Changing the Understanding

Think about worship for a second. What immediately comes to mind? Is it singing? Is it music? Is it prayer? For the longest time, and I suppose its because the churches I have grown up in, it seemed that worship was singing. But this weekend, I was listening to the podcast of Ravi Zacharias as I often do. In two messages, Ravi made me realize that worship isn't a singular activity. It's so much more and so much more important that I could possibly realize.

In the following few paragraphs is not my created idea or opinion, but it's what I feel is a summation of Ravi's message. And believe me when I say this, that when I generalize with "we," I really mean "me." I'm more guilty of this than any one.

As good messages do, it starts with scripture. Check out the book of Malachi. I find that looking at Israel as a nation and their downfalls and shortcomings can be directly applied to the life of today's Christian, as well.

Malachi's prophecy came at the end of a 1,000 year period of revelation stretching from the Exodus to end of the Old Testament, and he was the last prophetic voice before John the Baptist. During this time nothing extraordinary was going on, and maybe people were wondering where God was. But amazingly, God is named in the first person in 53 of the first 55 verses.

In chapter one, God tells Israel, "I have loved you...Yes you say, in what way have You loved us." God's message continues by telling them He has no pleasure in them and will not accept an offering from them. Why? Because the offerings were the lame, the blind, the sick, the unacceptable. In short, Israel's sacrifices had become the leftovers--leftovers because the whole act had become wearisome to the people. God had become boring to them or even an afterthought.

God continued to say that they called Him father and Master but gave Him no reverence. It was all lip service. The emotion was gone.

This brings us to the first point. There can be no worship without emotion. If it's simply going through the motions, it's not worship. It seems to me that worship somewhere along the line switched from verb to a noun. There's praise and worship music. There's worship service. Worship leaders. But what can't be forgotten is that worship is an action. Think of Biblical references to "worship." It's always paired with something like "bowed down and worshiped."

Malachi isn't the only place where God sees a drifting from true worship. In the book of Hosea, God tells Hosea to marry Gomer, who became a prostitute. Could you imagine members of his congregation hearing about this? People would say, Hosea, how can a holy man like you have ever been married to a woman like that? Hosea would no doubt respond, "How can a holy God love a people like us?"

Israel went from God's true love to a harlot and eventually worse. By the time of Malachi's prophecy, Israel was no longer just unfaithful. They had turned their backs totally, saying "How have you loved us?"

All semblance of emotion toward God had left from the people and therefore, they could longer worship God. Yet as important as emotion is, it alone does not create worship. It was only one reason for Israel's straying.

Worship is also reverence, as I mentioned earlier. It's also sacrifice. I don't mean burning animals on an alter. I mean sacrifice of ourselves. This is where this message really hits close to home for me. Is God getting my leftovers? My left over time, energy, resources, talents (all of which He has generously given me)? God doesn't want--and doesn't deserve--what's left of what we give to the world.

Worship pulls everything together. It brings emotion, reverence, sacrifice and finally purity of heart together. This brings me to the final and most important piece to the worship puzzle.

Remember that God does not live in buildings. Worship is not an hour set aside or a service on a certain day of the week. We do not go to the temple to worship God, we take the temples with us. Worship is a moment by moment occurrence. Understanding worship--and living worshipfully--is what will truly keep us from giving into temptation. Ravi says it perfectly. "Worship is a co-extension of life."