Today, we want to look at the subject of worship and the church. For the Christian, God is the center of worship and therefore our thesis is this:”the church is made to worship God”. Every true church must reflect that priority.
The church in our age, and in every age has struggled with this and for many people worship has been reduced to that time in the service when we sing.
We have a worship band and a worship leader and we sing songs of worship. At a strategic point of the service the worship leader says: “We have now finished worshiping God, and now it is time for the 15 minute sermon.” But is that it? Is that worship? We want to argue that worship is much more than that.
Worship is a mindset and a way of life that inhabits the life of the individual member of the church. All that we are and all that we do reflects worship. Let us then look at a text in the Bible that teaches us the heart of true worship.
Psalm 95 is part of a group of Psalms that praise and worship God as King (cf. Psalms 93, 95-100).
Psalm 95 has long been used in the church as a call to worship. [1]
This Psalm can be divided into two parts:
1. Vv. 1-7b reflects a call to worship
2. Vv. 7c- 11 is a warning against false worship. We are often helped to appreciate the true by considering what is false.
1. THE CALL TO WORSHIP (95:1-7b)
The Psalm begins with exuberant rejoicing. God’s people are a happy and joyful and singing people because they see what God has done for them.
Note the following aspects associated with their worship:
(i) Worship is God-centered. There is a preoccupation with God. Worship is not music driven, or personality driven, and least of all it is self-energized enthusiasm. Biblical worship has God in mind.
A faulty view of God or a little view of God diminishes our worship.
(ii) Worship is congregational. Four times in vv.1,2 we read of the ’us’, “Let us sing, let us make a joyful noise; let us come into his presence …”
(iii) Worship is vocal. The words employed in verses 1 and 2 all refer to a vocal, public praise of God. Here it is not subdued. It is exuberant. The phrase ‘joyful noise’ (cf v.1b, 2b) comes from a Hebrew word meaning “to raise a shout.”[2] This was done in anticipation of a battle or after a victory [3]. Some Christians think that our singing to God cannot be loud or exuberant. Now while there may be inappropriate noise created by overpowering instruments, perhaps because the musicians that are man centered and focused on themselves, there can be nothing more God glorifying than a congregation singing loud and exuberantly to the praise of her God. We will speak about the silent aspects of worship in a moment, but for now, let us settle the point that there is an aspect of our worship which is loud.
(iv) Worship must be based on truth.
a. In vv. 3-4 we are helped to understand what ought to excite our worship. Consider the primary biblical truth in Psalm 95 which helps us to sing exuberantly: V.3 The LORD (YAHWEH) is a great God (EL) and a great king (MELECH) above all gods (ELOHIM). The primary truth which ought to govern our worship is that our God is sovereign. He is our King.
b. Moreover, from vv. 4 & 5 we learn more about the nature of God’s sovereignty. God is the Creator and Owner of the earth. He is sovereign over every aspect of life on this earth. He is sovereign over the depths, the heights, the sea and the dry land. We find here the totality of His creation and control of the earth. The world is not only the work of His hands, but it is in His hands right now. That is a reason for praise.
c. In vv. 6,7 the effects of that worship on the lips of the worshipper sink deep down into the worshipper’s heart. The worshippers are no longer making a joyful noise. They are no longer singing loudly. The key word that characterizes the first five verses is praise, while the key phrase that summarizes vv. 6 and 7 is ‘bow down’.
Worship involves both, making a joyful praise and a speechless bowing down. When the God who is praised is understood, we are silent and we are comforted. We experience Him as our personal God, our Maker, and our Shepherd.
2. FALSE WORSHIP (95:7c-11)
Life in a fallen world severely challenges worship. We see it illustrated in the following verses, which are an illustration from Israel’s flawed history of worship. The reference here is to the waters Meribah and Massah.
The illustration from Israel’s history is taken from 2 incidents which illustrated the conduct of God’s people who had hardened hearts- another way to say that they did not have their God on their minds. (Ex. 17:1-7 and Numbers 20:1-13).
