I. Introduction
A. Background.
1. At the age of 75 Abraham was called by God
2. Read 12:1-4a. The Bible tells us that Abraham was a friend of God
3. Abraham’s journey with the Lord was cyclical, full of spiritual peaks and valleys. In his life, we see…
a. Faith – Leaving His father’s household to go to a Land yet unseen. At God’s command
b. Failure – Fathering a child (Ishmael) by His wife’s handmaid Hagar
c. Courage – Leading an alliance to go and rescue Lot and the people of Sodom while destroying 5 Kings
d. Cowardice - On more than one occasion he lied because he was afraid of being Killed because of her beauty
e. Prayer – He interceded and appealed to God not to destroy the righteous of Sodom with the sinners
f. Patience – He had to learn to wait 25 years for the fulfillment of God’s promises, He was 100 years old when the son of promise, Isaac, was born
4. Abraham’s walk was real before the Lord… by this time in our text God had been preparing, molding and shaping him for more than 40 years to be a father of a nation.
5. God through the circumstances of life and skillful leading, had shaped the heart of Abram (high father) in chapter 12 into the heart of Abraham (Father of a multitude of nations) in chapter 22.
6. But now it was time to put the years of development to the ultimate test.
7. At this time Abraham was approximately 115 years old and his beloved son of promise Isaac was between 15 and 17 years old
8. Today’s text centers around a worship service and is birthed out of Abraham’s life of worship
B. Burden
1. We become like what we worship. If we:
a. Worship possessions…become a materialistic person.
b. Worship money… become a greedy person.
c. Worship Sex… become a lustful person.
d. Worship Power… become a corrupt person. But…
e. Worship Jesus… become a Christ like person
2. The Hebrew word for Worship in verse 5 of our text is the word Shachah.
3. Although there are several examples of worship in the Bible, prior to this passage, this is the first mention of the word in all of scripture. It means:
a. To bow down, to prostrate ones self, as an act of respect before a superior being.
b. It means to surrender or to fall down in submission
c. Worship is Worth-ship.
d. Worship is service of God expressed, not only in religious gatherings, but also in every area of life.
4. Worship is always a direct response to God’s initiative.
5. In His discourse with the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus plainly removes the veil that was masking what was the very pursuit of God. Jesus said, in John 4:23, “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.” NAS
6. God Seeks true worshippers!!
7. Abraham was such a worshipper of God.
8. By examining this testing of his faith, we can gain some insight on how we too can make worship the major theme of our lives
9. Our thought for this evenings sermon is Living the Life of Worship
10. PRAY!!
11. Let’s look at our text…READ V 1-14
II. Exposition
A. The Life of Worship will be Tried and Tested ( v.1)
1. God tests the hearts of His worshippers to gauge their spiritual condition.
a. Moses instructed Israel in Deut 8:2, “Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.”
2. The Hebrew word tempt in our text, Nacah, means to test, to try, to prove, to assay, to put to the test, to put to the proof. This verb carries with it the idea of testing the quality of someone or something or someone through a demonstration of stress.
3. There is a big difference between testing and temptation.
4. James chapter 1 tells us that Temptations come from the wicked desires within us
5. Tests come from the Lord who has a special purpose to fulfill in us.
6. Abraham had been tested from the beginning in his walk with God. He faced:
a. The Family Test: when he had to leave his father’s household and kindred and go to a land that God would show him.
b. The Famine Test: which he failed when he doubted God and went to Egypt for help
c. Fellowship Test: which he passed when he gave Lot the first choice of the pastureland when the land they were on couldn’t support both of their flocks.
d. The Fight Test: When he and his band of servants went out to defeat the Kings to rescue Lot and the people of Sodom
e. The Fortune Test: When He refused the riches of Sodom, but accepted the blessing of Melchizedek
f. The Fatherhood Test: Which he failed when he fathered a child by Sarai’s handmaid Hagar
g. In Chapter 21 he passed the Farewell Test: When the time came to send Ishmael away even though it broke his heart.
7. God may test you using your family, your friends or even your faith
8. God’s test are unique to the individual. Each test is tailor made.
a. Job proclaimed, “0 But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.” Job 23:10 NIV
9. James said: “Count it all Joy when you encounter diverse trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience
10. If we are to live the Life of worship, the first thing that we must realize is that The Life of the Worship will be tested and tried.
B. The Life of Worship always Comes with a Cost (v.2)
1. As a worshipper, your sacrifice matters to God.
a. Read Gen 4:2-7, Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground, but Able brought God the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. Literally translated, He brought the fattest of the firstlings of his flock. Able gave God his best!!!
b. The writer of Hebrews said that by faith Able offered a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain. (Heb.11:4)
c. Jesus required that His disciples leave all that they had livelihoods, family, and relationships to follow Him. The life of worship comes with cost.
d. Jesus Marveled over the widow that gave her last mite in the temple when there were others who gave out of their surplus, she gave out of her need.
e. David said, “…I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God which cost me nothing.” 2 Sam 24:24
2. The Burnt Offering was to be wholly consumed in ashes. It was the highest of gifts to God, representing total unreserved dedication of the offerer; body, soul, spirit and will to God. The burnt offering signified a total and complete sacrifice.
