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Worship

What Is Worship?
God created humanity with a capacity to know, love, and worship Him. Worship is that place where the heart of God and the heart of His child meet.

Oswald Chambers said, "Worship is giving God the best He has given you." Worship carries the idea of showing reverence to God. It's an active, adoring response whereby we declare His worth. To worship means to bow down and pay homage to God: "Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker" (Psalm 95:6).

Who Do We Worship?
Jesus said, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve" (Matthew 4:10). People are not worthy of worship, and neither are the idols which people make. God alone is deserving of our worship.

Why Do We Worship?
We worship not to get something for ourselves, but because God is the Lord and is worthy of our worship (Psalm 45:11). The Bible declares, "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power" (Revelation 4:11). We worship God because of the splendor of His being. God always has sought after worshipers, and continues to do so. He doesn't need our worship, but He desires it—not for His benefit, but for ours.

How Do We Worship?
"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:24). Worshiping in spirit means giving God the homage of an enlightened mind and an affectionate heart. Worshiping in truth is to worship God according to the truth He has revealed in His Word, the Bible.

Forms of Worship
Worship should not resemble a spectator sport where we sit and watch others play. Worship requires participation. We worship the Lord through our words of praise and exaltation of God, by giving thanks to God in all things, by blessing His name through living a godly life, and by sharing His love with others.

Worship is a sacrifice. The Apostle Paul instructed believers, "offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1 NIV).

We can make every day a worship experience when we yield ourselves to the Lord. God has created each of us with a mind, heart, and spirit—and wants us to use them for His glory. True worship is not lip service, but life service. It is to be as much a part of our lives as breathing and eating. Worship should be demonstrated in every area of our lives, every day of our lives.

Expressions of Worship
We express our worship as we read the Bible (Psalm 119), pray, give tithes and offerings, and offer praise through music. But the greatest demonstration of worship is through the lives we live.

Results of Worship
True worship always magnifies God and our outlook toward Him. As God is magnified, everything else becomes insignificant. We begin to see beyond our circumstances and limitations, our fears diminish, and our spirits become refreshed.

Used by permission Harvest Christian Fellowship Pastor Greg Laurie.