Acceptable Worship
John 4:20-24
Confusion and controversy surround the topic of what is acceptable worship. For many how we worship is not a critical matter. They feel that how one worships is a personal matter and that the individual determines what is appropriate or not. In Christ’s encounter with the woman at the well He tells her that God has set the standard for worship when he said, “the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.” In order to understand what is acceptable worship we need to understand the purpose of worship, what is unacceptable worship, and what constitutes acceptable worship.
I. What is the Purpose of Worship?
A. The definition of worship
1. One dictionary definition defines worship as meaning: a) to show profound religious devotion; b) to have intense love and admiration. The English word literally means to ascribe worth to something.
2. The primary Hebrew word for worship is Shachah - "to depress, i.e. prostrate (in homage to royalty or God): bow (self) down, crouch, fall down (flat), humbly beseech, do (make) obeisance, do reverence, make to stoop, worship."
3. Three Greek words are used in the New Testament for worship:
a. Proskuneo - "meaning to kiss, like a dog licking his master's hand), to fawn or crouch to, homage (do reverence to,
adore): worship." It occurs 59 times in the New Testament. It originally carried with it the idea of subjects falling down to kiss the ground before a king or kiss their feet.
b. Sebomai - "to reverence, hold in awe." It is used 10 times in the New Testament.
c. Latreuo - "to render religious service of homage." It is used 21 times in the New Testament.
B. The first purpose of worship is to glorify God
1. Revelation 4:11 “"Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created."
2. To glorify God is to exalt Him, to recognize Him as supremely worthy of honor, and to acknowledge His divine attributes. Since the glory of God is also the sum of all the attributes of His being, of all He has revealed of Himself to man, to give God glory is to acknowledge His glory and extol it. – John MacArthur
3. 1 Corinthians 6:20 “For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”
4. To glorify God is to set God highest in our thoughts, and, to have a revered respect of Him.
5. Psalm 86:12 “I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.”
6. J. S. Bach said, “All music should have no other end and aim than the glory of God and the soul’s refreshment; where this is not remembered there is no real music but only a devilish hub-bub.” He headed his compositions: “J. J.” “Jesus Juva” which means “Jesus help me.” He ended them “S. D. G.” “Soli Dei gratia” which means “To God alone be the praise.” (Kingdom Conflict, J. Stowell, Victor, 1985, pp. 77ff).
7. 1 Chronicles 16:29 “Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
C. To give Honor to God
1. 1 Timothy 1:17 “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen”
2. The Hebrew word for honor is KABOD meaning "weighty" or "heavy". It is that which gives a person importance, and which makes a person impressive, deserving recognition and praise.
3. The Greek word for "honor, glory" is DOXA, which comes from a word meaning to form an opinion or an estimate of something or someone. Hence to have high regard or to show respect.
4. As Moses was tending his father-in-law's sheep in the desert, his attention was drawn to a strange sight. A bush was burning without being consumed. When Moses turned to look more closely, God said to him, "Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground" (Exodus 3:5). Joshua had a similar experience when he approached the captain of the host of the Lord. As Joshua drew nearer, he was given this command: "Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy" (Joshua 5:15). The experiences of Moses and Joshua teach us that a holy God demands our reverence and respect. True, we are encouraged to "come boldly to the throne of grace" (Hebrews 4:16). We can enter the presence of God with confidence because Jesus has opened the way for us through His death on the cross. But never are we to approach God with disrespect. Never are we to profane His name. Our heavenly Father is not "the man upstairs." He is God, the One who is high and lifted up. And because of His majesty and holiness, we are to exalt and worship Him. As the one true God, He is worthy of our adoration. Let's give Him our highest praise.—Richard De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
D. To Praise Him
1. 1 Chronicles 16:25 “For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised...”
2. Praise has the root meaning of "giving off of light by celestial bodies. Halal in its simple active form means to boast (Psalm 34:2)
3. Psalm 150:6 “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!”
4. Whether you can play an instruments or not, no matter where you live or what you ethnic origin, male or female, young or old—“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” After all, that breath comes from the Lord (Acts 17:25 "He Himself gives to all life and breath"), and if things that do not have breath can praise the Lord ("Praise the Lord...Fire and hail, snow and clouds" Ps 148:8-9) surely we can, too!....Breath is the weakest thing we have, but we can devote it to the highest service, praising the Lord! - Wiersbe
5. Praise is every believer's high and holy privilege and should be our persistent, persevering activity, even (especially) when we don't "feel" like praising Him! - copied
6. Hebrews 13:5 “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”
II. What is not Acceptable Worship?
A. Ignorant worship
1. John 4:22-24 “You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
2. Acts 17:22-23, 30 “Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, to the unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you... And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commands all men everywhere to repent”
B. Idolatrous worship
1. Romans 1:25 “changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”
2. When form and performance become the focus of our worship we become idolaters as we have begun worshipping the shadow rather than the Savior.
3. “We are no more at liberty to worship the true God in a false way than we are to worship false gods.”
4. When worship becomes about us, it is wrong worship.
C. Insincere worship
1. Matthew 15:8-9a “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me…”
2. Malachi 1:6 “‘A son honors his father and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence?’ says the Lord of hosts…”
III. What is Worship that is both Worthy and Acceptable?
A. Worship with the right attitude
1. Hebrews 12:28 (ESV) “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe.”
2. Thankfulness to God – We are in a wrong state of mind if we are not in a thankful state of mind. Depend upon it, there is something wrong with you if you cannot praise God. (Spurgeon, Daily Blessings for God's People)
3. Reverence and respect for God
4. An awe of God
B. Worship with the right actions
1. Obedience – Worship is an expression of love to God.
a. “If you love me you’ll obey me” (John 14:15).
b. “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and you do NOT do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).
2. Psalm 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me”
3. Submission and Contrition – Acceptable worship is the submission of all of our nature and being to God.
4. Romans 12:1 (ESV) “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”
5. Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.”
6. "No man gives anything acceptable to God until he has first given himself in love and sacrifice." A.W. Tozer
C. Worship with the right aim
1. There is an erroneous idea today that the main reason we attend worship is to "get something out of the service", rather than going there to give our worship to God. This is a selfish motive on our part.
2. The bottom line is that worthy worship, worship that is acceptable to God is all about Him. It is never about us.
3. Worship is to be God-centered not man-centered.
4. Psalm 99:2-3, 5, 9 “The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people. Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy… Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy… Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.”
5. "If you come to worship for any reason other than the joy and pleasure and satisfaction that are to be found in God, you dishonor Him...God's greatest delight is your delight in Him." Sam Storms
