1 Tim 3:15 (KJV)
15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave
thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
Ps 11:3 (KJV)
3 ‘If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?’
- Notice the words ‘pillar’ and notice also the word ‘foundation.’
- There are certain things that we as Christians ‘stand for’.
- As the old adage goes – if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. There should be certain things that are part of our foundation as believers – there should be certain things that are set in our lives just like pillars.
- Why do things like ‘purpose’ and ‘calling’ sometimes take a prolonged time?
- The foundation has to be dug deep when the Lord means to raise the building high.
- The higher you desire to go, the deeper you have to dig.
- The foundation necessary for a huge skyscraper like the World Trade Center is not the same as the one needed for a 3 bedroom home.
- It is a dangerous thing to have pillars that are loosely set into the ground. It is dangerous to build on that type of foundation.
- Illustration: Foundations in Oklahoma
- In Oklahoma, the natural ground is not stable enough to build a big building. They actually have to haul in good dirt and haul out the clay dirt from the foundation in order to stabilize the building. If you build on clay, the foundation will shift as the ground heats up and cools down in the summer time. In addition to that, they install into the ground huge piers, (pillars) that add strength and stability to the entire structure. You have to have the right foundation in order to keep things from shifting around.
When Solomon was building the Temple of God…
1 Kin. 5:17 -18 (KJV)
17 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house. 18 And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.
- Notice the word ‘costly’.
- Solomon laid the foundation of God’s house with costly stones.
- Does that make any sense to you?
- Isn’t it interesting how the Lord thinks?
- He does not think like you or I do.
- The Lord puts costly stones into a foundation
- Stones that are buried under ground!
- Stones you never see.
- He piles dirt on them!
- What type of mentality is this?
- This is a mentality of abundance.
- In Solomon’s day, for example, silver was so abundant that it was piled outside in big heaps. So readily available was it, that its value was minimal.
- God owns everything and for Him to put costly stones into a foundation is no big deal!
- The spiritual parallel or application of this, in the New Testament, is marvelous to behold.
Eph. 2:19-22 (KJV)
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
- We are built upon a foundation of stones that we also have never seen!
- They have been buried by the dirt of time.
- How many of you have ever seen Peter or gazed into the eyes of Paul or any of the other apostles that are referenced here as part of the foundation of God’s house?
- But yet you are willing to, and have made, major adjustments in your life because you believed that what these men spoke in their epistles was by the Spirit of God.
- Notice Jesus is a stone in this foundation of God’s house.
- Wasn’t Jesus the most costly stone of them all?
- You have never seen Him?
- Yet, not seeing Him, you love Him.
- He has been physically hidden from your eyes, yet you call upon Him and count Him as your Lord.
- Now if the foundation which is in the ground is costly, what about that which is above ground?
- What about the stones that can be seen?
- Are they not also costly?
- Or does God heap a bunch of junk stones, a pile of worthless rock, upon this costly foundation?
- Is this God’s manner?
- Some would have us to believe that we are nothing and nobody.
- The Bible record is vastly different.
1 Pet. 2:5-6 (KJV)
5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
- The priesthood of the believer is something that we, at times, forget as we get involved in building up the kingdom, and get intense about helping others in Jesus Name.
- But we must always remember our priesthood.
- What do priests do?
- They offer up sacrifices!
Worship Mistake One: Forgetting that Worship is a Sacrifice.
- Sacrifices that cost nothing are generally not worth anything.
- David understood this principle and refused to offer such a sacrifice.
2 Samuel 24:21,23-24 (ESV)
21 And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be averted from the people.”… 23 All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the LORD your God accept you.” 24 But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
- It is easy to remember to offer sacrifices to God that cost you something when you remember the value and the worth of the foundation that you are building on.
- Don’t live a junky Christian life. You are building on a costly foundation.
- Jesus deserves your best.
- So, let’s look at a particular ‘stone’ that we build on God’s foundation: the stone of ‘work’ or being a ‘worker for God’.
