Series: Habits

 

Sermon Title:  Cultivate Worship (cultivate habits of worship)

 

Maxwell Maltz (plastic surgeon)

 

“These, and many other commonly observed phenomena tend to show that it requires a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to dissolve and a new one to jell.”

 

When this information was published, people tended to overlook the word minimum and took the assumption that it only takes 21 days to begin a new habit. 

 

Twenty-one days seem achievable.  You could do anything for 3 weeks.  However further research shows that “On average, it takes more than 2 months before a new behavior becomes automatic — 66 days to be exact.” 

 

And how long it takes a new habit to form can vary widely depending on the behavior, the person, and the circumstances. 

 

In the Christian world, there are many healthy habits that believers should cultivate in their life.  One of which is the habit of worship.

 

What is worship?

 

šāḥâ - to bow down, prostrate oneself before God. Lying stretched out on the ground with one's face downward.

 

There are several examples in the bible of men prostrating themselves before the Lord

 

Moses –

Deuteronomy 9:18 Then I lay prostrate before the Lord as before, forty days and forty nights.

 

Return from exile (After Ezra reads the law)

Nehemiah 8:6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 

 

The twenty four elders and heavenly beings in John’s vision

 

Revelation 4:10-11 (Revelation 7:11-12 & Revelation 19:4-5)

¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, ¹¹ “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things,
    and by your will they existed and were created.”

While these are great examples of men of God who have worshipped in God’s presence, worship Is morethan the posture of your body, worship is about the posture of your heart. 

 

You can do as many deeds as you want and go to as many church services as you want and never be worshiping if it is all external and nothing is happening in your heart toward God.

 

Jesus would say that if your worship is only exterior then it is not worship at all.

 

            Matthew 15:8-9

 

⁸ “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me;
⁹ in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

 

Worship is not lip service though we must use our lips to declare His praises

Worship is not a song, but we use songs to worship

Worship is not the outward gestures we do, yet we lift our hands as a sign of surrender

True worship is a matter of the heart. 

 

Worship is your response to God’s goodness.

When you see Him for who He is, you will be in awe, and you will worship.

 

John Piper

 

“True worship is a valuing or a treasuring of God above all things. “True worship is based on a right understanding of God’s nature, and it is a right valuing of God’s worth.

 

In our passage for today, Jesus meets up with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well.  In His conversation with the woman, Jesus gives several lessons on worship which we can apply to our lives today.

 

John 4:16-26

 

¹⁶ Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” ¹⁷ The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; ¹⁸ for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” 

 

Jesus knew everything about this woman. 

• He knew that she was not currently married.
• that she had been married to five other men prior to the one she was currently with.
• He knew that she was a Samaritan and that He was a Jew.

 

There was great hostility between the Jews and Samaritans.  This hostility dated back to the old rivalry between Israel and Judah.  Much of their hostility came about from their different religious beliefs.

 

The Samaritans were known for mixing foreign practices with the teachings of Moses.

For instance, they observed the Sabbaths, kept the practices of circumcision, they even forced their children to observe the Yom Kippur (Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement)

 

However,

• They did not believe in the resurrection of the dead.
• They rejected all the Jewish books except the Pentateuch (Torah). 
• They believed that God made man in the image of the angels
• Prayers are offered to God through the merits of the Patriarchs and Moses.
• They offered up prayers on behalf of those who died in their sins believing it was possible for them to receive forgiveness on the other side of the grave.

 

So, this all adds to the dynamic of what is going on at the well.  Jesus being a Jew meets with this woman who is a Samaritan.  They both have a belief of how God is to be worshipped.  However, this woman being a Samaritan has some wrong beliefs that need to be corrected.  Yet Jesus does not shun her away but is willing to teach her the truth about worshipping God.

 

¹⁹ The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. ²⁰ Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” ²¹ Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 

 

Worship Is Not About A Place

 

One of the major disagreements that arose between the two groups (the Jews and the Samaritans) was concerning the place that Yahweh was to be worshipped.

 

The Jews argued that Jerusalem was the only place to worship God, while the Samaritans advocated for Mt. Gerizim.  (Gare-ism)

 

The first thing Jesus corrects is the idea that worship can only take happen in a certain place. 

 

Jesus not only cancels Mt. Gerizim as a viable spot for worship, but also the beloved Jerusalem.  

 

What was He saying?

