The Life And Worship That Is Pleasing To God

The life that is Pleasing to God.

Hebrews 11:1, 6, 17-19

INTRODUCTION:

1.) What could be a better desire for any of us than to please God with our lives?

A.) Hebrews 11 has been called by many the roll call of faith.

B.) There are many great men and women of God listed there who learned what it meant to live a life that is pleasing to God.

C.) This morning as we look a Hebrews 11, I want us to study a little bit of the life of a man who learned to live his life in a way that was pleasing to God.

ca.) Today, I want us to study the life of Abraham, and his faith, and worship that made him a man pleasing to God.

I. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE GOD WITHOUT AN ACTIVE FAITH.

--Hebrews 11:6

1.) Faith is a basic requirement to a life that pleases God.

A.) We can choose any number of people in the Scriptures that had a positive relationship with God and we will find in them at least one common characteristic:

aa.) There may be far more than one common trait, but in any person of the Old or New Testament, who lived a life pleasing to God, you will find that man or woman was a person of faith.

B.) The pages of Scripture show us the lives of many men and women who had a strong faith in God.

C.) Though they would have looked to God for their salvation that was not the limit of their faith.

ca.) These were people whose views of God was far more intimate than merely a desire for salvation.

cb.) These were people seeking an intimate relationship with God Himself.

D.) When a person puts God first in his life, he or she is a person who seeks to honour and glorify God.

da.) The result of such a faith is that God will more than bless that person for any sacrifices they have made in in their commitment of faith in God.

db.) Certainly, the Word of God lists many people with that type of faith.

2.) Abraham would have been one of many in Scripture who demonstrate a life of faith.

A.) Certainly there are many things both good and bad we could say about Abraham, just as there is of any of the people in the Scriptures, or even any of us.

aa.) Abraham was far from a perfect man, and Scripture certainly does not hide his flaws.

ab.)Yet the thing which really sticks out with Abraham was his faith in God.

aba.) Through all of his ups and downs, Abraham maintained a strong faith in God and tried to live a life pleasing to God.

B.) Abraham had a faith in God that moved and motivated every aspect of his walk with God, and with man.

ba.) Certainly there are many examples of his walk of faith we could mention today.

bb.) Because of His faith in God, Abraham was able to show us perhaps more fully than anyone else other than Christ what it

means to worship God.

bba.) The Bible mentions many people who worshipped God, but Abraham shows us worship even when he was dealing with brokenness and pain.

3.) Abraham’s worship of God completely blows away the preconceived notions of worship most Christians and churches practice.

A.) If I was to ask the average Christian what it means to worship God, I could predict many of the answers that would be given to me.

B.) Most Christians would tell me something to the effect that worship is joining with God’s people, and singing Church songs that uplift

our spirits.

ba.) Others might tell me that worship is giving an offering to God, partaking of the Lord’s Supper, and hearing a sermon.

bb.) I do not I do not want to lessen any of these aspects of our church services, but I suspect that if Abraham was in the room with us

he would tell us that we have missed the boat in understanding what true worship is.

bba.) The reality is that we can perform any one of these functions without ever experiencing true Biblical worship that brings us into a close and intimate relationship with Almighty God.

bc.) Certainly if the heart is right with God, any one of these things can come from our worship to God, and may even be part of our worship experience, but to be honest, none of these things we often call worship really defines what worship is, or what it means to truly

worship God.

bd.) Jesus told the woman at the well, the true worshippers are those who worship in Spirit, and in truth.

be.) In other words, to have a life that is pleasing to God, and be able to worship God in a way that pleases Him, requires far more than just going through the motions we call worship.