If you're reading my 31-day series on Worship for the first time, consider clicking over here to my Day 1 post to see the introduction and to find the rest of the posts in the series!
It should be noted, amongst all this talk about worship coming from our mouths and actions, that worship should come first from humility. As John Piper says in his sermon "Worship God!", "humility is the doorway to worship."
After all, if we take pride in our own works and good deeds, how can we ever worship God for his grace and might? If our pride is in the good things we can give God, how can we ever worship Him for saving us when we were ick and sinful? If the servant of a king was more focused on the good things he was doing for the king than the grandeur of his Highness, does he truly believe that his king is worthy of serving-- or is the servant more focused on being the best servant ever; the one who should receive applause? Maybe the servant can hold that tray really well and stand really still waiting for his master's orders, but the only message his motives are giving is that he wants attention for the things he has done. And as soon as the attention or the praise goes away, his motivation to serve his king is gone.
True worship stems from the humility of knowing that at our core, we are sinful, rotten, undeserving people in great need of God's redeeming love. It's why King David, after committing adultery, realized and prayed "you do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise" (Psalm 51:16-17).
Contrition (a state of remorse) brings us to humbly worship in the knee-scraping, floor-scratching, tearful kind of way. It's the kind of worship that says "I have nothing but You" and "You have given me everything." When we are full of humble contrition, knowing that we are full of sin and death, we can worship Him for everything He has given. Read these truths, friends, and worship:
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"Praise awaits you, Our God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled. You who answer prayer, to you all people will come. When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions." -Ps. 65:1-3
"For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance." -Ps. 66:10-12
"You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you... for great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead." -Ps. 86: 5, 13
"He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me." -Ps. 18:19
"The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love." -Ps. 145:8
"I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels." -Isaiah 61:10
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