“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;” (1 Peter 2:9)
This is a purpose for which we are called for the purpose of praising God, worshiping God. That is one of the job descriptions of a Christian. We should declare that God is worthy, worth more than everything else put together.
The word “worship” however has lost much of its intended meaning over time . The first mention of worship in the Bible is when Abraham was preparing to sacrifice his son, Isaac, unto the Lord. Though God intervened at the last moment, sparing Isaac, it was the act of obedience that was worship unto God. Now, the term usually refers to music and therefore misses the deeper meaning of sacrifice and service to God. The question is what would cause us to desire to sacrifice our lives?
This will help illustrate three kinds of worship.
- Worship that involves speaking praise.
- Worship that involves listening.
- Worship that involves doing.
There is a worship that expresses the heart, and worship that involves the mind, and a worship that involves the body. There is a worship that is giving praise upward, a worship that is receiving instructions from above, and a worship that carries out instruction in the world around us.
The fact that we believe God says something about his worthiness. The fact that we trust him and love him declares that he is worthy of love and trust. The fact that we obey Him also says that He has worth. Our words complete the picture by saying that God has worth. In the words we say to one another, in the prayers we say to God, in the songs we sing, we can declare that God is worth more than all other gods, worth more than all other things.
We can worship God all by ourselves. But it is also something we do together. God has revealed himself not just to me, but to many people. God puts us in a community, He reveals himself to a community and through a community, and the community together responds to him in worship, in declaring that he is worth all honor and praise.
Peter comments above in 1 Peter 2, that we are chosen people of God and that our purpose is to “proclaim the praises of Him.” Why proclaim? Because God has called us out of darkness and into marvelous light. He has saved us and made us His children. This is why we worship and why we are willing to sacrifice for our God and King. He has been so good to us that we cannot help but respond in the truest sense of worship. It is the loving mercy and grace of our Heavenly Father that compels us to seek Him, love Him and live for Him.
“When we come to realize all that Christ has done for us, we cannot help but worship Him.”
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I am in awe of Your unending, unconditional love. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection on my behalf, I am able to be free from the bondage of sin and future condemnation. You are so good to me, and I desire to respond with a life of surrender to you. Fill me with Your Spirit and help me to live a life of love and service for You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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Rob Lavallee
Scriptural Seeds Ministries