Why God Requires Worship
I was reading a devotional this morning that really spoke to me about God. Why do we worship the Lord? We always say, “well He is worthy of our worship” and that he is, but there is much more than just worshipping a God that tells us to worship him.
Psalm 50:1--23
"If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it." (v. 12)
As I was reading the devotional this morning it went like this, “During the early days of my Christian experience, I queried why God put so many texts in the Bible that command us to worship Him. It seemed to me that many of these commands bordered on egotism and self-centeredness. We all despise those people who clamor for our attention or commendation, and a picture of a God who needed constant ego strokes threatened to impress itself on my mind. Ithappened most when I read the Psalms. "Praise Me, worship Me," the Almighty seemed to be saying everywhere.
Then I read C. S. Lewis's Reflections on the Psalms and the whole matter dropped into the right perspective. This is what he said: "The miserable idea that God should in any sense need or crave for our worship like a vain woman wanting compliments or a vain author presenting his new books to people who had never met or heard of him is implicitly answered by the words: 'If I be hungry I will not tell thee' (Ps. 50:12). Even if such an absurd Deity could be conceived He would hardly come to us, the lowest of rational creatures, to gratify His appetite. I don't want my dog to bark at my books."
He went on to point out that in commanding us to worship Him the Almighty is demonstrating far more interest in us than in Himself. Our worship of Him completes us. We perfect our personalities to the degree that we give ourselves to God in worship. In eternity we shall experience full joy because we shall be able to worship Him fully”. What an amazing truth that God is interested in me. Yes, God does desire our worship but is not in need of it. We don’t fulfill a need for him he is fulfilling a need in us.
Posted March 30, 2011 by Mark Bland
We worship because He is worthy, yes that is true, but there should be a desire to worship, to raise our hands, to sing, to reach out in spirit to our heavenly Father who more than deserves our love, praises and worship. When we worship Him in prayer and spirit, He in turn lifts our eyes towards eternity and the problems of our simple lives become mute and far away.
That is a hard thing to maintain, but it is what God wants from us. We tend to forget, and cling to the issues that affect us, and then wonder why we cannot cope at times.
When we truly worship God as He deserves, then we can enter His presence and let His peace wash away the world.
We need His presence in our lives. That is a good thing.
Worship. Worship now, in this life, freely because you want to, because you love Jesus.
Blessings, Mark
Posted July 07, 2011 by Mary
C.S. Lewis went to say… We perfect our personalities to the degree that we give ourselves to God in worship.
Therefore, worship is in giving of ourselves, in all that we do. To worship the LORD, we worship Him with our lives.
Examples:
Obeying our parents’ sound advice and instruction. This is pleasing to the Lord and an act of worship.
A husband and wife’s intimate relationship in coming together, not lustfully nor forcefully but in agreement is worshiping the LORD.
Helping someone with a need. In so much as you do to one of these you do to me. Helping others is worshiping the Lord.
When you get a blessing from GOD, give it back to him as a love gift. This is a deliberate act of worship!
Take time to mediate and pray before God. Worship is our oneness with Him our private times and intimacy with the Lord.
And so, the list goes on…..Worshiping the Lord is living a life that Glorifies GOD. He is worthy of all praise and worship.
Mary