TRUE wORSHIP
From the very beginning God has dictated to man the manner in which He wanted to be worshipped. Man can choose whether to worship or not to worship God. But if he chooses to worship God, he must worship Him according to His requirements.
This principle is seen in the case of Cain and Abel the first recorded example of man worshipping God. In Hebrews 11:4, we read, "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and by it he begin dead yet speaketh." Abel's worship was acceptable because it was by faith (as God directed Rom. 10:17), while Cain followed hi own way and His worship was rejected.
From Cain and Abel's example, we see that the attitude and the way we express it when we worship is extremely important. With this in mind, let us prayerfully approach the subject of worship.
Worship Defined
The term "worship" is translated from a Greek word, which denotes, "an act of reverence." Worship, therefore, is deep, loving reverence that is expressed in certain acts which God has commanded.
"Worship In Spirit And In Truth"
Our worship of God must be according to the New Testament pattern. Three things are vital in "true worship."
(1) The proper object. The object of our worship must be God. When Satan tempted Christ to worship him, Jesus said, "Get thee hence, Satan: for It is written, thou shalt worship the Lord they God, and him only shalt thou serve" (Mt. 4:9-10).
(2) The proper attitude. Jesus told the Samaritan woman, "True worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth" (Jno. 4:23). We must be sincere and have our minds and hearts in what we are doing if we are to worship God in spirit. Mechanically going through the motions of worship ins not acceptable to God. Furthermore, hearts filled with self-righteousness and iniquity blocks our true worship to God.
(3) The proper action. The proper action means to worship God in truth (Jno. 4:24) according to His directions. God has ordained five acts of worship.
(a) Prayer. The importance of prayer is generally accepted by all. Our prayers are to be directed to the Father through our mediator, Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 2:5). Nowhere does the Bible even hint that we can pray to Mary or any other human being. Our prayers are to be filled with thanksgiving as we pray for our needs and for all men (I Tim. 2:1-8).
(b) Preaching. Likewise almost all accept importance of preaching as part of the worship (Acts 20:7). Preachers are limited as to what they can preach. They must preach the word of God (2 Tim. 4:1-5).
(c) Giving. In 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 the Bible teaches that Christians are to give as they have been prospered upon the first day of the week. The money is to be used to preach the gospel, to edify the Christians and to take care of needy saints.
(d) The Lord's Supper. Christ instituted the Lord's Supper just before his crucifixion (Mt. 26: 26-29). The supper consists of bread representing the Lord's body and fruit of the vine representing His blood. The early church met upon the first day of the week to partake of this supper (Acts 20:7). And since the first day of the week comes every week, they partook of it every first day. The purpose of this weekly remembrance is to bring to mind the Lord's death and to proclaim His Second Coming. It is important that every Christian observe this weekly supper.
(e) Singing. Reverence for God is also expressed in singing praises to Him. When we examine the New Testament passages dealing with music (Acts 16:25; I Cor. 14:15; Eph. 5:18-19; Col. 3:16; James 5:13), we find that the type of music used by the New Testament church was vocal singing. The instrument was not used until the 7th century, several hundred years too late to be approved by God.
Conclusion
Our worship of God is so important, that God has given us specific instructions as to who we are to worship, our attitude while we worship and the acts of worship. Are we worshipping the right Object? Do we have the proper attitude? Are we following God's pattern?
-RCA