The heart of Worship
Revelation chapter 4:8-10
Introduction-
As we go to God’s Word this morning, I have been praying that God would get a hold of our hearts.
I am not wanting to pray a generic prayer like teaching a young child a prayer before a meal.
I am praying that we have an encounter with God, the kind of encounter that will change our lives.
Society today does not need another thing to do on a Sunday morning, they can and do find others things to do.
What people need is to come together and experience a powerful and merciful and gracious God.
For us to experience God and then worship.
Prayer-
If we could only see the battle that people have to get in church on a Sunday morning. (Any church) Right?
The single mom that wrestled with three kids to get them here and they fought her the whole time because they were tired.
The sibling fights… the adult arguments.
Obstacles that defeat us before we even get started.
Young couples praying for a child and it being really tough to come into a church full of kids.
Husband s and wives thinking about divorce.
Some people wanting a husband or a wife.
Teenagers fighting with parents on the values they are taught at home and the values they see and hear in the world.
The father that stays at home and leaves the raising of his children to the mother.
If we only knew the many struggles that are going on, we would not feel like we are the only ones.
We have come into this building we call church and we have come for many different reasons.
Each one of us has come through those doors with different expectations, different needs, spiritually at different levels, some can sing praise and some wonder where God is at.
Yet, here we are to worship, then break open God’s word and hear from God.
That is a supernatural moment of time and can only be done by a supernatural God. Amen.
When we understand that worship is not an event that takes place but worship is a relationship with God that extends past any circumstances we are going through and we come together to give Him praise for who He is and not only for what He can do for us, worship will change your life forever!
True worship is not only what takes place on a Sunday morning, but what happens in our lives 24/7 because worship is a lifestyle.
Worship will only change your life if it does not become mechanical and forced.
It has to be from the heart and praise that is expressed is not only in song but in deed and action.
We do not know what people have experienced outside of these doors but I know what they can experience when they open up their hearts to the God of the universe that created them, loves them, and will take care of them.
Jeremiah 29:11-
“For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and to not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
When we understand that God has a plan “for you.”
When we understand that He has “our best interest.”
That God will not “abandon us” in hard times.
We have the potential of seeing the supernatural operate in our lives…corporately and individually.
Richard Foster
“Worship is our response to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father. It is kindled within us only when the Spirit of God touches human spirit. Our spirit must be ignited by the divine fire.” (End quote)
When God’s Spirit touches our spirit, it will lead us to worship.
When human touches supernatural, we realize and experience that worship is not about us, but all about Him!
What does God say about worship and what can worship do for us as we worship Him?
What is worship?
Psalms 100 gives us a look at what worship is- Psalms 100:1-5 Read
It is entering into his presence with thanksgiving and praise-
It is giving him thanks and praising his name!
It is recognizing who God is and not only what God can do for you but praising him for what he has already done for you.
It is not fitting God into your schedule but fitting your schedule around God.
When you do that you realize that worship is 24/7 where you are and no matter what you are going through. You realize that it is not all about us but it is all about Him!
Worship then becomes a response to what God has already done for us- We enter into worship- we can do that in a variety of ways and we can do that in a variety of places-
Corrie Ten Boom in a flea invested concentration camp – because she entered into worship.
Persecuted Christians in other parts of the world being tortured and praise is found on their lips.
People able to battle terminal diseases with hope and assurance because their hearts are centered on Christ.
Sometimes we just have to stop the merry go round and get off the world of negative and believe the promises of God.
To allow God to take a negative and turn it to a positive- it begins when we get our eyes off stuff and put it on the Savior- it will take us right into worship.
Everyday we all have people who cause us to be put down, destroyed if we let them, and we center in on what is in front of now instead of what will be eternal later.
The horn blowers
The yellers who cannot say anything without yelling.
The people who cannot complete a sentence without cursing and taking your Lords name in vain.
Godly, life changing worship takes place when you don’t feel like it but you are determined that you will worship God no matter what!
Worship then becomes more than a song, it becomes a relationship, and a pursued relationship with God becomes a lifestyle.
Beetle-mania became idle worship when the singing the song became worship to the singer.
Elvis
Michael Jackson
We can worship things and people as the world has taken us, but worship ordained by God is worship unto Him that moment the supernatural Spirit of God touches the human spirit and allows us to go to a realm with God like nothing else imaginable.
“Worthy is the lamb who was slain… to receive honor and glory and praise! And the elders fell down and worshiped God.”
Amen! Amen!
Revelation 4:8-10 (Our Text/ worship defined) Read from Bible
“Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stopped saying; “Holy, Holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and is, and is to come. Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty four elders fall down before him he sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say; you are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
In heaven will be worship, this life is to be but a preview of what is ahead.
I do not believe that we will be worshipping 24/7 like the created Cheribims crying out holy, holy holy, but we will worship God and we will experience all the promises of heaven and it will be a beautiful place where we can spend eternity with our God.
If we cannot worship here, God won’t force us to worship later. We separate ourselves from God now and we will be separated from Him later.
Because there will be worship in heaven! Glory to His name and His name be praised.
So worship ordained by God is praise and honor and reverence given back to our creator and is not about us, but is all about Him!
Living worship
How can we live our lives and bring honor and glory to God and how can we in the midst of our circumstances keep praise on our lips?
Living worship;
Instead of yelling back at that horn blower saying a prayer for them because you realize that they are probably going through something you have no idea of.
That person who has just cut you with their words asking God to give you strength to live the life that is pleasing to Him when every part of you wants to lash back or worse shut down because of someone else.
Living worship is staying so close to the Lord that you do not let actions of others take you to a place you know is not healthy.
Making sure that when your feet hit the floor, that you are asking God for the help needed to complete your day.
This world says it is all about you… satisfy yourself, you come first. No, He comes first!
Psalm 100 should become your daily prayer- memorize it. Repeat it again
“Make a joyful shout to the Lord, come before His presence with singing. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise. Be thankful to him, and bless his name. for the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endures to all generations.”
Worship is not for the weak…we are weak but he is strong. Worship is a discipline, we must be determined that no matter what we will not rob God of his praise and we will not let the devil steal the joy that God desires for our life.
In worship, we respond to God and we focus on Him! Amen!
Most struggle with worship because it is not built into our day and our lifestyle- most of the time it is squeezed out by circumstances.
We can worship God in the park, on a boat, in the forest, but there is something special about corporate worship that will draw us to the Spirit of the living God!
We draw strength from corporate worship
God responds to prayer and praise – not because he has too, but that He desires too.
Close,
As I see worship, it is not trying to manipulate God to do something, it is not magical phrases, though In Jesus Name there is power!
It is our heart, mind, soul and body telling God directly that we love and adore Him. It is our devotion to God.
God knows our hearts, that why we cannot fake it.
That is why some will not be forced to endure heaven when they cannot praise here on earth-
it is our heart for God and it is worship when we center in on Him with praise and song, and those times we may not even be able to speak a word, those times we just melt in His presence.
It is like a sponge-
God says that He wants all of our lives. We surrender it all. We empty ourselves of all the things that God desires out of our lives- We squeeze those things out with God’s help. We call that Worship!
While empty, we allow God to fill us with His Holy Spirit. Taking it all in! We call that worship.
It is realizing there are areas of our life that we have not given to God- Family, finances, work, our past, present, and our future. We call that Worship.
God is still in the miracle business!
God is still the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow…
We say to God- Here is what I am doing, now bless it- instead of seeking God and saying what do you want me to do- and He blesses it.
