Wednesday, December 10, 2008

WorthShip

Have you ever felt like seeking God is hard work? I mean we put pressure on ourselves to have consistent daily quiet times, go to Bible study, be at church every time the doors are open, and "be good little Christians". Nothing wrong with trying to be a good Christian or having set daily quiet times or going to church/Bible study (those are all admirable things), but are we doing those things in order to seek God or out of duty? Are our actions sincere or are we simply going through the motions.


No where in the Bible does it say "Thou shalt go through the motions necessary to make a good impression on God and others". God knows our hearts even better than we do. He knows when we are sincere and when we are playing church or trying to get the "Christian of the Year Award". I think all too often we forget that everything we do should be an act of worship to God.......not just going through the obligatory daily routine.



In John 4:19-24, Jesus is talking to the Samaritan woman at the well..........

"Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem."
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 the 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 word worship in this verse comes from the Anglo-Saxon word "weorthscipe" which literally means "worthship". When we worship in Spirit and in Truth, we are showing God how much He is worth to us...........and sadly, when we go through the motions and "half-heartedly semi-worship" out of obligation, we are also showing God how much He is worth to us.
I think we limit worship to what happens in the pews at the local church, but when we are given new life in Christ, we are called to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.....not just on Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesdays at 6:30, but in our daily lives. Everyday worshippers are the ones God is seeking -- people who can worship God in Spirit and in Truth without a worship leader and a 3 bullet-point sermon. See, where you worship really doesn't matter, Whom you worship and HOW you worship Him is is what is really important. The steeple and the pews are irrelevant to a person who desires to worship in Spirit and in Truth.


John 4 says that the Father actually SEEKS those who truly worship Him in Spirit and in Truth........the word "seeks" here means to enquire, desire, to seek after. God enquires about, desires, and seeks after those who drop the Phariseeical obligations and simply worship Him for Who He is.

So, if you see seeking God as hard work......stop working and start worshipping......and then HE will seek YOU!

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very well spoken Bethanne. After reading this I can't help but find better balance and put things in their proper perspective. Something I've been struggling with lately. This was a word in due season for me. Thanks for posting your heart.

Greg P. said...

Many times I've had to examine myself and determine, "why am I here". Your point is well taken and necessary for every Christian to think about before acting..... so that way you're NOT acting, but, doing.

Good post Beth.

p.s. I just put up a new post and I don't see it on your updates.
You're right, sometimes your updates..... don't.

Amanda said...

My life didn't become abundant until I stopped working and started resting.

Thanks for confirming this truth today.

Anonymous said...

Awesome Post Bethanne...The bible tells us..when 2 or more come together to worship he will be among us...

This happened yesterday..We we're sitting in the waiting room as my husband had surgery, My Daddy (Baptist Preacher) and I we're talking about the lord and before long our waiting room had turned in to a God filled Room, full of worship and praise...

Yes Church is Wonderful, if it's done with the right heart. It's truely a heart issue...just like tithing, not a money issue, it's a heart issue...Too many people go to church to make it a social issue...What she wearing, Who they sitting with? etc, etc...That's church for the wrong reason...It's simple a heart issue...It doesn't matter where your worship him, as long as you worship...

Eddie said...

Well said daughter! It truely does show HIS Worth to us. Therefore we should worship in Spirit and in Truth. He knows which way we worship.

Fran said...

My word for the day is "seek." How timely.

I love ya girl. And, I'm feeling soooooo much better today so there is no need to bring dinner tonight.
Ha!!!

Denise said...

i remember hearing some years ago the meaning is "worthship." it changed forever how i approach worship.
i have also heard that to worship means to come towards to kiss. isn't that beautiful!
jesus kissing is good! :-)

Sandi said...

what a timely post for such a busy time of the year! thank you! well said!

ocean mommy said...

Oh I love this....so good!

Hugs!
steph.

Heidi Zawisza said...

Thanks for the post. Time to put a check on my priorities!!