What does God expect from us as worshippers?

As I begin writing this article for the July newsletter I realize the irony in that today is "Father's Day" and here I am writing an article about what God expects of us as worshippers. So, to begin I will take the following perspective for this article - what does a Father expect of his children? What does our heavenly Father expect his children to do for Him as they grow into men and women of Christ... as worshippers of Him?

Here are some different "worship" questions to ponder on...

Does God expect us to lift or raise our hands during worship? Does God expect us to kneel during worship? Does God demand we sing to Him in worship? Does god expect prayers during worship? Does he command us to sing "new" songs to Him? Does God desire offerings from us?

In an earlier entry, I quoted this scripture;


"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Mark 12:30 (NIV)

Jesus told the people that this was the most important of God's commandments to follow. So clearly, God wants our devotion to Him in all things. This really means that in everything we do in our daily lives, whether it's getting up in the morning, reading the paper and drinking our coffee to going off to work, or spending time with our children even getting ready to go to bed at night - is all to be done in devotion to the Lord. But for this moment let's just focus on our "worship" of Him what he expects of us during that special time.

Is our worship time with the Lord, to ONLY to be on Sunday mornings? Is it limited to our "corporate" worship time? (That means, when we are all together on Sunday mornings as a church congregation.) Absolutely not! However, for some folks this is what is considered worship time - so I'll start there as a frame of reference.

A believer may worship the Lord at any time he or she desires to, and that is pleasing to God. However, there is a special importance and significance in believers gathering together to worship the Lord as the Body of Christ, and He places a special significance and honor in that...

"...But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it." (1 Cor. 12: 24-26 NIV)

and within that "body" of believers who are assembled, Jesus promised his presence within...

"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." (Matt. 18:20 NIV)

Well then, what does our heavenly Father want from us then?

God wants our devotion to Him in all things, all times all places and yet He gives us complete freedom in three key areas that we often try to "nail" down to our own ways of thinking -that is the what, the how and the where of our worship. Lets just focus on what God says about the "how" of our worship...

In the book of John, chapter 4, Jesus laid out the definition very clearly for us of what God expects - of what true worship should look like.

"...Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." (John 4:23-24 NIV)

So getting back to all the worship questions I asked you to ponder on earlier... The best answer I can come up with after reading several different scriptures where each of those questions has a biblical reference in scripture - the best answer I came up with was NO, God doesn't place any "rules" on the "how" of worship. BUT it is clear to see that there are things that we can do to "please" God very much. And after all - what loving child doesn't want to do things to please their Father?

Something to think about.

Blessings,

Dave