Worship Mistake Two: Substituting Work for Worship
- Working for God is foundationally important, make no mistake about it.
- Let’s look at work ethic scripturally before we examine the mistake.
Our Foundation of Work: Work Ethic and what it is.
- Paul motivates Timothy, his young son in the gospel, using three ‘occupational’ pictures.
Picture No. 1: A soldier
2 Timothy 2:3-4 (ESV)
3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
- There are certain characteristics of a soldier that should be true of us as believers.
- Paul refers to endurance and lack of entanglement. Soldiers are soldiers and they are nothing else.
- Ask yourself, ‘Do soldiers work hard?’
Picture No. 2: An Athlete
2 Timothy 2:5 (ESV)
5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
- There are certain characteristics of an athlete that should be true of us as believers.
- Ask yourself, ‘Do athletes work hard?’
Picture No. 3: A Hard Working Farmer
2 Timothy 2:6 (ESV)
6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.
- DEFINITION: hard-working/κοπιάω/kopiaō – to exert oneself physically, mentally, or spiritually, work hard, toil, strive, struggle. It means to become weary or tired. [1]
- A farmer is a laborer, a hard-worker.
- At the end of the day, he is tired and whipped.
- He is weary from the toils of the day.
- There is no laziness in farming.
- It is hard and tedious work.
- Paul tells Timothy, his son in the gospel, to model himself after this image.
- Work for Jesus.
- Work hard for Jesus.
- Spend yourself. Give everything you have, until you are whipped at the end of the day.
- If Jesus walked into your room, if you had a spiritual vision of Him and in this vision He said to you, “Go work for me today.” What would you do?
- What would your work day be like?
- How would you fill your day?
- Jesus said, “The harvest is ripe”, listen to the word now, “But the LABORERS are few.
- Laborers are not loungers.
- Laborers are not pleasure seekers.
- Laborers are not lazy uncommitted, ‘got to beg them to get anything done’ kind of people.
- A farmer has to stay with his field and stay with his seed.
- He cannot plant the seed and run off and leave it.
- He has to stay in place and water the seed and cultivate the seed.
- It does not matter what the weather is like.
- It does not matter what the economy is like.
- It does not matter what his personal life is like.
- He has to stay committed to the seed.
- I am talking about work ethic here.
- A farmer must stay put and see the seed to the end!
- He must see it all the way to harvest.
- If he lets up at all, he risks getting no fruit.
- No fruit, no harvest is a very bad thing for farmer.
- Are you working for God like this?
- What is your work ethic for Him?
- Do you work as hard for Him as you do your personal endeavors?
- How hard are you tending to the seed of the Word of God in your heart?
- How hard are you working at the Word?
- How hard are you working at ministering to others?
- Here are a couple of quotes from Rick Renner along this line.
If you keep operating at your current level of production, will you reach the goals God has given for your life? – Rick Renner
- It is amazing that some of us understand this physically but spiritually we think it is something different.
- You have to be led by the Spirit of God as to what you are to do but when you finally find it out, you are going to have to add the ‘work hard’ component to get where you are going.
- Or as Rick says it in another quote…
If you want to achieve something great and significant, you will have to put a lot of hard work and effort into making it happen. – Rick Renner
- Or saying it another way…
To achieve the true greatness God desires for you, you must be committed to do anything necessary to accomplish what He has for you. – Rick Renner
- ILLUSTRATION: The following letter, which speaks for itself, was circulated in a large congregation trying to find people to get some work done in the church:
- Dear Friend:
- Our church membership … 1400
- Nonresident members … 75
- Balance left to do the work … 1325
- Elderly who have done their share … 25
- Balance left to do the work … 1300
- Sick and shut-ins … 25
- Balance left to do the work … 1275
- Members who do not give … 350
- Balance left to do the work … 925
- Christmas and Easter members … 300
- Balance left to do the work … 625
- Members who are overworked … 300
- Balance left to do the work … 325
- Members with excuses … 200
- Balance left to do the work … 125
- Members too busy with other things … 123
- Balance left to do the work … 2
- Just you and me, friend, and you had better get busy, because it’s too much for me! [2]
- Okay, so now we understand that there is a ‘hard work’ component to life.