Meribah is derived from the Hebrew word for strife.
Massah means test.
Both incidents refer to times in the life of Israel when, after having been brought out of Egypt and through the desert by God with great signs and wonders and visible miracles, they refused to believe and trust God when they saw that there was no water (see Ex. 17:7). They refused to worship God in their experience.
This text is cited in Hebrews 3:7-11, and there it refers to Hebrew people who were tempted to give up on Jesus, when times got tough.
So then, we find a dramatic change of tone in the closing verses 8-11 of this Psalm. And the repeated point concerning this incident is that God’s people refused to worship when it came to a time of testing. They became faithless. They hardened their hearts against God.
Faithlessness and a hardened heart are the sworn enemies of worship. So we must see that Massah and Meribah are not just historical incidents. They are manifestations of a persistent problem with true worship. These problems are picked up in Psalm 95 and in Hebrews 3:7-11, and they are addressed as worship problems.
We cannot take the message of this Psalm lightly, because the New Testament makes it clear that the warning of this text applies as much to men and women of our time as it did in ages past.
The message of this Psalm, both to its original audience and to us teaches us that,
- We should worship God as a congregation, both in ourloud rejoicing (vv. 1-2) and by our quiet reverence (v. 6).
- Our worship is to be based on both, God’s sovereignty as our Creator (vv. 3-5) and Sustainer and Shepherd (vv. 6-7).
- Vv. 7c-11 remind us that we must worship God by our obedience.
- We must learn to worship in good and in challenging times. Worship is not just the repetition of rituals. It is not just the shouting of praises or participating in random acts of reverence.
- True worship begins in the heart, and it governs our mind and actions.
Let us take very careful note then of the relationship between the exhortation to worship God in verses 1-7 and the warning of verses 8-11 where we are reminded that failure to worship is induced by a hardened heart.
- How much do I know about what the Bible says about worship?
- Who can help me learn more about biblical worship?
- Do I want above all to draw near to God in worship?
- Do I want to please God rather than myself in worship?
- Do I understand my responsibility to worship God with his people regularly?
- Will I seek God’s will in worship while avoiding a judgmental and legalistic spirit toward others?
You need to ask the following about the worship of any church you attend:
- Does this church love and believe the Bible? Is the worship of this church filled with the Word of God?
- How much of the service is given to the reading of the Bible?
- How much of the service is given to biblical prayer?
- How much of the service is given to singing that is biblical in content?
- What is the content of the preaching? Is preaching a substantial part of the service?
- Is the Law of God clearly present in the service? (Without law you cannot understand gospel)
- Is the Gospel of Jesus Christ clearly expressed and central in the service?
- What is the role of the ordinances in the ministry of the church?
- Are both joyful thanksgiving and reverent awe expressed and balanced in the service?
An Invitation to Worship
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. (Ps. 95:6-7)
We need to heed that call to worship and to identify with a congregation that worships faithfully. We must worship in a way that pleases God, for our God is a consuming fire.
This service ended with celebrating the Lord's Supper.
[1] ‘Before the beginning of their prayers,’
writes Athanasius of the practice of the Church of Constantinople, ‘Christians invite and exhort one another in
the words of this Psalm.’ In the Western Church the whole Psalm appears to
have been generally used. In the Eastern Church an invitatory founded on it is
used at the commencement of service.” A. F. Kirkpatrick, The Book of Psalms
(Grand Rapids: Baker Book House , 1982), p. 572.
[2] The
primary nuance of the word ranan is to “cry out” or to “give a ringing cry”
(BDB). It may refer to jubilant singing, but not necessarily so.
[3] Josh. 6:10,16,20; 1 Sam. 4:5; 17:20,52
[4]
From an article by Dr. Robert Godfrey : “
PLEASING GOD IN OUR WORSHIP “
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