For many people, their experience of worship is like that of Mr. Bean. Take a look (Show Video: Mr. Bean Falling Asleep at Church, www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B1V1PFsyho).
Mr. Bean settles into his pew with a smile on his face, anticipating the sermon—but the rest of the congregation blankly stares straight ahead. Then the preaching begins in a nonsensical blah blah blah monotone. Everyone in the congregation have their eyes locked in position, and the only sign that they are even conscious is the occasional eyebrow that they raise at Mr. Bean.
As the sermon proceeds on endlessly, Mr. Bean fidgets, dawdles, and distracts himself to the annoyance of those seated nearby, until he finally succumbs to the boredom. His eyes roll into his head, and he nearly collapses into slumber, only to jerk himself awake at the last moment. The sermon plods on, the people stare on, and Mr. Bean tries to fight off sleep again. But this time he fails completely. He slumps further and further downwards, eventually sprawling onto his neighbor's lap and finally onto the floor. (DVD Chapter 9, “Can't Stay Awake in Church,” The Best Bits of Mr. Bean, Universal Studios, 1996, 00:44:27 to 00:45:52; www.PreachingToday.com)
If that’s your experience at worship, I want to show you a better way. If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Genesis 28, Genesis 28, where Jacob encounters God for the first time, and he certainly does not find it boring.
Genesis 28:10-15 Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” (ESV)
Jacob is running scared from a brother who threatened to kill him. Even so, God in his grace reveals himself to Jacob. Jacob did not DESERVE to see God. He was a cheat and a liar. That’s what got him in trouble with his brother in the first place, and Jacob did not DESIRE to see God. He wasn’t necessarily looking for God at this time. He was just running away from home, and yet, God in his grace makes himself known to Jacob. God doesn’t show up because Jacob was a good boy. No! God presents Himself to Jacob purely out of grace, and God gives him a wonderful promise – a promise of land, seed and blessing.
Jacob’s father had already blessed him, passing on the blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant. Now, God Himself blesses Jacob directly with those same blessings! And on top of it all, God promises Jacob His protecting presence: “I am with you,” God says in verse 15. “I will watch over you.” “I will bring you back.” And “I will not leave you.”
Oh how those words must have brought comfort to one who had never been away from home before. Jacob’s brother was the hunter in the family, used to the outdoors. Jacob was a mama’s boy, used to helping mama at home. Now, Jacob is all by himself, out in the middle of nowhere, 70 miles away from home, without even a tent over his head.
That’s when God meets with Jacob, and that’s when God wants to meet with you. When you’re running scared, God in his grace reveals himself to you. When you least expect it, sometimes in far out-of-the way places, and often in times of fear, God shows up. Even when you’ve made a mess of things, even when you don’t deserve it, like Jacob, or don’t even desire it, God comes to offer His blessing and the promise of His presence forever.
That’s how Jesus came into this world. In a time of Roman oppression and fear, in a far out-of-the way place called Bethlehem, located in a small Roman province of little consequence, God revealed himself in the flesh as a little baby, whose name was Jesus.
Then, 30 years later, when he began his public ministry, he declared to his followers, ““Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (John 1:51). Jesus was telling them, “I am the stairway into heaven that Jacob saw.” “I am the way, the only way, to heaven.” “If you want to get there, you have to come through me.”
God revealed himself when and where we least expected it and when we least deserved it. The Bible says, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Jesus didn’t wait until we straightened out our lives. Jesus didn’t even wait until we acknowledged him. No! While we were still sinners, while we were still His enemies, Christ came to die on a cross for our sins and rise again.
Now, all you need to do is trust Him with your life. Now, all you need to do is “believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:32). Dear friends, if you’ve never done it before, I invite you to trust Christ with your life today. Call upon the name of the Lord and ask Him to save you from your sins. Then you too can have the assurance of eternal life and God’s protecting presence forever!