- But this can be problematic when we substitute work for worship.
What Worship Is.
- Worship is the highest and noblest act that any person can do.
- When men worship, God is satisfied.
- When you worship, you are fulfilled.
Why did Jesus Christ come?
- He came to make worshipers out of rebels.
- Think about the change that must take place in an unregenerate human being in order to get a person to the point of becoming a worshiper.
- People in general are self-centered.
- We who were once self-centered have to be completely changed so that we can shift our attention outside of ourselves and become able to worship Him.
- Jesus came to make you who were self-centered, God centered.
- If we haven’t learned to be worshipers, does it really matter how well we do anything else?
- Does it matter how much we work, if we lose sight of who we are working for?
- The word worship is a shortened form of the old word worthship, which means showing God the worth he holds in your life.
- When you worship God – you show Him what He is worth in your life.
- Worship is a valuable thing for a believer – it’s foundational – it is a costly stone.
ILLUSTRATION: The Roman general Pompey noticed how the Jews fought to defend their temple. He was anxious to see what was in their most sacred room, the Holy of Holies. He was surprised to see that it was empty. He wondered why they fought so hard to defend an empty room! He didn’t understand their concept of a God “eternal, immortal, invisible.” He didn’t understand that worship is costly and of great value.
- Jesus must be properly worshiped.
- You cannot expect the superior results that come from the Holy Spirit manifesting Himself if you come into His presence without worship.
- Much in the N.T. is connected to and centered around worship
- Worship is tied to the healing anointing
- In the N.T. many people who were healed came and worshiped Jesus
Matthew 8:2 (KJV)
2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshiped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
Matthew 9:18 (KJV)
18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshiped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.
Matthew 15:22,25 (KJV)
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
25 Then came she and worshiped him, saying, Lord, help me.
Mark 5:2, 6 (KJV)
2 And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,
6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped him,
- Load this thought into your mind.
- If a man with 6000 demons as constant companions can fall down at Jesus feet and worship, we should have no trouble worshiping because of the person standing next to us.
One of Jesus’ Temptations Had to Do With Worship
- Satan said he would give Jesus the very thing that Adam gave up in the garden, the kingdoms of the world, in exchange for worship!
Matthew 4:8–10 (KJV)
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
- If the devil wants something from us, that should just be a red flag to us.
- Worship is a big deal.
- There Are Multiple Admonitions in the New Testament to Thank God
- Thanksgiving Should Be Offered:
- To God – 2 Cor. 2:14
- To Christ – 1 Tim. 1:12
- Through Christ – Rom. 1:8, Col. 3:17, Heb. 13:15
- In the name of Christ – Eph. 5:20
- On behalf of God’s servants – 2 Cor. 1:11
- In everything – 1 Thess. 5:18
- Before receiving food – Acts 27:35, John 6:11
- Always – Eph. 1:16, 5:20, 1 Thess. 1:2
- For the gift of Christ – 2 Cor. 9:15
- For Christ’s power and reign – Rev. 11:17
- For the reception and effectual working of the word of God in others – 1 Thess. 2:13
- For deliverance from indwelling sin, through Christ – Rom. 7:23-25
- For victory over death and the grave – 1 Cor. 15:57
- For the triumph of the gospel – 2 Cor. 2:14
- For the conversion of others – Rom. 6:17
- For faith exhibited by others – Rom. 1:8
- For love exhibited by others – 2 Thess. 1:13
- For the grace bestowed on others – 1 Cor. 1:14, Phil. 1:3-5
- For the zeal exhibited by others – 2 Cor. 8:16
- For appointment to spiritual service 1 Tim. 1:12
- For the supply of our bodily needs – Rom. 14:6-7
- For all people – 1 Tim. 2:1
- For all things – Eph. 5:20, 2 Cor. 9:11
Worship Mistake Three: Confusing the Old Testament Pattern for Worship with the New Testament Pattern.