3. Throughout his life Abraham had been called on to make sacrificial offerings to the Lord.
4. His life of worship was characterized by significant burnt offerings to the Lord
a. First it was his father, now it is His only son
b. He had sacrificed the lush plains of the Jordan,
c. He sacrificed the gifts of the king of Sodom, then Ishmael.
5. Although the command was to sacrifice Isaac as an offering to the Lord, the real point was Abraham’s sacrifice of himself. He had to sacrifice
a. His Will, His Wisdom, His Ways.
6. Living the life of worship will cost you: It may cost you your…
a. Time - Talents
b. Relationships - Reputation
c. Past times – Possessions
d. Business - Body Romans 12:1
e. Worldly Pleasures – Earthly Treasures
7. Illustrate: Sacrificial Gift and Losing Job in November 2002
8. The Worshipper of God is willing to pay the price with Joy because he knows that no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
9. So we see, The life of worship is tried and tested, and it comes with a cost, but it also
C. The Life of Worship is Ordered by Obedience (v.3-4) - The life of worship requires obedience to God’s Word in spite of feelings, circumstances or consequences. It means holding on to God’s truth no matter how heavy the burden or how dark the day. This obedience requires a…
1. Speedy Response to the deity of God’s Word – “And Abraham rose up early in the morning.”
a. Abraham didn’t waste any time. Having received the word from God, he knew that despite His shortcomings in the past… He was to follow God’s word without delay.
b. He rose up early in the morning.
c. Illustrate: Irritation when the boys delay when I call.
2. Specific Reaction to the details of God’s Word:
a. Abraham left no details undone… all we see is specific movement… saddling, taking, cleaving, rising and going.
b. With this, the most intense of all the test that Abraham had faced, he moved without hesitation, nor did he leave any details undone.
c. He skipped the details once before where he knew that through his seed, all the families of the earth would be blessed, He simply didn’t know Sarah was to be the mother… Ishmael
d. His attention to the details, shows that he was willing to complete the task given him by the Lord
3. At this point in his life of worship, Abraham grew to love God by obeying Him wholeheartedly
4. So we see that the life of worship is ordered by obedience next we see…
D. The Life of Worship is Fueled by Faith (v. 5-10)
1. Faith requires us to live radically according to the Word of God.
2. He took God at His word… Despite the difficulty of what was before him, Abraham would not let go of the promises that God spoke to him that were yet to be fulfilled.
3. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God.
4. Illustrate: with holding a Baby How that child totally trusts the one that is holding him...
5. Abraham Believed God!!! Read vs.5, 8
6. Somehow, Abraham was able to reconcile in his mind, obedience to God’s command and God faithfully fulfilling His promises that were yet to be fulfilled.
7. Heb 11:17-19 – “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; 18 it was he to whom it was said, "IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED." 19 He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type.”
8. The bible tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.
9. Perhaps Abraham knew that even when we are faithless, God abides faithful, in that He cannot deny himself.
E. The Life of Worship is Secured by His Sight (v.11-14)
1. Belief that the Lord provides enables the true worshipper to sacrifice without reservation
2. The Lord revealed Himself to Abraham in a new way on Mt. Moriah that day. He came to know God as the true source for everything that he would ever need.
3. The name Moriah – means Foreseen of Jehovah
4. The word Jireh translated provide in verse 8 and verse 14 is most accurately translated Sees.
5. That place of Sacrifice could easily be known as Jehovah Sees.
6. The Lord sees our hearts of Worship, and in response to what He sees, He makes Himself seen.
7. Isn’t it good to know that whenever we go through a season of testing, … Jehovah Sees!!!
a. When our month outlasts our money… Jehovah Sees
b. When we can’t quite see the light at the end of the tunnel… Jehovah Sees
c. When we are troubled on every side…Jehovah Sees
8. No friend like Him is so high and holy. And Yet no friend is so meek and lowly, Jesus knows all about my troubles, He will guide till the day is done. There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus, no not one, no not one.
9. David said, “For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His” 2 Chron 16:9
III. Conclusion
A. A songwriter once wrote, “I will live a life of worship, I will live a life of praise, I will lift His name above all names and High His Banner raise, I will let His spirit flow through me to a thirsty land, I will live a life of worship to the glory of the Lamb, to the Glory of the lamb.
B. Why should we live this life of worship? Isaiah said, He was WOUNDED for our transgressions, He was BRUISED for our iniquities… the Chastisement of our peace was upon Him and by His stripes We Are Healed.
C. David said, “Glory and honour are in his presence; strength and gladness are in his place. Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD” 1 Chron 16:27-29KJV
D. In Living The Life of Worship, we see…
a. The Life of Worship will be tried and tested
b. The Life of Worship comes with a cost
c. The Life of Worship is ordered by obedience
d. The Life of Worship is fueled by faith
e. The Life of Worship is Secured by His Sight
E. Pray!!
F. Invitation
