THE HEART OF WORSHIP BIBLICAL WORSHIP PSALM 29:1-2

Transcription

1 1 THE HEART OF WORSHIP BIBLICAL WORSHIP PSALM 29:1-2 INTRODUCTION THE BEST OF ROMANS TBC Small Group Study and preaching series will begin the week of February 18 & 19. Host a small group! Join a small group today! Next Sunday evening, February 12, 6pm TBC Movie Night. Movie Courageous! In Lange Hall. DVD COURAGEOUS MOVIE PREVIEW PRAYER Today.as we continue message 2 from the series called THE HEART OF WORSHIP I want to talk about worship as one of the most important priorities of Tokyo Baptist Church. Today s message is called BIBLICAL WORSHIP and in the Bible, worship is of two kinds, or takes place in two different areas of life: 1. There is worship in all of life, how you live, you worship in your daily living, and 2. There is worship when all of us as believers gather for large group worship on the weekend Important point WORSHIP IS A PRIORITY AT TBC BECAUSE WORSHIP IS A BIBLICAL REQUIREMENT This is why I am always concerned that everyone who comes to TBC on the weekend for working in a ministry or for attending a class.i want you know that attending worship is the most important priority.even before your ministry. Today I want to look at four things with you to show you that the Bible is very concerned about our worship. Let me just tell you what they are ahead of time. 1. DAILY LIFE IS A WAY OF WORSHIP 2. LARGE GROUP GATHERING IS A WAY OF WORSHIP 3. THERE IS AN INSEPARABLE CONNECTION BETWEEN DAILY LIFE AND LARGE GROUP WORSHIP 4. GOD IS TO BE THE OBJECT OF OUR WORSHIP Like last week.i want to give you a Bible definition of worship. Psalm 29: 2 is our reason for worship at TBC. Today, let s read verses 1-2. Psalm 29:1-2 1 Praise the Lord, you angels;

2 2 praise the Lord s glory and power. 2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name; worship the Lord because he is holy. NCV Psalm 29: 2 is our reason for worship at TBC. 2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name; worship the Lord because he is holy. NCV How do we praise the Lord and worship the Lord? Remember the new TBC slogan for our large group worship. This is how we worship.we SING THE BIBLE, PRAY THE BIBLE, READ THE BIBLE, PREACH THE BIBLE, LIVE THE BIBLE! I like Psalm 29:1-2 as the definition of Biblical worship because what is said in these two verses. Praising the Lord s Name and giving glory to the Lord because of His Name. is why we worship at TBC. Let me say that the original language of this Psalm 29 is Hebrew and in Hebrew poetry there is often parallelism used in writing. This means that the Hebrew poet will say the same thing twice, back to back, so that you understand better the meaning and what is being said. Notice especially Psalm 29:2. 2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name; worship the Lord because he is holy. When God s people give praise to the Lord for the glory of His name.and worship the Lord because He is holy.that is BIBLICAL WORSHIP. BIBLICAL WORSHIP says that when you and I worship, if it is from the heart, we acknowledge that God is more important than anything else in this world. Let me read Psalm 29:2 again. 2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name; worship the Lord because he is holy. NCV Worship is GIVING GOD GLORY BECAUSE HE IS GOD, PRAISING GOD BECAUSE HE IS HOLY! Worship is TELLING GOD BY OUR SONGS AND FROM OUR HEARTS THAT HE IS MORE VALUABLE THAN ANYTHING IN THE WORLD! Worship is EXPRESSING LOVE TO GOD BY OUR PRESENCE TOGETHER, SINGING, PRAYING, LISTENING TO GOD S WORD PREACHED AND GIVING AN

