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WORSHIP: FINDING FULLNESS OF JOY
by Nancy Missler
"Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy
right hand there are pleasures for evermore." - Psalm 16:11
Worship is of key importance to our lives, and we know we need to do more of it.
We can express the worth of God in many ways - in the way we live our lives, in
loving people, in obeying Him in adoration, or in singing or dancing. There is a
very special kind of worship, though, in which we have a divine encounter with
God Himself. It's coming into His presence, bowing down, falling down and
showing Him our complete reverence.
Worship is the place that God promises to "meet with us," because worship is
something that is done on the inside - i.e., in our spirit. As Jesus tells us in
John 4:23-24, "the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in
truth." Worshiping the Lord, then, means coming into His presence, adoring,
praising and loving Him in the same nature as He - in the spirit.
Most believers know that they have a responsibility to worship, but when asked
to define what true worship means or how it's done, they are unable to offer any
answers. This is what we want to explore over the next few months. What is true
worship? How and when are we to do it? And, what makes worship so important?
Whom Do We Worship?
Man, in general, has an inbuilt need to express his love and gratitude to some
deity and that "someone" is who determines his worship.
Believers can worship the Lord with all their heart and soul because they have
already invited Him into their lives - their spirits have already been united
with and quickened by His Spirit. In other words, believers in Christ can
"internally" communicate their love of the Father through the spirit. John 6:63
validates this: "It is the spirit that quickeneth [or makes alive]; the flesh
profiteth nothing...."
Nonbelievers, on the other hand, cannot really worship the Lord in this way
because their spirits are not yet united with or quickened by God's Spirit. In
other words, they cannot "internally" communicate or fellowship directly with
the Father. They can only have an external form of worship. Therefore, they
cannot personally or intimately know the Father. Listen to John 3:5-6:
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water
and of the spirit , he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born
of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."
We often read about being created with a "God-shaped hole" in our hearts. And,
it's so true: without an intimate, internal relationship with Christ, nothing on
earth will ever fill us.
Though God does not need our worship, He is seeking those who are worshipers.
(John 4:23-24) Thus, one of the reasons we worship is to minister and to bless
Him. Worship is the time we forget about ourselves, concentrate on Christ and
experience His presence.
What Makes Worship so Important?
Worship is important because, as Tozer once said, "...it's the reason Christ
came, the reason He was crucified and the reason He rose again." Furthermore,
the entire book of Revelation concerns the importance of worship and what God
thinks of worship. Listen to Revelation 4:8-11 as an example:
"The four and twenty elders fall down before Him that sat on the throne, and
worship Him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the
throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power:
for Thou hast created all things and for Thy pleasure they are and were
created."
Other pertinent Scriptures are Revelation 11:16 and 19:4, and there are many
other Scriptures in the Word that tell us God is seeking true worshipers.
Scriptures like Psalm 95:6-7: "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..." And Psalm 99:5, "Exalt ye the LORD our
God, and worship at His footstool; for He is holy."
Worship is critical because it's the key to God's presence. It's what brings us
intimacy with the Father. In other words, worship is a two-way communication. We
come into His presence by loving, adoring and exalting Him. He then makes
Himself known by communicating His Love and His inspiration (and revelation)
back to us. This, of course, results in inexpressible joy for us.
This daily communion is what allows us to endure difficult circumstances. If we
are hearing from the Lord and keeping our eyes only on Him, we can withstand
anything. Worship, then, is not only the key to intimacy, it's also the key to
withstanding trials and problems and restoring the joy of our salvation.
[This article has been excerpted from Nancy Missler's book Private Worship: The
Key to Joy.]
Link to a printable version of this article and khouse website
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