Friday, December 19, 2014
Worship Takes Us Somewhere
Mark Roberts on Psalm 95:
I think of the ceremony that accompanies approaching a throne. There is much the supplicant must do in order to hear what the monarch has to say. But i the end that ceremony is not the point, it is the words of the monarch that matter.
When we fight over how we do the ceremony we are ignoring the words of the monarch. When we discuss what we need from the ceremony, we are ignoring the monarch altogether and thinking only of ourselves. We are missing the point.
ceremony monarchs worship
Where does worship lead? When we gather together as the people of God to offer praise, thanks, and worship to our Lord, where does this take us? What happens in us and to us because we worship?If I can rephrase that just a bit, worship is not where we express ourselves about God but where He expresses Himself to us. What we do is prepare ourselves to listen - that's all.
If you were to ask these questions of a hundred different Christians, I expect you might hear a hundred different answers. For some, worship leads to feelings of joy, love, and peace. For others, worship may very well lead to feelings of boredom or sadness. For still others, worship may have nothing to do with feelings. It might encourage them to think more deeply or to act more faithfully.
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According to Psalm 95, more accurately, according to the Lord who speaks in Psalm 95, worship should lead to listening to God's voice with open ears and ready hearts, so that we might do what God asks of us. Worship leads to attentiveness to the Lord's commands. It leads to receptive hearts and obedient lives.
I think of the ceremony that accompanies approaching a throne. There is much the supplicant must do in order to hear what the monarch has to say. But i the end that ceremony is not the point, it is the words of the monarch that matter.
When we fight over how we do the ceremony we are ignoring the words of the monarch. When we discuss what we need from the ceremony, we are ignoring the monarch altogether and thinking only of ourselves. We are missing the point.
ceremony monarchs worship