 

Worship is not confined to a place, but it happens on the altar of our hearts.  God can be worshipped anywhere.  Consider this.

       

Hebrews 13:10-16 

¹⁰ We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. ¹¹ For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp. ¹² Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. ¹³ Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach. ¹⁴ For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come. ¹⁵ Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. ¹⁶ But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

 

Worship can take place in church, in your home, in your vehicle, in your secret place.  It is acceptable if it is from your heart. Jesus continues.

 

²² You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 

 

Worship Begins with Knowing God

 

What does it mean to know God? To have a relationship with Him, in which you speak to Him through the Holy Spirit and He communicates to you through His word, through others and also through the Holy Spirit.

 

If you are saved then you know God as Savior, you have the greatest reason to worship Him. 

If He has healed your body then you know God to be your healer, you have a reason to worship.

If He has brought peace to your soul then you Know him as peace, you have a reason to worship.

 

God must be the object (focus) of our worship for He has taken away the sins of the world.  If we were to cross over from this world to the next, we would be enamored by the glory of God first and foremost.  Then eventually we might notice the streets of gold, the gates of pearl and the places that He has prepared for His people.  But we will be so overcome by who He is that nothing else will compare.

 

That’s worship.  The good news is that we can experience His glory to some level in this present life.  Though we may not be able to see God with our eyes, we can experience His presence through the Holy Spirit living in us.  We can have moments or glimpse of being so lost in His presence that nothing else matters.  He has given us access.

 

²³ But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. ²⁴ God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” ²⁵ The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” ²⁶ Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”

Worship Requires Authenticity (being real)

 

We are to worship Him in Spirit and in truth.  Just like our prayers, we can say that worship is directedtowards God, through Jesus and by the power of His Holy Spirit.  God is a spirit therefore He must be worshipped through the Spirt.

 

There must be an acknowledgement of the Spirit world which is currently invisible to our natural eyes but one day will be fully revealed. But for now, we must believe that it is so.

 

It is worth pointing out that Jesus instructs this woman to worship in Spirit and in truth. 

Truth is based upon the Word of God. 

 

• What does the Word of God tell us about God?
• What does the Word of God tell us about ourselves?
• What does the Word of God tell us about His plan of redemption?

 

This Samaritan woman had wrong thinking that needed to be corrected to worship God in truth. 

 

Furthermore, worshipping God in truth means that worship flows from a life of integrity not like the Pharisees.

 

            Matthew 6:5-6

 

⁵ “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ⁶ But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

 

Don’t lift your hands to the creator on Sunday, then to carnality on Monday.

 

Worship pleases the Father

 

²³…for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 

 

God is a jealous God, is a statement that reoccurs throughout the bible.  We came across one instance in our men’s bible study as we are going through the book of Ezekiel.  Israel, God’s chosen people, had committed many abominations and worshipped idols. He says this to them:

Ezekiel 5:13

¹³ “Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that I am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy—when I spend my fury upon them. 

God is serious about His people and about being the object of their worship. 

 

The truth is, we are all worshipping something.  We are treasuring, valuing, bowing down to something or someone.  If it isn’t the Lord, then it is idolatry.

 

Jesus says the Father is seeking people to worship Him in spirit and in truth.  That if you are wanting to live a life that is pleasing to the Father, then start by developing a habit of worshipping Him in the Spirit, for that is where God is, and in truth. 

 

Just to recap to worship God means to value or a treasure God above all things.  It means to ascribe the proper worth of God, to magnify His worthiness of praise.

 

So, when you read the scriptures like we talked about last week, let them stir your heart to worship God who keeps His promises.

 

When you see a stunning sunset, a blue sky, a pristine beach, or a majestic mountain let it stir your heart to worship our creator God. 

 

Psalms 19:1

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

 

Romans 1:20

²⁰ For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse.

 

When you hear a song talking about the goodness of God, connect your heart with that song, focus on His goodness, and sing to the Lord.

 

Hebrews 13:15-16

 

¹⁵ Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. ¹⁶ Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

 

Remember that it takes 66 days to form a habit.

Maybe start with something simple like:

 

Every time that you come to the house of the Lord, that you will sing or lift your hands.

            Every morning decide to gaze up at the sky and worship your creator.

            Every day find yourself in awe and in wonder as you read through the scriptures.

            Every day on the way to work listen to worship and set your mind on God.

 

Let’s commit to being a people who worship God in Spirit and in truth.