changed because he saw that he was more interested in getting attention than in worshipping the Lord. Initially Redman was angry at the pastor’s words yet he came to realize they were true. Six months later he wrote a song and taught it to their church. The song is entitled:
Heart of Worship
(words and music by Matt Redman)
I bring you more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what you have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You’re looking into my heart
I’m coming back to the heart of worship
And it’s all about you
It’s all about you, Jesus
I’m sorry Lord for the thing I’ve made it
When it’s all about you
It’s all about you, Jesus
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Robert Garrett)
C. It will give you a new purpose. Paul said the goal is that you might “prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Jesus taught this same principle in the Lord’s prayer. All of us know it. Jesus said “thy kingdom come, they will be done.” Worship of God and submission to Jesus will give you a new reason for living.
The first phrase of our purpose statement defines this purpose. Our purpose in life is to “glorify God.”
