Do you know your God
Last Updated on Friday, 14 May 2010 20:32 Written by Claudio Tuesday, 16 February 2010 13:27
When we say “I worship God”, what do we mean exactly?
I go to church… I sing… I make a burnt offering once a month… ??
If you have ever been to a stadium or in a concert you will realize that human beings are indeed great worshipers...
just look at this clip paying specific atention to how the crowd is behaving:
Louie Giglio says that “Worship is the activity of the human soul”.
To worship is really "to value" or "to treasure". The object of our worship is whatever we spend most of our energy on, whatever we give priority in our daily lives.
We are great worshipers... of not so great gods
So, “the goal is to become a great worshiper of a great God” –Giglio
There is a problem though, and is found in Acts 17
"While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there... Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you."
In many ways we are like the Athenians. Our lives are full of little gods and sometimes we don’t even know* the great God we come here to worship.
* J.I Packer says that there is a difference between knowing about God and knowing God. We can know a big deal about Him and still be far away from a personal relationship with Him. Don’t miss this! We can know God… and we ought to. Knowing about him doesn’t get us anywhere. And this is the core of worship…
- Paul was very well aware of the value of knowing God:
"But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith." (Philippians 3:7-9)
- According to John Piper, Righteousness means “recognizing true value for what it is and esteeming it and enjoying it in proportion to its true worth”.
Piper also says that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him". (This is a profound statement and there is so much more to it… read piper! Learn about the glory of God)
Christianity is about knowing and enjoying God (read Paul’s letter to the Philippians). That is (should be) the foundation of our worship. If I live every day enjoying God and valuing Him above everything else, that is my worship…
But,
We are not fulfilled as human beings until we worship that which is most valuable
If you don’t know God, it doesn’t mean you don’t worship… it means you’re worshiping something not worth it. Therefore there is an inevitable sense of emptiness. And what do people who feel empty or unsatisfied do? The world is offering today a massive variety of options… just turn on the TV.
Back to Athens… DO YOU KNOW YOUR GOD? in Philippians 17:24-31 Paul goes on to explain who God is:
"Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.
The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'
Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."
When you know who God really is, things change… your prayers change, the way you deal with finances, family, work, etc. changes, your relationships change… your worship changes! When you get to know the greatness of God you don’t give him advice, you cry for mercy… you can’t ignore Him, you fall on your knees and surrender… you stop blaming Him and start loving Him…
Do you know your God? Do you know His love, His father heart, his grace, his kindness? Do you know His wrath, His holiness and righteousness?
If you really know, then you would esteem Him in proportion to these things… the response to this knowledge—when encountered personally—is inevitable, uncontrollable, love-filled, scripture-inspired, grace-based, Spirit-led WORSHIP.
Note how the Samaritan woman doesn’t realize who she is talking to: click here to read John 4:4-26
Don’t be like the Samaritan woman. Know what you worship… know your God, so that whenever Jesus shows up, your response does not delay.
