Psalm 100:1-5
Hebrews 10:18-25
John 4:23-25
Sermon
For many people when you ask them about what they think church is about,
Even those who hardly engage with the church,
They say church is about worship
And the truth is worship is central to the life of the church
So no wonder people get so passionate about worship.
True worship is an activity of the church,
God working through His people.
God bringing people together and God sending them out
We could preach on this topic for hours
Today though I will not be so much focussing on how to worship, but the importance of worshipping weekly.
Worship is about worshipping God.
We are commanded to worship only God...this is one of the commandments.
Why?
Now in an age when commands are not popular.
Like all good commands
The command to worship is not for God’s benefit but for our benefit.
An elderly lady reminded me of this.
As she talked about her life to me one day, it became apparent that she had had many difficulties.
Her life and family had not been an easy one.
So I asked her, “How did you continue having faith in God?”
Her response was instant, every week I went to church
I sang songs, prayed, listened to the sermon and the readings and spent time with other Christians,
And during this time God and not my life was the focus
And every time I met with God,
How God saw things seemed to be different to how I saw things.
Brothers and sisters the truth is when we worship, we benefit.
We benefit substantially from God.
Jesus has something to say about this.
Matthew 2:27 says
The Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”
One of the areas worship has a significant impact on us,
Is it deals with the problems that isolation and the attitude of total independence causes.
The Western Societies of USA, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Europe have been encouraging isolation, privatising and total independence for many years.
Non of which are godly.
All of which lead to problems including depression, substance abuse and the lack of love
At their extreme a life of isolation, privatisation and total independence severely affect people’s socialising skills and behaviours.
Juilan Knight, Martin Bryant and those involved in the Columbine killings some years ago lived very closed lives.
The Columbine shooters actually had so many walls up that they put locks on their own bedroom doors, so they didn't have to interact with family.
This is the extreme result of isolation.
Have you ever felt the effects of isolation or the failure of total independence?
When I lived in Melbourne I discovered that you could be around many people, but still feel isolated?
And what happens when we are isolated?
We worry about every little thing.
We worry what people might be saying.
We develop extreme levels of guilt.
One of the ladies I visited regularly in Launceston never left home.
She was so frail she only interacted with her doctor, and those who visited her.
On occasions when other people had visited her, she was happy and had a good outlook on life.
She would still feel guilty
However when no one had visited her she always had tremendous guilt.
She was guilty because she couldn't do what she had previously had been able to do
She said she was a terrible sinner.
However as I we spent time in worship,
Proclaiming God’s word and receiving His forgiveness her outlook changed.
When we are isolated we become self focussed.
We worry what people think of us.
We put up walls
We don't care how our action and words affect others.
We become more determined to get what we want.
When we are isolated, when we offend someine it is their fault,
And we fail to see that our words, actions and timing could have contributed to their hurt.
We become ruthless, others matter less
However worshipping God with a true heart helps us deal with the issues of isolation and independence.
Worship refocusses our lives to God’s reality.
One aspect of worship that we are often involved in is stating our faith using a creed.
Whenever I say the Apostles Creed I am reminded that everything in my life has been created by God
Think about the things you enjoy most.
That you are most thankful for.
What are they?
God has been behind them all.
But the God we worship is more than just a creator.
He is also our saviour.
A saviour that recognises we need his help.
A saviour that is prepared to suffer and die for us
Even though we don't always follow him.
And the creed also reveals that God is my guide, encourager and strength.
God is at work constantly redirecting me back to Him,
And reminding me He is constantly prepared to forgive my sins and give me a new life.
And is constantly encouraging and guiding me in how I am to live with others.
And this God is putting me in relationships with others
When we worship we can not ignore how important God is in our lives
And how important it is to have relationships with other people.
Scripture is clear true Christian relationships is centred around Loving God and Loving others.
True Christian worship is never a private thing
Many people mix up personal and private.
Private is keeping things to myself.
It doesn't involve others.
It often is seen in people doing what they want.
And others not having to know about it?
God does not want us to keep our faith or worship private.
He wants our worship and faith though to be personal
Personal is owning and accepting the faith
It means you be authentic
It means you contribute to the faith and you do so not alone,
But with others, in community
Our worship with God is also a two way deal.
In our worship God, what he has been doing, is up to and will do should be highlighted and emphasised.
That’s why we have bible readings, the sermon and the sacrament.
That’s why when people give testimonies, a good testimony always highlights God and what He has done.
The truth is without God, Christian worship would not be possible.
God initiates and inspires true Christian worship.
Throughout our worship service God is constantly working.
He is calling us into his presence and putting us in situations where we are with other Christians
He is forgiving us
He is speaking to us
He is listening
He is giving gifts to us
He is preparing and inviting us to a banquet
He is giving us His body and blood
And He is equipping us to partner Him in taking His Good News to all those people we are mixing with.
And as a result of God’s actions
We respond
We gather in His presence
We confess our sins and seek His help to live holy lives
We listen to Him
We pray to Him
We offer gifts for His mission through His church
We dine with Him
We give ourselves totally to Him
We thank and praise Him
We go from this place praising Him and taking what He has to offer to others.
Did you notice how much our responses rely on God’s grace.
As we respond we are reminded of God and How great He is and that without God there would be nothing.
So be committed to weekly worship
Don’t see it as a task where you have to, but as an opportunity to be encouraged and touched by God and His love
View weekly worship as the flood light that shows the reality of how good God is.
Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment