Worship is something that we, as humans, do everyday. Regardless of beliefs or religion, every single person praises something. This is because we are wired to worship, it’s why we were created. So, since everybody has this involuntary urge to ascribe praise to something, the only question to ask is to what? What is it that is receiving our total attention and devotion?
As a christian, I know and believe that the only worthy recipient of my worship is God. However, as a human I tend to slack off and pour out bits and pieces of worship elsewhere. Unfortunately, I know where the biggest portion of my idolatry lies, and it’s embarrassing. I often waste worship on myself. Calling this egocentric is taking it lightly, but this trap is what I fall into. How can I make myself look good? How can I be exalted today? Where can I take the attention in this area? All these questions, though I may not say or think them, plague my daily life and actions. They tend to control what I do and how I do it. Again, as a christian, I know and believe that God is the only one worthy of praise, but in my flesh I worship myself. This is where Holy Spirit comes in to teach me a lesson.
On Sundays, we hold our own church service here at the base, and one of us usually gives a word. This past week’s one was about worship. I love musical worship, and as a guitarist I get the privilege of playing for our squad. However, I often lose focus on what is truly important during this time, and begin to think about performance and appearance. During the message, God slammed conviction on my heart about this. He put John 3:30 on my heart, telling me that “He must increase, but I must decrease.” My heart for worship immediately changed in that moment. Though it seems obvious, I came to the conclusion that it has nothing to do with me or how I play and look. In fact, when taking a deeper look at the Scriptures I see that worship looks much different than I perceived.
In John 4, Jesus paints the perfect picture of how we should praise God. Worship is not a fleshly or worldly act. In reality, if any bit of ourselves gets into God’s praise then it becomes vain. Rather, “true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth,” and this is the pure and right praise that God is looking for (4.23). As a result of Holy Spirit indwelling us, when we praise God it should be through him and by him. Since “God is spirit,” the only correct way to worship is in the Spirit (4.24). To clarify, if we try to do anything apart from Holy Spirit, we will fail and our flesh will get in the way. However, through him all things are made possible, including right worship. Just as the author of The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus writes, “we must bless the Maker of all through His Son Jesus Christ, and through the Holy Ghost,” so it is only though God that we can properly worship God (Roberts 2).
The best result that came from the conviction that God brought me is that I can now worship the Father without the concern of what is going on around me. I can act completely undignified, I can scream with a bad voice, I can be a fool for Jesus. This is not by my own ability, but by Holy Spirit who leads me. In Hymn 5, the line “When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation,” sets a great example for me. My entire being can exclaim praise to my God and Savior while looking crazy to the people around me.
Works Cited
“Hymn 5.” Hymns of Grace, Pew ed., The Master’s Seminary Press, 2011.
Roberts, A., Donaldson, J., & Coxe, A. C. (Eds.). (1885). The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus (Vol. 1). Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Company. Page 2. Exported from Logos Bible Software, 10:25 3 September, 2018.
