Mark 8:22-26; Isaiah 6:1-8
I find it interesting that we call our “church worship gatherings” services. The definition of service is, an act of devotion to God; witness. b. A religious rite.
Is that why you came to church this morning, out of devotion to God? Many people go to church with intentions of getting, not giving. I can’t say that’s necessarily wrong in every case, but I do know that when we come to church to give we end up receiving more than we give or ever expected to receive.
Illustration: An old farmer went to the city one weekend and attended the big city church.
He came home and his wife asked him how it was.
"Well," said the farmer, "it was good. They did something different, however. They sang praise choruses instead of hymns."
"Praise choruses?" said his wife, "What are those?"
"Oh they’re okay. They’re sort of like hymns, only different," said the farmer.
"Well, what’s the difference?" asked the wife.
The farmer said, "Well it’s like this - If I were to say to you: ‘Martha, the cows are in the corn,’ well that would be a hymn. If, on the other hand, I were to say to you: ‘Martha, Martha, Martha, Oh, Martha, Martha, MARTHA MARTHA, the cows, the big cows, the brown cows, the black cows, the white cows, the black and white cows, the COWS, COWS, COWS are in the corn, are in the corn, are in the corn, are in the corn, the CORN, CORN, CORN’!!! ‘Oh, Oh, Ooooooooh, yes, it’s true, the whole herd is in the awesome corn, yes, it’s true, the whole herd is in the awesome corn, --- weeell, it’s true, the whole herd is in the awesome corn!!! Alleluia! - That would be a praise chorus."
Mark 8 Spiritual blindness can prevent us from worship. The lost can’t worship God because they are spiritually dead. Those who are living in sin can’t effectively worship God because their spiritual life is distorted by sin. In order for us to truly worship God in the fullness of the Holy Spirit we must be spiritually whole through salvation, and cleansed from our sinfulness through the cleansing power of Jesus.
(v. 22) Notice that they brought their friend to Jesus. Do you have enough confidence in Jesus and conviction within yourself to bring your friends to Jesus? Many people who approached Jesus in Scriptures were in dire straights.
(v.23) Why outside Bethsaida? Matthew 11:20-21 Jesus denounced the city of Bethsaida because they saw the power of God and didn’t change. They saw but they didn’t believe, in our culture today many people say, “Seeing is believing”. But the Bible teaches believing is seeing. If we do not believe we won’t be seeing the power of God. Has your relationship with God changed you? Has it changed the way you view life, the things you do, the places you go how you live?
(v. 24) Jesus didn’t say, “oh, everyone looks likes trees to you, well your better off than you were before I got here, see you later”. Jesus didn’t leave the man with fuzzy sight, He doesn’t want us to just be better off, and He wants us to be whole. It’s like Jesus giving the lame man a wheel chair, or the blind a Seeing Eye dog. Anyone can treat the symptoms or ease the pain, but Jesus cures the source. Is where you are right now spiritually, good enough? I don’t enjoy wearing glasses. The only thing worse than wearing glasses is fuzzy vision. Sometimes in our spiritual lives we must do things that make us uncomfortable in order to experience all of God’s grace. Maybe your not comfortable praying in front of people, helping with children’s church, or singing in the choir, but that’s service. Where you are right now isn’t bad, at least you’re in church, but regardless it could be better. This is SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP SERVICE, and believe me there is a place for you to serve.
(v. 25) ONCE MORE – I have seen people who have been radically changed all in a moment’s time, and I’ve seen people who have struggled for years before loosing their spiritual fuzziness. For the first 10 years of my spiritual life everything was fuzzy to me. I couldn’t really see the difference between what was sin and what wasn’t in some instances. But as I got active in church and started studying my Bible the gray area between right and wrong began to shrink. As I started to study the Word of God and learn more about my relationship with Him my life and purpose began to make sense.
(v. 26) DON’T GO BACK TO THE VILLIAGE - When we see sin for what it really is and confess it we are to repent and not go back to its influences. One of the most dangerous things we do as Christians is once we come out of sin is to go back into it again. Wouldn’t it be an awful thing if God wanted to touch someone close to you but first He had to get him or her out of your presence, or what if the Lord was going to save them, but first He had to get them out of your church?
