Thank you Rev. R.K. Smith
What Makes God Swear
Gen 22:1-18
IIt is important for us to understand that there is a vast difference between praise and worship.
It is valuable to understand three things about praise.
Praise is natural.
The scripture plainly and in numerous passages describes the things within nature that demonstrate and actively participate in the praise to the one true God. " Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof. Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice." Psalms 96:11-12
All of Creation is involved in the continual praise of the Creator. The Blossoming of the rose, the glistening dew on the grass even the hoot of the owl, or the moo of the cow, all is in some measure praise of nature to the Creator. The tune found in the morning song of the birds or in the chirping crickets in the evening. These are all singing in the Creation Choir of Praise!
Praise is Mandatory
Jesus was admonished to silence the praise of the throng on his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. His retort was,
"If these hold their piece the rocks will cry out." What we see is that praise is going to be done.
The heavenly host and nature it self is found in praise.
One day, the scripture tells us, every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess, "JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!"
You either praise him now, or praise him later, but Jesus is going to be praised by you one way or the other.
Praise requires no virtue.
For the fact that praise is natural and mandatory, it brings it into a dimension that it requires no virtue. The Reasons for Praise are numerous.
We praise God for our health, wealth and wisdom.
We praise God for our families, homes and material things.
We testify of his healing, provision and protection.
We do this because of what he has done.
Anyone and everyone praises God either consciously or otherwise.
But worship, this is not for the weak in heart.
Worship is something entirely different from praise.
The first time this word is mentioned in the Bible is the text below.
If we view this text and use the Law of First reference, we can learn a lot about what worship is in this setting.
Abraham is asked by God to sacrifice Isaac. Abraham rises early the next morning and takes all the things he needs and begins to journey to the place God showed him to go. When he gets close, he leaves his servants and tells them, "We are going yonder to worship." What was Abraham about to do? He was about to give God everything that was important and valuable to him. The proof of his faith, the essence of his hope and the fruit of his lifelong journey with God. Genesis 22:1-5 KJV
It is important to understand that worship is not one dimensional, but has many facets and encompass a number of things.
Three Dimensions of True Worship
True Worship is an act of Surrender. Abraham journeyed with an understanding that he was surrendering his hope, faith and dreams into the hand and will of God.
True worship is an act of Obedience. Abraham proceeded to fulfill the command of God without question or complaint. We may not be able to accomplish this as easily. We may grumble and complain, but if we can find that place of absolute obedience, this is where we enter into worship.
True worship is an act of Sacrifice. Sacrifice is the key component to see the consummation of worship. Worship without sacrifice is not worship.
There are three necessary ingredients for worship. In his journey, Abraham took three things with him.
To Achieve True Worship, you must be willing to take the right ingredients.
Wood –
Something that is already dead, something that easily burns, something that can be consumed.
These are the issues, questions, things that are already dead.
Everyone has some wood.
If you are living for God to any degree, you can gather enough wood to start a fire.
Fire - a thing that is Hot, a thing that has Light, a thing that will consume the dead and the living in it.
The fire changes the molecular structure of anything it comes in contact with.
You take the wood you have and put the fire to it and you have created an atmosphere to deal with those things that are still alive.
And a Knife
This is where Worship comes in.
Anybody can build a fire, but worship without sacrifice is just a cookout.
When we will sacrifice and put to the altar everything, this is where God begins to interact in our life in an even more abundant way.
When you get the dead in order,
you can the fire burning,
it is time to use the knife on those things that are still alive that God is asking for.
It is in this place of worship where God goes from Promises to swearing,
When you are willing to enter the presence of God with more than praise.
When you are willing to enter the presence of God with more than a song.
When you are willing to go beyond, you will see the unimaginable blessings of God. Genesis 22:6-7 KJV
