Glory Notes
by Angela Errett
Worship
WORSHIP
Panorama Background and Rustic Wood: Bigstock.com
is a Seven
Letter
Word
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John 4:2
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KJV
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T
HE number
seven represents completion in the Bible.
For example, there
are seven days in a
week and the Sabbath, a holy day of
rest, is celebrated
on the seventh day
of the week. There
are Seven Feasts of
the Lord: Passover,
Unleavened Bread,
Firstfruits,
Pentecost, Trumpets, Day
of Atonement, and
Tabernacles. There are
seven Spirits of God.
The book of Revelation uses the number
seven over and over
again referencing seven
churches, seven seals,
seven last plagues and
so on. There are over
800 references to seven
in the King James Bible!
Hh
With God, nothing is by
chance so we must consider the fact that worship
is a seven letter word and is
mentioned extensively in the
Bible. Worship is more than
important; it is vital to our
relationship with the Lord.
If you look up the word
worship in an extensive concordance, you find something interesting. In the Old Testament,
there are over 60 references to
Hebrew root words that mean
to depress, bow down, to fall,
to prostrate oneself, to humbly beseech, or to be obedient.
Abraham Worshiped
The Lord
And Abraham said unto his
young men, Abide ye here with
the ass; and I and the lad will
go yonder and worship, and come
again to you. Genesis 22:5 KJV
God had given Abraham a
miracle son, Isaac. The Lord later tested Abraham to see if he
truly loved God more than even
his dearest son and if he had
faith to believe God would stay
in covenant to fulfill the rest of
the promise in Genesis 17:19.
Abraham heard from God
and was obedient to take his
son to Mount Moriah, build
an altar, and offer Isaac, his
beloved son, as a sacrifice.
He knew–he believed in his
heart–that God’s promise
of Isaac having descendants
(seed) would come to pass.
And God said, Sarah thy wife
shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou
shalt call his name Isaac: and I will
establish my covenant with him for
an everlasting covenant, and with his
seed after him. Genesis 17:19 KJV
Notice in Genesis 22:5 how
Abraham declared they would
come back by saying, “and come
again to you.” He spoke words
of faith from a perspective of
victory because he already had
experienced God’s faithfulness.
He had left his home and followed the Lord, who blessed
him for his obedience. He
saw how God protected his
wife Sarah when she was in
the house of Abimelech even
though he had lied and said
she was his sister. He witnessed Sarah, who was barren
her whole life, conceive and
bear a child in her nineties and
he was one hundred! He believed that God would provide
a sacrifice, and he showed no
signs through his words, of
believing anything other than
he and his son would return.
The Lord did supply the
sacrificial ram. He placed it
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The Shofar
represents the shout of God’s victory and is used
in various Jewish celebrations. One example is from
Rosh Chodesh Elul–the celebration of the new month
of Elul (September), the Shofar is blown each day except
the Sabbath, until Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) that
occurs in Tishri (October). The reason they sound the Shofar is
to inspire the listener to return to God, listen to His voice, obey
His commands and receive His blessing.
If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if
you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have
given you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He
will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where
he has scattered you. Deuteronomy 30:2-3 NLT
A trumpet is also frequently used to fight spiritual battles
as seen in Numbers 10:9.
And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then
ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets; and ye shall be remembered before
the Lord your God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies. Numbers 10:9 KJV
Shofar :Bigstock.com
in a thicket with its horns caught, from
where it could not escape its destiny. And
even though Abraham was at the point
of thrusting the knife into his son’s chest,
the event occurred at God’s perfect timing. Isaac and Abraham were both exceedingly blessed for their obedience.
Abraham even called the place where he
built the altar, “The Lord Will Provide.”
If Abraham had not been listening to the voice of God, had not been
obedient, and not went to worship the
Lord, how awful that would have been
for Isaac and us! Nevertheless, God
knew his heart and that he would obey.