NOW THAT WE UNDERSTAND WHAT WE NEED TO CLEAR OUR SPIRITUAL VISION LETS LOOK AT ISAIAH CHAPTER SIX AND EXAMINE THE AFFECT SEEING GOD CAN HAVE ON OUR WORSHIP.
Isaiah 6 SEEING GOD – HEARING GOD – RESPONDING TO GOD
(v. 1) Our number one priority in a worship service is to see the Lord. Not to make this into a Sunday machine. We’re not cranking out a product like Ford cranks out automobiles, or a bakery cranks out bread. This is a worship service not a massive classroom session.
A deep sense of need draws us to worship.
(v. 2) Seraphs – flaming angels. They evidently reflected the brilliant light of the glory of the Lord. They were the angelic choir around the throne of God. They flew around the throne of God. Who are the angels of this church? They are the ones who help us see the Lord. Isaiah never said he saw the Seraphs he just heard them. The musicians of this church assist us in seeing the Lord. My primary goal when I enter a church service should be to turn my attention off of myself, the world and it’s distractions, and look to God and focus on Him.
(v.5) We are all ruined sinners. When a group of ruined sinners get together we’re all on the same level. When you start a worship meeting on that bases we’re all in need. This isn’t based on performance, who can out sing one another, or who is more holy. Our worship is based on the Glory of God and His grace and mercy that has been extended to us.
Worship will reveal a need in our life. Isaiah realized he had a problem with his mouth. No sermon has even been preached yet, and God is touching the heart of Isaiah. When the music starts we should begin to turn our attention to the Lord. And when our heart is turned to the Lord, He will revel to us what is in our heart.
(v.6) God touched the area of Isaiah’s need, his mouth. We’re living in an untouchable society. Too sophisticated to touch one another, oh yes we love, but we look on an embrace with a sophisticated frown. “He touched me and made me whole”; we sing it but do we believe it in our heart? What part of your life needs a touch from God? The first step for us to be touched and changed by God is to realize the area of our self that needs to be touched and changed. God knows exactly where we need to be touched and changed but more importantly, do we know?
ILLUSTRATION: Before we left for Colorado I had the front on my truck aligned. I could tell before it was a little out of line because it pulled to one side. But it amazed me after I got it aligned how much I had been fighting it to keep it on the road without even realizing I had been struggling. Isn’t that how it is in our spiritual life? We hit a spiritual pothole of sin somewhere alone the way and it knocks out of line with God? Then we struggle to stay on the narrow path; with every step we take it’s a constant struggle to keep from weaving off course with God. But then when we confess our sin, repent and seek God’s face we wonder why we struggled so long and didn’t get things straightened out earlier.
(v.8) He heard from God. And he responded to the Lord. That is worship! To hear from God and respond to what we hear is what we are here for. Not to just go through the motions of “having church”. If you came here this morning to hear from me, you’re missing the whole purpose of being here. If you came to listen to me expecting to hear from God, then you’re on track.
How do I know Isaiah meant what he said? He died being a prophet. He died doing the thing he loved the most. Many people start well but never finish the race God marked out for them. But not Isaiah, he spent the rest of his days as God’s prophet to Israel.
1. A deep sense of need prompts worship. If you don’t realize your own needs then you will have very little use for a sermon like this, or for singing, or gathering together with the body of Christ. If you realize you are in need setting around people with needs your need for worship is not partial, it’s total.
2. Preoccupation with the Lord enhances worship. We come as ruined sinners and we say, “Lord speak now”. I don’t want to miss a thing. ILLUSTRATION: Have you ever been really involved in a movie or sporting event and had to go to the bathroom? And you set there in pain because you don’t want to miss anything. What if God choose to speak to you during the worship service, though a song, prayer, or possibly even the sermon; would you hear Him? Or would you miss it because you came to church preoccupied with other things?
Preoccupation with the Lord keeps me from judging others or worrying over how furniture matches in the worship center. We can get side tracked worrying over things in this building that don’t really matter to God, or has anything to do with our relationship with God. We are here to impress no one but to be impressed by God. Many people have never been in a church where God is obviously present. How blessed we are to be a part of God’s work.
3. Worship never ends with just hearing from God, it always calls for a response.