That’s the experience of everyone who puts their faith in Christ. They have the assurance of God’s protecting presence every day. For God in His grace still comes to you in times of fear. Jesus still makes his presence known often when you least expect it.
Several years ago (April 25, 2003), 13-year-old Natalie Gilbert was chosen to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at a nationally televised NBA Western Conference playoff game. For her, it was a dream-come-true, but that dream almost became a nightmare (show video: Maurice Cheeks Helps Natalie Gilbert, https://youtu.be/2dSzjIKtVcA)
Natalie bravely stood alone at mid-court in Portland's Rose Garden Arena, but as she began to sing before a capacity crowd, her mind went blank. She forgot the words. Closing her eyes and shaking her head, she appeared on the verge of tears.
Then, at that moment, the head coach of the Portland Trailblazers, Maurice Cheeks, walked toward her, put his arm around her and began to sing with her. As a result, Natalie regained her composure, found her voice and ended strong. (https://youtu.be/2dSzjIKtVcA, AOL News, 4-28-03, www. PreachingToday.com)
Sometimes, like Natalie or like Jacob, you find yourself all alone in this world, ashamed or afraid, and ready to give up. That’s when Jesus comes, puts his arm around you, and stays with you until you finish strong.
GOD IN HIS GRACE REVEALS HIMSELF.
He shows up when you least expect it and often when you least deserve it. The only thing you can do is…
RESPOND TO HIM WITH GRATITUDE.
Respond with reverence and sacrificial commitment? Give yourselves wholly and completely to God?
That’s what true worship is all about. Warren Wiersbe says, “Worship is the believer’s response of all that he is – mind, emotion, will, and body – to all that God is and says and does” (Real Worship). Worship is a response to revelation – giving everything I have to God, because He gave Himself for me.
The question is: What’s the appropriate way to respond to such a God? What kind of response is fitting for a God who graciously chooses to reveal Himself? Well, Jacob shows us how to respond to a holy and gracious God. In fact, his response to God’s revelation is a prototype of Israel’s worship throughout the Old Testament and instructive for our own worship today. So how did Jacob respond? Look at verse 16
Genesis 28:16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” (ESV)
Like Jacob, when God reveals Himself, 1st of all, recognize His presence. Acknowledge that He is here! Worship is not singing songs, saying prayers, and listening to a boring sermon. True worship begins when you recognize that God is really here!
Author/speaker Jennifer Rothschild was diagnosed at 15 with a rare, degenerative eye disease that would eventually steal her sight. In her DVD study Fingerprints of God, Jennifer shares the story of Susan, who had also gone blind:
“It was a very crowded bus, and all the passengers looked sympathetically as Susan made her way down the aisle. She fumbled with her cane, and as she nestled herself into her seat, the onlookers just watched with questions and concern. You see, it had been a year since Susan lost her sight.
“When she first became blind, she fell into a deep pit of depression. Her world had crumbled, her sadness overtook her. Not only was her heart crushed, but so was the heart of her husband, Mark. He so loved his wife and wanted to help her, and so he did. Inch by inch, he helped to pull her out of that pit of depression, helped give her skills and confidence, and to regain her sense of self. And that husband, so in love with his wife, did all that he could to help her in her new state of darkness.
“Well, after many months of Susan's blindness, she began to feel more confident because of Mark's help, and she felt like she could perhaps return to her job again. And Mark promised that he would help her, of course, with that also. So every day, Mark would drive his wife to work, walk her into the office, make sure she was settled, and then leave and go to his base that was across town, because Mark was a military officer. Then, he would come back and get her from work. This went on for several weeks. And with every day, though Mark so wanted to help his wife, the burden was becoming heavier because it was becoming logistically impossible for him to make it to his base on time.
He dreaded having to announce to Susan that he wasn't going to be able to drive her to work. But in the end, he had to. ‘I can't ride the bus to work,’ she replied. ‘I'm blind. How am I going to know how many stairs there are? How am I going to know what path to take? I feel like you are abandoning me.’