Looking up the word worship in the Old
Testament, you see a pattern of bowing down and showing reverence in the
presence of Lord to worship Him. However, this first mention, also shows Abraham had experienced God, he knew His
voice, he believed, he was obedient, and
his blessings were beyond measure. Because he did not withhold anything and
worshiped the Lord wholeheartedly,
his obedience was pleasing to the Lord.
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Ram’s Horn of Worship
A Shofar, usually made from a ram’s
horn, is a musical instrument or trumpet who’s sound represents the shout of
God’s victory. The ram we see in the earlier story where Abraham went to sacrifice
Isaac shows the “Ram of God,” prepared
before the foundation of the world, was
freely given to Abraham by the Lord and
proclaimed His victory. It is a picture of
the sacrifice of God’s only Son, Jesus, for
the atonement of the sins of the world.
On the first day of the seventh month
(Tishri) in the Hebrew calendar is when
scholars believe God created Adam. We
are currently in the Hebrew year of 5777
and Adam’s ‘birthday celebration’ is also
the Jewish New Year. It begins October
2nd, 2016, at sundown and ends the evening of October 4th, 2016, on the Gregorian calendar. It is otherwise known as
Rosh Hashanah. Being the first (Adam was
the first man) of the Jewish High Holidays,
the Torah describes it as a day of sounding the Shofar or we could also say worship.
The Voice of Worship
The first mention of the word trumpet
in scripture–Shofar is not in the King James
Bible–is represented by the ram’s horn in
Exodus 19:13. This definition is only applied to this passage and means to flow
or bring forth from the blast of a horn.
In Exodus 19 Moses and the Israelites
had traveled through the wilderness and
were now at the base of Mount Sinai. In
verse 5, Moses was on the mountain receiving–listening–to God. God told him if the
Israelites will obey His voice, and keep His
covenant, then they shall be “a peculiar treasure” unto Him and would be above all people. They would be His kingdom of priests
and His holy nation. Moses returned to tell
the people what God said, and the family of
Jacob agreed to do as the Lord commanded.
Moses returned to the mountain to tell
the Lord what the people had said. Notice that God did not speak to the people
directly but talked to them through Moses, who was listening and obeying Him.
God then told Moses that He would appear in a thick cloud to speak with him,
and the people could then hear the Lord.
Moses consecrated the people and prepared them to worship and be in the presence of the Lord. On the third day, there
was loud thunder and flashes of lightning
as a dark cloud descended the mountain.
Then there was a long, booming blast from
a ram’s horn, and everyone shuddered.
Moses led the people out of the camp
to the base of the mountain where God
came down on the top of the mountain
in the form of fire. The sound of the
trumpet blasts grew louder and louder as
Moses spoke. God then replied to Moses and the people heard as He called
him back to the top of Mount Sinai.
Once on top of the mountain, God imparted the first five books of the Old Testament (Torah) or Pentateuch to Moses. This
event is celebrated during the Jewish festival Shavuot at the end of Passover which
is known as Pentecost. And lets not forget
that the Holy Spirit was given to the disciples at Pentecost in the New Testament.
This first act of worship shows that God
sounded the “voice of the trumpet” and in-
vited the Israelites to His presence to worship. He initiated the gathering, but they had
the choice of going. They had to choose
whether to be obedient to His voice or not.
They also needed to wait for the Lord’s signal.
There shall not a hand touch it, but he shall surely
be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man,
it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they
shall come up to the mount. Exodus 19:13 KJV
New Testament Worship
In the New Testament, there is a
new change in tone. The first mention of worship is in Matthew 2:2
The Greek word here is Proskuneo
(pros-koo-neh’-o). It means to fall on
your knees. The definition adds more
depth to its meaning by showing the motion of a person moving toward a hand
to kiss it like a dog licking its master’s
hand. It also means to adore or fawn over.
The Magi Go To
Worship Their King
We don’t know much about the Magi or
Wise Men, but they knew of the prophet
Micah and the Prophesy of the coming
King of the Jews. They were also aware that
a star in the eastern sky would signal His
arrival. They watched. They waited. Then
they spotted the star heralding the birth
of the Messiah and began their pilgrimage.
