Sep
19
2016
True Worship
Posted in Worship 2 Comments
When you hear the word worship what comes to mind?
If you looked up the word worship in the dictionary would the definition suffice?
Can worship even be defined?
Is worship only a feeling?
The word worship is defined in the dictionary as reverent honor and homage paid to God.
The definition becomes a bit weaker when it goes on to say, “or a sacred parsonage.”
The definition becomes even weaker when extended to “any object regarded as sacred.”
A dictionary definition cannot fully convey the true meaning of worship.
We have experienced worship in church.
We have experienced worship at a concert.
We have experienced worship when we see beauty so overwhelming we must praise God.
We have worshiped when we are astounded and filled with joy by the birth of a baby.
We are meant to worship.
It is the object of worship that is the most important aspect of worship.
Some people worship money, power, or another person.
Some people feel as if they are the object of worship and desire people to bow down to them.
Often, in our churches, worship is something we do as soon as we come into church.
Worship is what we participate in for the first twenty minutes of our church services.
Sometimes, when we come into church, worship is the last thing we feel like doing.
It is difficult to worship because we are carrying burdens we are not meant to carry.
Our burdens, our ego, and our problems get in the way of worship.
Worship is not about us.
It does not matter what we feel like on any given day.
Worship is about God and giving Him the honor and praise He is due.
We forget that.
We debate over worship styles.
We debate over the songs that are sung.
We choose a camp to park ourselves in: traditional or contemporary.
All the while, we keep the focus on us.
We have taken our eyes off Him, if only for a second.
Worship becomes a source of contention instead of an overflow of our praise.
Worship causes division instead of bringing us together as we lift up His name.
Debates on style and types of songs were unimportant in a recent story I read.
Ben Ellis taught Latin and Bible at The Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, Tennessee.
Ben had taught there since 2008.
And then Ben was stricken with an aggressive form of cancer.
Ben began chemotherapy treatments but that didn’t stop Mr. Ellis from showing up at school.
He always showed up for his students and he was not about to stop now.
Ben Ellis and his wife, Shelley have five children.
All of the children attended school at the same school where there father was so loved.
On September 7 of this year, 450 students, grades 9 through 12, sang outside Ben’s home.
They were joined by faculty members as well.
They brought their voices and instruments and they worshiped.
They worshiped God who is sovereign and powerful and worthy to be praised.
They sang to show their support for Mr. Ellis and his year-long battle with cancer.
Ben Ellis, with oxygen tubes in his nose, sang with them.
Ben’s wife sat by his side at a window propped up by a piece of wood.
They sang and they praised God from whom all blessings, even cancer, flow.
The student and faculty got on buses and traveled to Mr. Ellis’ home.
There they stayed for thirty minutes, singing and praising God with their beloved teacher.
They did not sing to Mr. Ellis.
The students and faculty sang with Mr. Ellis.
There’s nothing worth more that would ever come close,
No thing can compare, You’re our living Hope,
Your presence, Lord.
I’ve tasted and seen of the sweetest of loves,
When my heart becomes free and my shame is undone,
Your presence, Lord.
Holy Spirit You are welcome here,
Come flood this place and fill the atmosphere.
Your glory God is what our hearts long for,
To be overcome by Your presence, Lord.
The presence Lord
Let us become more aware of Your presence.
Let us experience the glory of Your goodness.
(Holy Spirit, by Jesus Culture)
That’s the thing about worship.
There is no sitting on the sidelines.
Worship is active.
To worship is to be fully engaged in mind, body, and spirit and focused on God.
Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” The woman said, “I know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When He comes, He will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, I who speak to you am He.” (John 4:21-26)
Worshiping in spirit and truth is what God requires.
Jesus told the woman at the well that God’s worshipers must worship that way.
It is not about the place or the type of instruments.
It is not about the style or the choice of traditional or contemporary songs.
It is about Him.
It is about lifting up His name.
It is about glorifying Him.
It is about giving back to God all that He has given us.
The students and faculty at Christ Presbyterian Academy knew that.
Why else would 450 people show up at Ben Ellis’ home?
They were a community bonded together in Christ.
They were the Body of Christ; it was love in action.
They sang at Ben Ellis’ home on September 7, 2016.
On September 13, 2016, Ben Ellis went Home to be with His Lord.
His Lord and their Lord.
His God and their God.
And they worshiped.
They worshiped because they know without a shadow of a doubt, they will see Mr. Ellis again.
They worshiped because every promise that God has made in His Word is true.
They worshiped because they love, first God and then others.
Mr. Ellis taught them well.
Gina,
What a blessing it is to turn on the computer this morning and having your blog be the first thing I read! Thank you Mr. Ellis and Christ Presbyterian Academy. However, most importantly, thanks be to God!
Jeff
Jeff,
I am so delighted that you are blessed and that these Whispers are part of your daily devotions. The story of Mr. Ellis touched my heart. I’m glad it touched your heart as well. We worship a mighty God!
Gina