Worship Series

Purpose of the Church: Worship

Part 2 Matt. 22:34-40 & Matt. 28:18-20

Today we’re going to begin to look at the Five Purposes of the Church that Jesus outlines for us in primarily two verses….

1. Luke 10:27 He answered: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ ; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” AND

2. Matt. 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

THE FIVE PURPOSES ARE –

1. WORSHIP 2. MINISTRY 3. EVANGELISM

4. BAPTISM, BECOMING A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY AND 5. DISCIPLESHIP

TODAY WE ARE GOING TO FOCUS ON WORSHIP

I. WHY IS WORSHIP SO IMPORTANT?

Worship has always been the main thing for the church to be involved in….Actually this began long before Jesus came on the scene…Worship was central to the lives of the folks in the Old Testament…and most of our understanding of worship comes from them…

Orginally worship was a relationship with God as the two humans, Adam and Eve, walked with God in the Garden…PERFECT RELATIONSHIP WAS POSSIBLE BECAUSE THERE WAS THE ABSENCE OF SIN

HOWEVER, after the fall…after sin entered, in things changed…now worship became a thing of sacrafice to cleanse us so we might can enter into the presence of God

YOU SEE THE MAIN THING THAT WAS LOST IN THE FALL WAS OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD…THE REST OF THE O.T. IS THE STORY OF HOW GOD WAS WORKING TOWARD RESTORATION OF RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM….

IT IS IN WORSHIP THAT WE ENTER INTO GOD’S PRESENCE….IT’S WHAT MAKES A RELATIONSHIP POSSIBLE…WORSHIP IS THE KEY

2. WHAT IS WORSHIP?

Worship isn’t just something we do at church…it should encompass our whole lives putting God at the center of our lives. We do this as submit to Jesus’ Lordship…WHEN WE DO THIS WE ARE WORSHIPPING GOD

WORSHIP isn’t just following an order in a bulletin or being a watcher of the leadership…IT IS ENTERING INTO THE PRESENCE OF GOD…hopefully those things we do usher you into God’s presence

WORSHIP YOU SEE ISN’T A CEREBRAL EXERCISE…IT’S EXPERIENCING THE VERY PRESENCE OF GOD

Matt. 15:8-9 “ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’ ”

JESUS WAS TALKING ABOUT THE WORSHIP HAPPENING THE “RIGHT WAY”…THAT IS THE RIGHT WORDS, THE RIGHT ORDER…BUT IT WAS EMPTY…WHAT THEY WERE LACKING WAS REAL LIFE…THE SPIRIT OF GOD WASN’T EXPECTED BECAUSE THEY HAD IT ALL DOWN PAT

But isn’t this what it becomes so many times…just another Sunday…another service….we leave the same way we came in…

II. Worship magnifies God

Do you remember what Mary said after learning she was going to be carrying the Son of God?

Luke 1:46-50 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me — holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.

The Psalmist said… Ps. 34:3 O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.

To magnify means to make larger or greater…to Magnify God doesn’t mean we make Him any bigger than He already is…EXCEPT IN OUR LIVES…AND BEFORE OTHERS!!

THE WORD MAGNIFY HERE TALKS OF NAME AND REPUTATION, IT IS OUR JOB, OUR JOY, TO LET OTHERS KNOW OF HIS GREATNESS IN OUR LIVES…THAT’S HOW WE MAGNIFY HIM

III. GOD IS LOOKING FOR REAL WORSHIPPERS!

John 4:2224 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

WHAT JESUS WAS TELLING THE WOMAN WAS “YOU KNOW WHO TO WORSHIP, BUT YOU DON’T KNOW HIM!”

Think about your greatest hero (someone you don’t personally know) you can know all about them, without knowing them

The same thing happens with God, we can know all about Him without having a relationship

LOOK WHAT JESUS TELLS US TRUE WORSHIPPERS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO…

John 4:24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”