They came to the attention of King
Herod while they were in Jerusalem
asking where the newborn King was.
Saying, Where is he that is born King of the
Jews? for we have seen his star in the east and
are come to worship him. Matthew 2:2 KJV
Disturbed by the news, Herod sent for
the Magi and found out from them when
the star first appeared. Herod sent them
on to Bethlehem to look for the child all
the while plotting to kill Him when they
returned. However, the Magi were directed
by a dream to take a different road home.
The star continued to guide them
and come to the place where Jesus was.
Oh, what joy! They had searched, looked,
and waited for the Messiah, and they had
found Him. They bowed down in adoration and worshiped in His presence. He was
a child who had not even spoken a word
or performed the first miracle, yet they
knew of His finished work at His birth.
Part of their worship was to offer the
gifts they had brought: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Now, the names of
the Wise Men are not known, and there
could have been three of them or twelve
of them. History just doesn’t bare that
out, but what we do know is that they
gave according to what they had available.
One interpretation is that the three
gifts represent the tripart being that Jesus was. Gold represented His kingship, and frankincense represented His
divinity, and myrrh represented His
role of the only begotten Son of God.
Gold is the gift of Kings throughout
history. Because of its scarcity, it has extraordinary value. It is also an incredibly dense metal that can withstand fire.
It showed the Magi were presenting their
very best to honor Jesus as King and that
they came to worship Him, not the things
of this world. They were willing to give
their most prized possessions to their King.
Frankincense, which means whiteness,
is a very expensive and highly fragrant
incense burnt as an offering during worship. It comes from the bark of a tree.
When the tree is slit, a white gum flows
out of the wound, and a pleasing smell is
born from the sacrifice of the tree as its
smoke rises. Throughout the Bible during worship, frankincense is found. Aaron, Moses’ brother and Levite priest, was
also required to burn it at the altar. They
wanted to please God with their worship.
Myrrh is also a fragrant gum that comes
from a thorny bush and produces a bitter
herb. When the secretion first appears, it is a
yellow color. As it drys, it changes to a dark
red almost black color. It was used as a perfume and as an ointment for the dead due
to its ability to preserve the body. Myrrh
symbolized the bitter cup Jesus would eventually take on the cross. He asked His Father
to spare Him, but Jesus submitted Himself to do His Father’s will, not His own.
And he went a little farther, and fell on his face,
and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not
as I will, but as thou wilt. Matthew 26:39 KJV
He went away again the second time,
and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this
cup may not pass away from me, except I
drink it, thy will be done. Matthew 26:42
Can you imagine how unusual it would
have been for the Magi to go on a long
journey, following a star to somewhere in
Bethlehem? Crazy talk right? Why would
they do that? They too had a choice, and
they chose to search out the King because
they believed that the word of the prophet
of God was real, and they wanted to worship their King and be in His presence.
The pattern from the Old Testament
repeats here. They heard the word, believed, and were obedient to follow the star
but this time, they chose to approach the
King of the Jews to adore and bless Him!
They came to offer Him gifts not asking
for any in return, to be in His holy presence and to fully, with all they had, worship
Him. They were bold. They approached
the newborn King to bless Him because
of the sacrifice He was born to carry out.
Worship Is An Important Part Of
Our Journey With God
Our worship should be pleasing to the
Lord. Like Abraham following in total obedience and believing God’s word was the
truth and like Moses listening and receiving
God’s law and recording all of what God
said at Pentecost, like the Magi searching
out knowledge then waiting, watching for
the King, wanting to adore Him and be
in His presence. And like the tree that is
wounded to create frankincense, all are a
pleasing offering to the Lord. Each took
up their cross and followed their King.
Let Us Worship The Lord
Psalm 100 tells us by applauding God,
giving Him the gift of laughter, and singing,
you will come into His presence! We should
thank Him continually because He made us,
and worship Him because we are His people!
Let us all pray to be filled with
the Holy Spirit to hear God, have
faith to believe His voice, and strive
to be obedient to His commands.
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