Sacred Worship: A Sacrifice of Praise
Introduction
- Yesterday was my dad’s birthday. Went out to buy him a card.
- Any kind of card you want; whether your relationship is distant or intimate.
- Beautiful words that you simply have to sign your name to and mail it in (literally).
- While I am sure my dad appreciates getting a card in the mail, that’s all it is—a form letter.
- How often is worship like this?
- Form letter, named signed, “Thanks God for all you do, your son/daughter…”
- Mail it and go on with our lives.
- Convinced we come here expecting more.
- Hoping for transcendence, and struggle with concentration.
- We know what worship matters—but what is it and why does it matter?
- Series: Sacred Worship.
- Major thought: Worship is a sacrifice of praise, offered in spirit and truth, by grace bought sinners, which transforms their lives as they give glory to God.
- Today: Worship is a sacrifice of praise.
Worship
- Man has an innate desire to worship.
- From cosmic bodies to cruel-faced statues.
- Christians know they should worship/desire to worship God—yet what does that mean?
- Different words for worship in NT.
- Proskuneo: to kiss; to bow before and kiss the feet of (Rev. 4:10).
- Sebomai: to step away from in reverence and awe (Matt. 15:9).
- Latreuo: religious service done on behalf of deity (Matt. 4:10).
- Together: an act of kissing the ground and bowing before, in reverence and awe, as we serve our God.
- But why?
- Psalm 95:1-3; 6-7: the Psalmist calls for worship because they recognize who God is; they see his majesty, glory, and worth.
- Worship: Worth ship.
- Not physically bowing down before our God, but a heart that recognizes the absolute worth of God and responds in praise.
- Story of the the family broach and the lady taking it to the jeweler only to discover its a lost treasure of immense worth.
- Value and beauty demand praise; joy isn’t complete until we do praise it.
- What, in your life, do you give the most value to?
- What is the greatest desire of your heart?
- Harry Potter and the mirror of Esired; sees his parents and Ron sees himself as a sports champion.
- In order for proper worship to occur, we have to be honest about our greatest desire—our Lord—and transfer that devotion and worth to God.
- When you recognize God’s worth, there is a response to that: sacrifice.
Sacrifice
- From the beginning worship was about bringing a sacrifice (Gen. 4:3-4).
- Worship cost me something—pride, self-praise, time, words, affections, money, etc.
- Giving of the self to God; oriented on Him, and not on me.
- If it is focused on the self—our emotions, our intentions—we will never receive the blessing of worship.
- This is a different orientation than how most view worship.
- Everything is oriented toward the seeker; to make individuals not feel uncomfortable.
- 2 Sam. 24:24: But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.”
- Seeker sensitive worship misses the blessing of worship: we sacrifice to receive; we empty ourselves, and are filled.
- Our willingness to sacrifice for the sake of worship shows the worth of God.
- Matt. 2:11: why do they give these precious gifts as an act of worship?
- In giving them they are proclaiming the worth of Jesus: that he is worth far more than all of these treasures.
- Contrast: Mal. 1:8.
- What does our worship say about the value we place on Jesus? Our singing, prayers, meditations as we enter the Lord’s Supper?
- So worship says—or communicates—something about the value or treasuring we have in God.
Praise
- Heb. 13:15: the praise we give to God is a sacrifice because we giving him honor that we would not give another.
- Sacred; something set aside specifically for God and no one else.
- Exercise: think of top three compliments you received in your life.
- Probably have received higher praise, but don’t remember them or dismissed them: they were flattery.
- We know the difference.
- We are not asking you to flatter God—to give him praise you don’t really believe or recognize.
- Again, spurns from a heart that has learned to treasure God: that sees the glory of God within the gospel, scripture, world, and in Jesus.
- We must see God with the eyes of faith; to stand in awe and wonder at His majesty and absolutely delight and treasure in Him.
- When we value and treasure a friendship we want others to come to know them, we praise them when they aren’t around—so worship is an act of love for the friend we have come to know: our Lord Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
- At the Dripping Springs church of Christ we want to get rid of form letter worship (throw away the card you have).
- We want our worship to be a genuine expression of praise for the God we have come to know and treasure—for the great things he has done and for all He is.
- Because worship is a sacrifice of praise, offered in spirit and truth, by grace bought sinners, which transforms their lives as they give glory to God.
- Exercise: take a thank you card as you leave. It will be your thank you card to God.
- Write a thank you letter to him; don’t let anyone else see it.
- Bring it next week and read it before worship; think on and meditate everything God has done for you, seeing how valuable he is to your life.
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