Pastor Dr. Daniel Ho, 03/03/2012

“Most people think of the church as a drama, with the minister as the chief actor,God as the prompter, and the congregation as the critic. What is actually the case is that the congregation is the chief actor, the minister is the prompter, and God is the critic.” ~James Kennedy

What is worship?

• It is giving “worth” to something or someone and only God is worthy of that and deserves that. (Ps 96:4, 9)

  Psa 96:4,9 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. … Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.

• It is to truly declare who He is and what he has done (Ps. 96:1-3; Jn 4:23)

  Psa 96:1-3 Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. (2) Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. (3) Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

  Joh 4:23 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.

  We must worship not only with spirit but also in truth. We can worship Him in wrong. We must live a godly life otherwise we are not really worshipping Him.

• To worship anyone or anything else diminishes our humanity (cf. Acts 12:21-23)

  Act 12:21-23 On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. (22) They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” (23) Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

“Our greatest claim to nobility is our created capacity to know God, to be in personal relationship with him, to love him and to worship him. Indeed, we are most truly human when we are on our knees before our Creator.” ~John Stott

• Worship is both personal and public, private and corporate (Ps 42:4; Lk 2:27b)

  Psa 42:4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.

Luk 2:37b She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.

“You and I gathering here is something amazing.” ~Pastor Daniel

Anyone who doesn’t join corporate worship is shortchanging themselves.

God alone deserves all our praise and worship.

Why do we worship?

• It fulfills our design (Ps 103:1)

  Psa 103:1 Of David. Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

If we don’t worship God, we worship the wrong thing like money, power, beauty, education (a lot of people have degree but no temperature.) Some people worship atheism, freethinking.

• Our whole life is or should be one of worship to Him (1 Cor 10:31)

  1Co 10:31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

  Worship is not just singing. Singing is an wonderful part of it but not all. In everything we do, we must glorify God. If eating and drinking are to glorify God, when do eating and drinking begin not to glorify God? When we eat or drink too much.

Some comments or definitions of worship:

“Surely that which occupies the total time and energies of heaven must be a fitting pattern for earth.” ~Paul E. Billheimer

We are in trouble if we don’t find worship exciting here and now on earth.

“Worship is the believer’s response of all that they are – mind, emotions, will, body – to what God is and says and does. ~Warren Wiersbe

“We want to be mastered by the objects of our worship. And indeed we are. We worship whatever rules our time, thoughts, longings, and choices. Those who make them [idols] become like them; so do all who trust in them. (Ps 115:8, ESV) ~Harold Best

“Our entire being is fashioned as an instrument of praise,. Just as a master violin maker designs an instrument to product maximum aesthetic results, so God tailor-made our bodies, souls and spirits to work together in consonance to product pleasing expressions of praise and worship. When we use body language to express praise, that which is internal becomes visible.” ~Lamar Boschman

“The first element in worship is adoration. The Hebrews expressed this by their posture and not alone by their word. For they prostrated themselves before God. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. They did not come with and easy familiarity into the presence of God, but were aware of his greatness and majesty, and came with a sense of privilege to His house.” ~H. H. Rowley

We don’t take worship for granted. We should recognize it as a privilege. Come in awe.

“When I worship, I would rather my heart be without words than my words be without heart.” ~Lamar Boschman

“Worship changes the worshipper into the image of the One worshipped.” ~Jack Hayford

If we worship money, we become as money. If we worship God, we let God take control and we become more and more like God.

“We only learn to behave ourselves in the presence of God.” ~C. S. Lewis

“If we are going to worship in Spirit, we must develop a spirit of worship.” ~Michael Catt

Invest time, energy and money in personal worship. When we get stuck in a situation, perhaps God is trying to slow us down.

“As worship begins in holy expectancy, it ends in holy obedience. Holy obedience saves worship from becoming an opiate, an escape from the pressing needs of modern life.” ~Richard Foster

“The most valuable thing the Psalms do for me is to express the same delight in God which made David dance.” ~C. S. Lewis

We dance in worship. But we must not draw attention to ourselves and we must not distract.

“When God’s people begin to praise and worship Him using the biblical methods He gives, the power of His presence comes among His people in an even greater measure.” ~Graham Truscott

“God is to be praised with the voice, and the heart should go therewith in holy exultation.” ~Charles H. Spurgeon

“Without worship, we go about miserable.” ~A. W. Tozer

“A glimpse of God will save you. To gaze at him will sanctify you.” ~Manley Beasley

“Worship is the submission of all our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness; the nourishment of mind with His truth; the purifying of imagination by His Beauty; the opening of the heart to His love; the surrender of will to His purpose – and all of this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless emotion of which our nature is capable and there for the chief remedy for that self-centredeness which is our original sin and the source of all actual sin.” ~William Temple

The Result of Worship

• It satisfies us (Ps 84:1,2)

I the presence of God, we have peace and strengrh.

Psa 84:1-2 For the director of music. According to gittith. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty! (2) My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

• It assures us (Ps 42:5)

Psa 42:5 Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and

• It transforms us.

What is God doing today?

The more we worship God, the more God changed us. We come to worship with excitement and expectancy. Come early, don’t be late. Come for an encounter with God. Come for the divine exchange. Pastor Daniel urged us to stay until the end after the benediction. Benediction comes after altar call. The alter call is a holy moment and we should respect that. Honour God. Pray for ourselves and pray for the speaker as he makes the altar call. Pray for the people around us even if we are not moved to answer the altar call. It’s important to come early for worship so we can prepare ourselves. Many people cry during worship (that includes me.)

God has been doing wonderful things in the church in the last 2 months. Pastor Daniel sensed that our worship has taken on another dimension. There is an awesome presence of God. There is an excitement. We are going to see more people getting saved. We are going to see more people running to the church.

Questions for discussion

1. What do you understand about worship? Why do we worship God and how do you prepare for worship?
2. How can we worship God in spirit and in truth? What are the results when you have truly worshipped? How will that affect our work, attitude, relationships and play?