3 3 OFFERING! THIS IS ALL WORSHIP! I want to say some things about BIBLICAL WORSHIP 1. DAILY LIFE IS A WAY OF WORSHIP This means there is daily worship and large group worship. First, daily worship is when you desire everyday, 24/7, 365 days a year to live for the Glory of God. This is when you are worshiping God in all of life. Let me give you an example.first, from the Old Testament and then from the New Testament. Old Testament If you were part of Tokyo Baptist Church in October 2010, you will remember I began preaching a series from the Old Testament book of Jonah. The series was called, Wrong Way Jonah so you will remember the prophet Jonah. And in today s example Jonah is on a ship going where God told him NOT to go, and a great storm has come up. And the sailors on that ship were scared to death, and somehow they got the idea that Jonah was the reason for the problem of the storm. Jonah 1:8-9 8 So they asked him, Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you? 9 He answered, I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land. Now Jonah s answer to that question in verse 8 is a fascinating answer. Notice it has two parts: In verse 9 Jonah says, I m a Hebrew, and, I worship the Lord God of heaven who made the sea and the land. Isn t it interesting that in answer to the question Who are you? What is your occupation? Where do you come from? Who are your people? Jonah s answer is I am a worshiper of the Lord God of Israel, who made everything. That s who I am. I m a worshiper of the Lord God of Israel. Jonah does not mean only on the Sabbath Day do I worship. Jonah does not mean only when I go to the synagogue with others do I worship. What Jonah means, is, I have such great respect and reverence and loyalty for God, in all that I do everyday...it is my purpose everyday to glorify the God who made everything. You and I need to learn that from Jonah. But what is Jonah doing as he gives that answer about daily worship? By his actions, He is not worshiping the Lord God of Israel! He is going as far away from doing what the Lord God told him to do as he can possibly get. He is disobedient to the Lord in daily living.yet Jonah still knows how he should be living.

4 4 IMPORTANT POINT MANY BELIEVERS WORSHIP OTHER gods DURING THE WEEK AND WANT TO WORSHIP THE ONE TRUE GOD ON THE WEEKEND APPLICATION FROM JONAH The take home application is this: If you are like Jonah.your heart is divided. You think you can serve both God and things. You think you can love and worship one God and serve another god. Jesus said in Luke 16:13 No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. I think that s the biggest challenge in our TBC weekend worship during these days. That if you and I are not very careful.we can serve other gods during the week, and then we want to come and meet and worship the one true God on Sunday. If you and I are not very careful.our hearts can be divided; we think that we can love one God on Sunday and serve another god during the week. Important point GOD DOES NOT WANT DIVIDED WORSHIP AS SEEN BY LIVING TWO LIVES Let me give you an example from the New Testament. Romans 12:1-2 1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--- which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God s will is---his good, pleasing and perfect will. Now it s so interesting that Paul uses Old Testament language that is connected to worship.to describe acts of worship. What was one of the things that the people did in the Old Testament when they went down to the temple on the feast day? As an act of worship they gave a sacrifice at the altar dedicated to God. But Paul is not talking about believers in Jesus doing that in the New Testament. What is he talking about in Romans 12:1-2? He is saying you and I should live a life of godliness. Not acting like the world. And what does he say that is? That is your spiritual act of worship. So there is worship in all of life that he is talking about; living in a way that glorifies God all day.everyday! 2. LARGE GROUP GATHERING IS A WAY OF WORSHIP Daily living is one way to worship and the other way to worship, according to the Bible, is the large group worship of God s people.at TBC we say our CELEBRATION SERVICE. According to the Bible this is when we come to God in songs and reading God s Word and giving tithes and offerings to God

