Habits of Effective Disciples: Worship

Disciples respond to God's revelation with a life of worship which begins by seeing God for who he truly is.

In Scripture we have a few examples of worship in the presence of God. The prophet Isaiah saw a vision of the heavenly throne room and it led him to worship the Lord. Later the Apostle John saw heaven while he was in exile on the island of Patmos. Both Isaiah and John show us heaven as a place of profound and powerful worship.

THE ONE OBJECT OF WORSHIP

Matt 4:10 teaches us that Jesus did not yield to the temptation of Satan and told him it is written, we are to worship the Lord our God and none other. Exodus 20:3 is very clear in giving the great commandments God said that we are to have no other Gods before Him.

Hebrews 10:22 teaches us to draw near to God with a true heart in fullness of faith. Psalm 100 teaches that we are to make a joyful noise in our worship. Isaiah 40:3 teaches that our strength is renewed when we wait upon the Lord in our worship. Jesus taught us in Matt 18:19-20 that worship is not conditioned on the number of worshipers for wherever two or more are joined in His name, He is there.

AN AUDIENCE WITH THE KING

Isaiah 6:1-13

Isaiah's audience with the King became his call experience and it changed his life and the lives of many others. In this moment Isaiah received a revelation of God. What did he see?

He saw the Lord God in His highest position, on His heavenly throne. In his vision God was enormous in size and the train of His robe alone filled the Temple. The holy Seraphims of God spoke and smoke filled the temple and the structure of the Temple itself shook with the words that were spoken. This moment is important as it foretold that while His being filled the Temple in that Old testament moment, His being now fills each of us who is saved in a New Testament moment. His Holy Spirit indwells us and fills us just as He Himself filled the Temple. These highest angels are in perpetual worship of God, ready to praise and serve.

Nowhere else in the Bible are these highest ones mentioned by name.

Isaiah heard the voices of the angels praising God by the words:

"Holy, Holy, Holy"

One time each for the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

This word means set apart. God is holy and He expects us to pursue holiness in our worship. He told us so in Leviticus 20:26 telling us He Himself has set us apart to be His own.

What did this moment of vision do to Isaiah? What do our worship moments do to us? What can we say about the worship moment example?

Worship removes our pride. If we are in sincere worship the time is in our hearts about reverence and then confrontation. The Lord confronts us with our sin when we come to Him in worship. His Spirit convicts us to confess and repent so that He will forgive and allow us close. Just as Isaiah taught us in giving us the story of his moment, we should realize God is far more and far mightier that we can imagine.

Isaiah began his confession after his sin was immediately brought to his mind and his lips. He confessed he was a man of unclean lips and in the moment of seeing God's holiness, he admitted his own unholiness. We too may be men of unclean lips. How do we clean them? We confess.

Worship offers us cleansing from sin and it wonderful good news for us. Here is the Lord's answer to our failures and shortcomings. What happens after confession in worship?

WHEN HE CALL US TO WORSHIP WE CONFESS, WE REPENT, WE GAIN DIVINE FORGIVENESS, AND THEN WE OBEY.

Isaiah heard God speak directly asking who could be sent to do His will. The worship moment consumed Isaiah's senses, sight, sound, touch, and smell. He responded well and asked the Lord to send him.

The greatest need of our world is spiritual renewal. Isaiah was renewed and cleansed in worship. This lesson is to us to seek renewal as well in worship and willingness to accept His will.

ANOTHER GLIMPSE OF OUR GLORIOUS GOD

Rev 4:1-11

Here we are given a wonderful portrait of heaven in John's vision on his island of exile. The windows of heaven were opened for him by Jesus and he was called upward and discovered that heaven is filled with worshipful praises of God.

This final book is filled with worship. We cannot understand it apart from worship for it is packed full of praise and worship.

As he arrived John saw a throne, teaching us once more that heaven is a kingdom. He saw the great King seated on the throne. Elders seated near were casting their crowns at His feet. John saw beauty there, precious stones everywhere and a heavenly rainbow. Just as in Isaiah's account, God is not alone. Angels, elders, and creatures worship there. The throne shows power, thunder, lightning and divine light from the lamps John saw.

Heaven is a place of perpetual praise and worship.

We should do all we can to do the same here. If we have not learned to be worshipers, it really does not matter how well we do anything else. Worship changes us or it has not been true worship. Worship begins in holy hope and ends in holy obedience.

We are created and born again to be worshipers first and workers second. How do we know this?

Remember the prayer Jesus taught for His disciples ( and for all who believe and came after them - meaning us), and the first words we are to pray:

Our Father, who are in heaven
HALLOWED be thy name.

We hallow the name of God before we do anything else.

The power and the glory we seek are at the end. Our praise is most important and is so taught by Christ.