“Mark's heart was crushed. He promised her, like he had done from the very beginning, he would do whatever it took to help her until she felt confident and independent on the bus. He helped her with the routes. He helped her learn the stairs and learn the paths. And so, finally, after several weeks of doing such, Susan was confident. He went to his base; she went to her work.
“Monday morning, she got on the bus. She went to work, she came home; it was flawless. Then Friday morning arrived. Susan made her way onto the bus, and as she went to pay her fare, the bus driver said, ‘Ma'am you sure are lucky.’
“Susan said, ‘Are you talking to me?’
“The bus driver said, ‘Yeah. It must feel good to be cared for as you are.’
“Susan replied, ‘I don't know what you mean, sir.’
“The bus driver said: ‘Well, you know, every morning when I drop you off at your stop, as soon as those doors open, I can see that man standing over there at the corner. And he watches you. As soon as you step off the bus, his eyes are on you. I think he's some kind of military officer because of his uniform. And his eyes follow you as you walk across that parking lot. And his eyes don't leave you as you're trying to walk up those stairs. And when your hand touches that door knob, his eyes are on you. Until you open that door and go inside, that man doesn't take his eyes off you. And once that door closes, he stands straight and tall, like a sentinel, and he salutes you, and then he blows you a kiss.’
“Susan burst into tears. She had no idea that her husband had been watching her. But the lover of her soul never takes his eyes off of her. (Jennifer Rothschild, Fingerprints of God, Life Way, 2005; www.PreachingToday.com)
Dear friends, the Lover of your soul, you Heavenly Father, never takes His eyes off you, as well. He is always present, and when you realize that, you can’t help but respond with overwhelming gratitude. That’s what true worship is all about. It starts when you recognize the presence of Almighty God.
Then you can’t help but rear Him. Reverence and stand in awe of Him. That was Jacob’s response.
Genesis 28:17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome [or how fearful] is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (ESV)
Don’t diminish what Jacob is feeling here. He is afraid! At first, he feared man – his brother Esau. Now, he is beginning to fear God.
And that’s the response of any sinner who finds himself in the presence of a holy God. Adam, in the Garden, hid from God after he ate the forbidden fruit. But when God came looking for him, Adam could only say, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid…” (Genesis 3:10). Isaiah, in the Temple, saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and lifted up. Then he cried out, “Woe is me! For I am lost... for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5). Peter, in a boat with Christ, who had just performed a mighty miracle, “fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!’” (Luke 5:8). That’s the initial response of everyone who meets with God. It’s a response of fear in the presence of a holy and powerful God.
Warren Wiersbe, in his book on True Worship, says, “We must beware of trying to get chummy with God. I know the apostle John leaned on the bosom of Jesus in the Upper Room; but he fell at the feet of Jesus when he beheld Him in His sovereign glory (Revelation 1:17).” Then Wiersbe continues, “There is an undue familiarity with God that only proves that the worshipper does not really know God at all.” (Warren Wiersbe, True Worship, p.26)
If you’ve never trembled in the presence of God, then you don’t really know God at all, and most certainly you have not worshipped Him.
Now, none of this negates the comfort and the peace you feel knowing that God is near. But it is only after you have trembled in His presence that you can truly appreciate it when he says, “Fear not, for I am with you.” It is only after you have learned to fear God that you can truly enjoy the magnitude of His love. You see, the presence of God should invoke reverence, awe, (and yes) even fear! Otherwise, you have not begun to worship Him.
The students at Wheaton College, several years ago, got a taste of this kind of worship. Dr. V. Raymond Edman, a past president of the college, was speaking in chapel that day on the subject of worship. He was talking about the need to be reverent when we come into God’s presence, and he illustrated that with a story about the time he was invited to have an audience with Haile Selassie, then emperor of Ethiopia.
He spoke about how he prepared himself, knowing that he would have an audience with the king. He expressed his excitement when he walked into the palace. Then he described the reverence he felt as he bowed before the king.
At that point in his sermon, Dr. V. Raymond Edman paused, collapsed, and died. He actually entered the presence of the King of kings even as he was talking about it. And no student left that chapel the same, because they too felt awe in the presence of this same King. (“Blessed are the Pure in Heart,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 83; www.PreachingToday.com) That’s what true worship is all about.
When God in his grace reveals Himself, you can’t help but recognize His presence, reverence Him, and then remember that experience the rest of your life. You can never forget your meeting with God. That’s what Jacob does.
Genesis 28:18 So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. (ESV)
Jacob turned his pillow into a pillar as a memorial to His meeting with God. Then he poured oil on top of it as an act of consecration. He set that stone apart from all the other stones, again, as a memorial to the God who graciously revealed Himself. Jacob never wants to forget this experience. That’s why…
Genesis 28:19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. (ESV)
Jacob named that little, out of the way place “Bethel,” which means House of God. He did it so that he and the generations to follow would remember that God met with Him there.
It’s a part of Jacob’s worship, and that should be a part of your worship, as well. Don’t forget what God has said and done for you.
That’s why we partake in the Lord’s Supper periodically. It helps us remember that Christ died for us. And that’s why we meet on Sunday every week. It helps us remember that Christ rose from the dead on a Sunday. These are memorials of the most awesome visitation of God in history – the time when Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again.
Please, don’t ever forget what Christ has done for you. On Memorial Day, every year, we remember the sacrifices of those who died for our country. In the same way, on Sunday, every week, don’t forget the sacrifice of the One who died and rose again for your salvation, because that’s what worship is all about.
When God in his grace reveals Himself, recognize His presence; reverence Him; remember what He has done; and finally reserve yourself for Him if you’re going to truly worship God. Consecrate yourself to the Lord. Give ourselves wholly and completely to Him. That’s what Jacob does.
Genesis 28:20-22 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.” (ESV)
This giving of a tenth to the Lord is a practical recognition that it all belongs to God. Jacob has consecrated a stone to the Lord. Now, he consecrates himself with a vow. It’s a voluntary commitment Jacob makes to give himself and to give part of his possessions to the Lord when God comes through for him.
Such vows were very common in Israel’s worship. You see them all throughout the Psalms. They were commitments to praise or commitments to give in response to God’s deliverance.
That’s what Jacob is doing here as an act of true worship, and that’s what you must do, if you want to truly worship the Lord. You must commit ourselves wholly and completely to Him.
Romans 12:1 says, “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.”
You haven’t truly worshipped God until you have given yourself wholly and completely to Him.
Bryan Wilkerson talks about a sterling silver tea set that a family member gave him and his wife as a reminder of her love for them. It's quite old and beautifully made, and it sits on a stand in their dining room. There's only one problem: they can't use it. The woman who gave it to them had it chemically coated so that it wouldn't tarnish, and hot water will ruin the finish.
Then Wilkerson makes this comment: “God is not looking for sterling silver tea sets. He's looking for rough-and-tumble clay pots—the kind that can be used every day. He's looking for the kind of pots that don't need to be tucked away in a china closet but can be sent out into a crash-bang world, carrying within them the life of Christ. The church was never meant to be a china cabinet, where precious pieces could be safely stowed out of harm's way. The church was meant to be a working kitchen, where well-worn pots are filled again and again to dispense their life-giving contents to a thirsty world. (Bryan Wilkerson, Unbreakable? www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s what true worship is all about! It’s not being content to sit on the shelf (or pew) week after week just looking pretty. It’s being willing to give yourself again and again in service to Christ.
Please, when God in His grace reveals Himself to you, don’t just sit there. Instead, respond with gratitude. Recognize His presence, reverence Him, remember all that He has done for you, and reserve yourself wholly and completely for Him.
That’s what true worship is all about, and such worship will turn your battle into blessings just like it did for Jacob.