Do not confuse the O.T. worship with the N.T. pattern.
- This is not a casual point!
- It is tremendously important as far as heaven is concerned.
- Every reference above is a N.T. reference.
- There is a N.T. Worship Pattern
John 4:24 (KJV)
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
- The pattern is worship in Spirit and in truth.
- Here it is again in the epistles of Paul
Philippians 3:3 (KJV)
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
- There is an O.T. pattern
- The Old Testament involves worshiping with everything except your spirit.
- Old Testament people of God could not worship in the spirit because they were spiritually dead people.
- What does ‘worshiping in the flesh’ mean in the Old Testament context?
- It means that the anointing did not come upon them to energize their worship.
- In other words, they could not tap into their spirits.
- When Davis danced before the ark, he danced with HIS MIGHT – not God’s might or ability.
2Samuel 6:14 (KJV)
14 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod.
So then, the worship that we see in the Old Testament in the Psalms includes people who did not worship with their spirits.
- Old Testament worship was outward and body oriented.
- They could not worship with their spirits so they used their bodies.
- In Psalm 150, the psalmist exhorted the people to praise God with their instruments.
- What actually transpired was they picked up their instruments and played in the flesh with no anointing.
- They couldn’t wait for the anointing to come on them – it never came.
- People confuse worship in the Old Testament and worship in the New Testament all the time.
- They confuse worship like this little five year old girl in this next illustration.
ILLUSTRATION: On Palm Sunday, a 5-year-old named Stephanie, sat on her uncle’s lap while they listened to the pastor’s sermon. He described Jesus’ approach to Jerusalem and how the crowds cried, “Hosanna, Hosanna!” At that, Stephanie perked up because she thought she heard something familiar and began to sing, “Oh, Hosanna, now don’t you cry for me!”
- Now all of this brings us to another thought.
- Have you ever been in a service where you were asked to give Jesus a hand clap?
- You simply cannot do that with the anointing, with the Spirit of God helping you. Why? It’s Old Testament worship.
- Did you know there is only one reference to clapping in the whole Bible?
Psalm 47:1 (KJV)
1 O clap your hands, all ye people; Shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
- But we give Jesus a hand clap every service.
- This is not the pattern for a believer today.
- It is not N.T. worship.
- You cannot applaud Him with an anointing!
- Jesus is to be worshiped not applauded.
- Men are applauded on planet earth all the time.
- There is plenty of difference between Jesus and ordinary men.
- We applaud and clap for great actors at the Emmy’s, great athletes who score points and make great plays, great statesman and even bad politicians. We clap for famous people, when they walk into a room, astronauts when they land on a planet that God made.
- Is Jesus in this class?
- Why sinners even applaud false prophets, drug dealers and strippers!
- Surely this is not the vehicle to show our love and adoration for the anointed Son of God.
- How, then, should we acknowledge Him?
1 Tim 2:8 (KJV)
8 I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
- Try it out and see for yourself. Give Jesus a rounding applause in your living room. Test this out. Put some ump into it. See if the anointing comes upon when you do this.
- And then, lift your hands to Him and express your heart and notice what happens.
- And you will know that clapping your hands is merely applause but lifting your hands to God is worship.
- You will certainly notice the difference. It is night and day.
Call to Action
So, we have seen some of the mistakes that people make in this area of worship. The more we come in line with God’s Word in any area, the better those areas will work. So, now its your turn to rev up your worship life and watch the Presence of the Lord increas in your life?
Question: What additional areas in this worship arena do you think should be addressed in a believers life? Please leave a comment below.
________
References
[1] Arndt, William, Frederick W. Danker, and Walter Bauer. 2000. “A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature.” In. Chicago: University of Chicago Press pp. 558.
[2] Galaxie. 2002. 10,000 Sermon Illustrations: Biblical Studies Press.