Text: Joshua 6:1-20
Title: What every believer needs to know about worship
Introduction
Let’s start by telling you what every believer needs to know about worship and then we will look at the proof.
1.Every believer needs to know that worship is a powerful offensive weapon.
2.Every believer needs to know that worship opens up the possibilities for us to see things from God’s perspective.
3.Every believer needs to know that worship is something we need to do everyday
4.Every believer needs to know that worship must be real and genuine.
1.Worship is a powerful offensive weapon. (v1)
“Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in.”
•There are powerful forces that are opposed to the idea of God working in the life of every believer
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph. 6:12)
•These powerful forces of evil oppose all the things God wants to put into every believer and these powerful forces of evil oppose all the things God wants to take out of every believer
In other words these powerful forces of evil want nothing good going in and want nothing coming out! These powerful forces want you and I so tightly shut up that nothing ever changes for the better!
One thing these powerful forces want to see tightly shut up is worship
•These powerful forces want to tightly shut up your mouth so you won’t sing out in worship
•These powerful forces want to tightly shut up your heart so you won’t open yourself to worship
•These powerful forces want to tightly shut up your hands so you won’t raise them in worship
These powerful forces of evil know that nothing good happens if I don’t worship
•If I want to get into the presence of God the Bible says I must worship “God inhabits the praises of his people” Psalm 22:3 KJV
•If I want to get into the peace of God the Bible says I must worship…”Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again rejoice…and the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:4,7)
After they (Paul and Silas) had been severely flogged they were thrown into prison, and the jailor was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.” Acts 16:23-26
•Application: worship can break the chains of discouragement and doubt and open up the door to freedom and joy
2.Worship opens up the possibilities for us to see things from God’s perspective. (v2)
“Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men.”
•When you only see the problem you worry and can’t worship.
•Seeing things from God’s perspective is the way to replace worry with worship
•Worship is seeing things the way God sees them
•“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2-4)
•“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
3.Worship is something we need to do everyday.(v3-5)
“March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in.
•Every day of the week they marched around the city as an expression of worship
•What they did the first six days of the week paid off on the seventh day
•There are no short cuts to receiving God’s blessings
•“With the measure you use it will be measured to you…”
•“Don’t be deceived. God cannot be mocked. Whatever a man sows that will he reap.”
•God could have said…Just show up on the seventh day…
•God said “show up everyday”…
•How can you possibly march around the city 7 times in one day? By first doing it once a day for 6 days
4.Worship must always be real and genuine (v18-19)
“But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring about trouble on it. All the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury.”
•People who worship the wrong things end up destroying themselves
•“What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul.” Matt. 16:26
•There are things that we must keep away from in order to have real and genuine worship.
•God warns us against worshiping other thing
•Other things can help us worship God better if we put them under God’s control
