It sure has been fun writing these posts on worship. I've learned new things as I prepared to write that has continued my growth and understanding. As we look at worship and how it is applied to our lives there are a couple distinctions I want to point out. First, worship is not a feeling. There isn't a time in the bible that says 'Oh I love the feeling of worship'. True worship is a choice that might lead to peace and joy, but it is not a feeling in and of itself. Second, it is not something that God gives us. We worship God. We give, express, dedicate worship to God. God gives us love, righteousness, peace, joy, power, etc. but he does not give us worship. This helps us know what worship is not.
So let us begin on what the biblical concept of what worship is. Most people start with the biblical word in Hebrew or Greek, but I want to start with the English word - worship. The history of the word from Wikipedia says, "The word is derived from the
Old English weorþscipe, meaning
worship, honour shown to an object,
[2] which has been etymologised as "
worthiness or
worth-ship"—to give, at its simplest,
worth to something." So worship's most basic definition is to ascribe worth to something.
When you ascribe worth to a god you are declaring by word or deed that that is the god you worship. Many people live in a way that ascribes worth to their favorite sports team, or their job, or their money, or their music, or their celebrities, or their smart phone, or social media, or their car. This is what the bible calls idols and are not worthy of their worship. You'll notice that just about anything can become an idol. There are also gods such as hindu gods, or the muslim god, or the egyptian gods, or greek or roman gods that the bible calls false gods. And this is where it gets really good.
There are all sorts of pleasures that God has created for us. Marriage, love, freindships, mangos, burritos, Chic-fil-a, swimming, art, music, etc. There are so many! God is amazing! How generous and wonderful He is! So how do we make sure that we do not make anything an idol or false god in our lives, to keep from letting anything take God's place in our hearts?
Worship.
Not just worship (ascribing worth to something), but worship towards the God of the bible. When God is given ultimate worth, all the pleasures, all the things God has given us, are given their proper place in our lives. This is why worship has to do with every part of our life. Because in and during every part of our life we are worshiping, giving something worth. So as we work, we worship God knowing he wants us to be honest and hard working. When we are married we worship knowing He wants us to be loving, kind, faithful, dedicated, and caring. When dealing with people who hate us, we worship by loving them as we know that's what He wants. When dealing with art, in any venue, we know not to advocate or promote sin or sinful behavior because that gives worth to the things that bring death. This goes for every area of our lives.
So let Jesus be first and the center of our lives.
Jesse
Part 4 coming soon.
