What is Worship?

​The answer is quite simple: offering yourself to God. Paul writes in Romans 12:1-2 TEV “So then, my friends, because of God's great mercy to us I appeal to you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer.” Offering yourself to God is what worship is all about. This act of personal surrender is called several things: consecration, making Jesus Lord, taking up your cross, dying to self, and yielding to the Spirit. What matters is that you do it, not what you call it. God wants your life; all of it - 95 percent is not enough.

​Most people when they hear the word “worship” think of music. Like “First we have the worship, then we have the sermon.” As if worship is just music. Yes, singing is one kind of worship. But worship is an entire lifestyle.

The Bible tells us to worship God continually. You cannot sing continuously. Worship is far more than just music, just singing, or just praise. Every aspect of your life can be an act of worship. Every aspect of your life can be an act of worship to God.

Here is what this means: To worship in truth means it is real. It is sincere and biblical. Real, sincere, and biblical. It is transparent. It is truthful, open, and honest, with nothing hidden. There is no pretense here. There is no pretending. Worshiping openly from the inside, openly before God. That means you can tell God anything you are feeling or thinking when you come to him in worship. He is big enough to manage that. In fact, if you read the Psalms, which are the chapters of worship, so many times you find that David is complaining in his worship. He is not happy, and he is telling God all about it. But he is worshiping God while he is doing it. He worships spirit and truth. That is what the Lord says we need to do.

True worship is not about activity. It is about authenticity. Not about activity. It is about authenticity. Is it real? Is it in spirit? Is it true? Is it open and honest before God? 

God does not just want the motion. What God wants most from you in worship is you. He is looking for a relationship. He is not just looking for you to fulfill your duty. He is looking for a relationship. 

Look again at John 4:23. Jesus says, “The time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” He is looking for people who will come openly and honestly and invest themselves in worship before him. 

I like to say that if you are looking for God and you just cannot seem to find him in whatever crisis you are facing, then stop what you are doing and worship him. And he will come to find you. Like a good shepherd, hearing the voice of a lost sheep, he will come to your rescue. He will invade your circumstances with his presence. What he wants most from you in worship is you; that is why we should worship.

Worship is not for God’s benefit. It is for your benefit.

Make Every Day Count!

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