God deserves my worship, and He desires my worship. Not worship that consists of empty words and vaguely pleasant feelings–but true, honest, heart-first worship which is backed up and confirmed by my attitude of true submission to Him.
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Scripture
Mark 7:6-7
And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
Observation
The purpose of worship is to acknowledge the greatness and kingship of God–to affirm His place on the throne, and our place bowing reverently before Him. Worship is putting physical action to our verbal affirmation of God’s supremacy. Jesus said that the worship of the Pharisees and the scribes would be rejected by God, because their worship was merely verbal affirmation with no truth or substance to back it up. They said all the right words, but lacked a heart which was truly submitted to God. They did the right ‘tasks’, while circumventing the heart of what God truly wanted from them.
Because of this, God rejected the worship that they brought him.
Application
God deserves my worship, and He desires my worship. Not worship that consists of empty words and vaguely pleasant feelings–but true, honest, heart-first worship which is backed up and confirmed by my attitude of true submission to Him. This kind of worship can’t be distilled down to a checklist or rule book, but instead flows naturally out of a heart which is kept in submission to the King of kings.
This week, I must daily choose to keep my heart in alignment with Him. I must make the decision to daily spend time in His presence, allowing Him to mold and shape me. I must daily choose to reject thoughts patterns and mindsets that are not aligned with His heart, and instead choose to incline my heart toward the things that please Him.
Prayer
God, you are worthy of my worship! Not merely my words, but the true worship of my heart. Help me this week to make the daily decision to keep my heart in submission to you, so that the things that flow out of me would be pleasing in your sight. Thank you for your patience with me, when my heart is revealed to be flawed and imperfect!
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