5 5 and proclaiming or preaching God s Word. Let me give you an example from the Old Testament Psalm 100:1-2 1 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Notice the emphasis is to come before the Lord. Clearly this is a context in which the people of God, if they re coming before the Lord, where do they have to do that in the Old Testament? At the tabernacle, or at the temple. And they re called to do what, when they come there? Worship the Lord with joyful songs. Now we will often talk about what we do on Saturday night at 7:00 pm and Sunday morning at 9:00 and 11:00, and 1:30pm and 3:30pm and at TBC Misato on Sunday at 11:00am? What do we do? What do we call it? A worship service. Usually at TBC we call it a Celebration Service. That s because that English word to worship the Lord parallels the way that those words are used in both Hebrew and in Greek. An example from the New Testament Now, the same emphasis is given in the New Testament. Hebrews 10:25 the Bible makes it very clear that gathered worship by God s people did not end in the days of the New Testament but continued and therefore as believers to come together weekly is very, very important. The Bible says do not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing. 3. THERE IS AN INSEPARABLE CO AND LARGE GROUP WORSHIP Look at Psalm 15 for a minute. In Psalm 15 David is asking a very important question about worship. Psalm 15:1 1 LORD, who may go and find refuge and shelter in your tabernacle up on your holy hill? What s so important about the tabernacle on the mountain of Zion? It is the one place that God has told His people to gather for worship. So David is now asking you and me the same question: Who has a right to come to that tabernacle on that mountain and meet with the living God? Or, let me say this a different way: Who has a right to come to TBC Shibuya and TBC Misato for Family Worship and meet with the living God? The answer is in Psalm 15:2-4 2 Anyone who leads a blameless life and is truly sincere. 3 Anyone who refuses to slander others, does not listen to gossip, never harms his neighbor, 4 speaks out against sin, criticizes those

6 6 committing it, commends the faithful followers of the Lord, keeps a promise even if it ruins him. TLB David is saying that every believer has a right to come and worship God.come confessing sin and when you come together you come as a man or woman of integrity, a person that has lived during the week with righteousness and not with wickedness.if you have been speaking the truth and not lies. In other words, David is saying that your worship in daily life.or how you live your daily life.is what prepares you to come before God in gathered worship as a large group here at TBC called our weekend CELEBRATION SERVICES! Inseparable connection BIBLICAL WORSHIP MEANS DAILY LIFE CANNOT BE SEPARATED FROM LARGE GROUP WORSHIP An important cycle Our worship of God in all of daily life prepares us to come together and meet with Him as we are together with God s people in large group worship. And then, coming together to meet with Him as we are together with God s people, prepares us again to worship Him in all of daily life. And so there is an inseparable connection between those two things. Do you see what the Bible is saying? IF YOUR DAILY LIFE IS NOT LIVING FOR GOD, TRUE WORSHIP OF GOD CANNOT TAKE PLACE IN LARGE GROUP WORSHIP ON THE WEEKEND Important point WORSHIP ALWAYS STARTS IN THE HEART BECAUSE WORSHIP IS ALWAYS A RESPONSE TO GOD S GRACE GIVEN TO US DURING THE WEEK You see.god s grace shows itself in daily life, and then it comes out as worship when you and I gather together in worship.because you and I are so thankful for God s grace.we want to worship Him. Worship is showing love to God and your love to God starts as a response to God s grace in your heart; it shows itself in your daily life and then it overflows as the kind of worship that you and I give to God when we gather together. 4. GOD IS TO BE THE OBJECT OF OUR WORSHIP You and I are to desire God.the God of the Bible.above everything else in our worship in all of daily life, and in our gathered worship. Our gathered worship ought to be characterized by desiring God and encouraging one another to desire God more than everything else. I said in last week s message that the uniqueness of Christian worship is that we worship God through Jesus Christ. Everybody worships, but believers worship God through Christ. And as believers, you and I should desire for God more than anything else.

7 7 Psalm 63:1 & 4 & 5b 1 O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 4 I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. 5b With singing lips my mouth will praise you. The Bible is saying, Lord God, without You there is no satisfaction; but with You there is nothing more that can be desired. Remember How do we praise the Lord and worship the Lord? Remember the new TBC slogan for our large group worship. This is how we worship.we SING THE BIBLE, PRAY THE BIBLE, READ THE BIBLE, PREACH THE BIBLE, LIVE THE BIBLE! Let s pray. DENNIS FOLDS TOKYO BAPTIST CHURCH FEBRUARY 4 & 5, 2012