But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship HIm must worship in spirit and truth. John 4:23-24 ESV
Define "Worship"
Worship, according to the New Illustrated Webster's Dictionary is defined as " The act or feeling of adoration or homage; the paying of religious reverence as in prayer, praise etc. It is referred to as excessive or ardent admiration.
The greatest purpose for which man was created was to worship the one true God who created us in His image and likeness. However, when sin came into the world through our first parents, the heart of man became corrupt thereby the strong desire to yearn for more led them to seeking other things to occupy the place in their heart meant for the Almighty God alone. This led man to begin to worship other gods, practice occultism and basically directly or indirectly serving Satan who desperately craves for man's worship. As we can see throughout biblical history, the Children of Israel were chastised by Jehovah God often because of their worship of Idols thereby disobeying the commandments of God in Deut 5:7-9 which states " You shall have no other gods before me. ..., You shall not bow down to them or serve: for I the LORD your God am a jeolous God.........Deut 5:8,9 ESV
Worship is a chief purpose of the Church of God because we are God's chosen people, a holy nation, a royal priesthood 1 Peter 2:5,9 and as a result, He demands true worship from His people. When we, as His children worship Him wholeheartedly, we are saying to the world that He is the only one we look unto for our dependency because we know that apart from Him, we are nothing and can do nothing.
True Worship begins in the heart of a believer for as we recognize His awesomeness in our lives, it brings us peace which surpasseth all understanding, rest and joy that only He can give to us. True worship reveals how much we love the Father and as a result of that, we see the move of God in our lives. It is the ultimate intimate experience that is beyond human understanding because to truly worship the Father, flesh has to be crucified, we can not genuinely worship Him with mere flesh, it is only through the spirit which we are also made up of that we can worship Him in the beauty of His Holiness. Psalm 29:2.
Worship changes the outcome of events in a believer's life when you spend quality time in praise and adoration to Him. It becomes a lifestyle that everyone around you become quick to notice because you are often seen offering thanksgiving to the Lord, glorifying Him even in times of trials and difficulties. A True worshipper can effectively win souls for the kingdom just merely through a lifestyle of worship and gratitude which those around them see and recognize that indeed this is truly a son or daughter of the Almighty God. 1 Peter 3:1-2. Every believer should live a life of worship and thanksgiving, unto God for even in Heaven, He is continuously worshipped and adored by the Angels, etc. how much more we that was created for the sole purpose of worship. Rev 19:4-5, Isaiah 6:3-4.
True Worship is about living a holy life, set apart for God alone. You cannot worship any other but the Father. It is alright to shower praises on Man for his good works and even to give honor to whom honor is due, but as believers, "worship" belongs to the Almighty God alone. We are to worship the Creator and not the creation.
Satan, our adversary knows the power of worship in the life of a believer and that is why he wages war against God's people day and night in order to destroy our relationship with the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. He seeks the worship and praise of man so much that we can see what he has done or brought about in the world, since the beginning of time to obtain it. i.e false religion, murder, sexual perversion, deception, wars etc.
Our genuine worship to God has the power to bring about tremendous changes in a believer's life. The deeper you worship, the greater the change, you encounter. I can testify of such changes at different periods in my life. When I spend quality time in His presence, at times I all of a sudden feel the need to just worship Him, ignoring the human desire to "ask" for something I want or need. I begin with songs of praises which eventually leads to worship and because praise produces worship, it automatically invokes the presence of God and you begin to feel the Holy Spirit taking over. At that point, I am usually helpless. By the time, I am back to myself, there is this assurance I get in my spirit that all is well, I feel this overwhelming peace and joy that comes over me and its like the Lord is telling me that He has taken care of everything and I should just say " Thank you" . It does not happen to me all the time but when it does, things begin to work for my good. I begin to see prayers answered to situations that have been pending for a long while.
Even in a church gathering or fellowship, you will see the hand of God at work especially during times of praise and worship. I have witnessed and also heard of a lot of cases where instant healing and deliverances takes place once the congregation begins to worship the Lord, the pastors or speaker cannot preach anymore, its like he or she becomes speechless; beloved, that is the Holy Spirit at work, that is why its important to be sensitive to the move of the Holy Spirit because if you hinder Him, He will not be free to do what He wants to do at that moment in time. The Ministry of Music is also very important in the body of Christ, God presence comes down so much during times of praise and worship and so even without the laying of hands, you begin to see miracles taking place in the lives of people and many even giving their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ during times of worship and praise.
True worship has the power to also bring about victory in a believer's life. Victory from bondage, from the hands of their enemy, from sin. II Chronicles 20 is one of my favorite examples in scripture of how God works on His people's behalf when we worship and adore Him. King Jehoshaphat and all the peole of Judah knew that without God's intervention, they will not be able to defeat their enemies. The King cried out to Jehovah God for help and He assured them that they will be victorious and instructed them accordingly. In addition to obeying the Lord's instruction, King Jehoshaphat felt the desire to show gratitude to the Lord for what He was going to do and what did the King do, He along with the people of Judah and Jerusalem immediately bowed down and worshipped the Lord God and continue to do so even until the next day and surely the Lord approved their praise and worship and instantly gave them the victory over their enemies. It was recorded in biblical history that Jehoshaphat was a good King who did what was pleasing in the Lord's sight. How many Kings did the Lord give such favorable report about? very few! May the Lord remember us for good in Jesus name.
Beloved, I admonish you today to worship the Lord with all your heart because He is seeking True worshippers that will worship Him in spirit and in truth. John 4:24. God wants us to live a life of holiness in order to enjoy all the benefits of being called His Daughters. The time will come when all the ends of the earth i.e the whole world shall remember and turn back to the Lord and all the families of nations shall worship before Him. Psalm 22:27-28. ESV
Why dont we, who are already chosen and called to be His children show the world first that we are indeed True worshippers of God, fulfilling the purpose for which He created all mankind.
Let us therefore examine our hearts today, are you really worshipping the Lord like you are suppose to i.e in spirit and truth, if your answer is no or i am not sure, it is time to repent and make a decision today to spend quality time in His presence offering continuous thanksgiving and praises to Him and He will take you to a deeper level in your christian walk when you do so.
Beloved, A heart of worship will surely transform your life!
Shalom.
