Worship
Worship - more than music
by Nelson Roth
Psalm 100:2,
​
​“Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing.”
​
We
worship God with music and singing; however, we discover that worship is much more when
we understand the meaning of the word worship and what God desires.
According to the dictionary, worship is a reverent love; an ardent devotion; an expression of
love. The dictionary gives us meaning and the ​scriptures capture the essence of the true
meaning of worship. In the Greek language, it’s the word ​ proskuneo which means “to bow
down and to kiss the hand;” and, ​from its English origin, the word “worship” is derived from
the Old English word “woerthship.”
So, with the definitions that we just read, the ways we proclaim our love and His
worth, are our worship. ​A person can worship anything; however, if God is who we want
to worship, we need to know what He desires.
A few years ago, Pam and I attended several pastor retreats hosted by Peter Lord in
Titusville, Florida. These were incredible times of learning to connect with God. Peter, was
a deep thinking, contemplative type who knew God intimately. His teachings were often
illustrated with simple dry humor; which helped in remembering the purpose behind the
story. One such story asked the question, how do you know what God wants? Peter said,
"If God likes pie, and you assumed it was cherry pie and brought Him cherry pie all your
life, how would you feel if when you got to heaven you found His favorite pie was pumpkin?”
The point of the story was the importance of knowing God and learning what He likes. What
a great illustration of the importance of understanding what true worship is like. What is it
that God wants? If my desire is to worship Him, am I giving Him what He desires?
How do we proclaim worth to God, not only during the worship gathering when we sing; but
throughout the week? How then is worship more than just music and singing? How do we
show reverent love and continue to
worship God throughout the week?
Romans 12:1,​“present your bodies as
a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable
unto God, which is your spiritual
worship.” Our worship is giving to
God what’s acceptable. Acceptable,
yoo-ar’-es-tos, in Greek, means that
which is pleasing – it’s a term of
worship. 1 Peter 2:5, we are ​“like
living stones … offer up spiritual
sacrifices acceptable to God.”
“Worship is our response, both personal and corporate, to God, for who He is and what
He has done expressed in and ​ by the things we say and the way we live.” Louie Giglio
Relevant Ministry, Inc.
www.relevantministry.org/Discipleship
©2015 Relevant Ministry, Inc.
​
Worship
This Greek word, ​yoo-ar’-es-tos, is found ten times in the New Testament and boils down to
four specific actions that we can put into practice outside of the worship service in order to
be pleasing to God!
Let’s look at each of these four actions:
First, Romans 14:18, ​“Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by
men.” What is the point of reference in this verse? Actually, all of Romans chapter 14 is
about not making a weaker brother stumble. ​How we treat fellow believers is a form
of our worship.​ God sees and these actions are acceptable to Him.
Second, Romans 15:16 talks about Paul being a minister of Christ to the Gentiles, ​“in the
priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be
acceptable.” This is a beautiful way to see evangelism! ​Having part in bringing
someone to Christ is worship because it’s acceptable, it’s pleasing to God.
Third, Philippians 4:18, Paul writes about an offering that was brought to him. He goes on
to say, ​“the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.”
Worship is being generous with our resources for ministry.
So far, we’ve seen three of the four lifestyle actions of what’s considered acceptable and is
worship to God. It can be summed up in one word, ‘sharing’​ - love, the Gospel, and our
resources.
Fourth and last, Ephesians 5:10, ​“to discern what is pleasing (acceptable) to the Lord.”
What’s the issue here? Verse 8 reads, ​“for at one time you were darkness, but now you are
light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.” This is speaking of godliness and holiness. In
other words, ​worship is our personal holiness!​ 1 Timothy 2:2-3, “​ lead a peaceful and
quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing (acceptable) in
the sight of God.”
Worship, which is our reasonable service, expresses itself in our holy living with
specific outcomes of loving others, sharing the gospel, and giving of our resources
to meet needs.
What actions are part of your life throughout the week that are pleasing to God?
In what ways are you challenged to grow in the four actions of worship? Which
one challenges you the most?
What shifts will you make so worship is more than a weekend event and more of a
lifestyle for you?
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Books:
The Air I Breathe: worship as a way of life, Louie Giglio
Crazy Love, Francis Chan
Relevant Ministry, Inc.
www.relevantministry.org/Discipleship
©2015 Relevant Ministry, Inc.