What is worship?
We’ll focus on two aspects.
1. To ascribe credit of all good things and achievements to Him. The Bible says in James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” It is dangerous to ascribe credit to yourself or anything or anyone else. God made Nebuchadnezzar king, but he began to think it was himself. God was nice to Nebuchadnezzar until he began to think he was god. God turned him into a beast with claws and sent him to the wilderness to eat grass and be there for days. Herod died because he ascribed credit to himself. If you studied Jesus who was the most perfect human on earth, what made Him so distinct were statements like this: “I can only do what I see my Father do” John 5:19. “I only speak the words I hear my father say. I can only do the works that my father does.” He kept on transferring the credit to God! And that protected Him and kept Him in power. Power flow is tied to credit transfer. Worship is reserved only for God. Only He is worthy and not any of His servants (Revelation 19:10). We are not to worship saints, prophets, statues, angels, any false gods, or Mary, the mother of Jesus. We also should not be worshiping for the expectation of something in return, such as a miraculous healing. Worship is done for God—because He deserves it—and for His pleasure alone. But when we worship Him genuinely from our heart, He does wonders and fearful things!
2. Total Surrender To God. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Mathew 22:37-40). “…love the Lord with all thy heart…” That means total surrender! WORSHIP IS TOTAL SURRENDER to GOD.
BEYOND SINGING CLAPPING AND DANCING
True worship is conviction followed by affection, affection that is a response to truth, not to any external stimuli, including music. Music as such has nothing to do with worship. Music can’t produce worship, although it certainly can produce emotion. Music is not the origin of worship, but it can be the expression of it. Do not look to music to induce your worship; look to music as simply an expression of that which is induced by a heart that is rapt by the mercies of God, obedient to His commands. True worship is total surrender to God!
God cannot be explained, God can only be experienced. Salvation is not taught or acquired from parents, teachers, friends or from learning; it is experienced personally.
It’s not enough to be saved, it’s more important to surrender fully to the plans, purposes, and principles of God. A true worshipper is one who lives by doing the will of God. John 9:31 says, “Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.”
God did not design us to function independently of Him. He gave us dominion not independence. You can only be in control as long as you are under His control. You and I need Him more than He will ever need us if He will even ever need us. You need to realise how limited and helpless you are without Him. Your authority is delegated authority. He remains the Sovereign Ruler of the universe.
Growth is about incremental surrender. The extent to which you surrender is the extent to which you can experience God.
It is not enough to sing His praises; you must be willing to obey Him in everything whether it’s convenient or not. He must be your Master; He must be your Lord! This is worship and this is praise! Verbal or physical expression is meaningless unless surrender is in place.
True worship is not confined to what we do in church or open praise (although these things are both good and we are told in the Bible to do them). It is the acknowledgment of God and all His power and glory in everything we do. The highest form of praise and worship is obedience to Him and His Word.
7 Questions That Determine Who Is Ruling Over Your Life
Come to think of it, the battle of life is the battle for control. Satan wanted control, he was thrown out of heaven. When Jesus was about to start His ministry, Satan showed up and wanted to control Him. He asked Jesus to worship him in exchange for the wealth of the world which he stole from Adam. There’s a constant battle to keep people and things under control.
Control is not bad, it depends on the person who has it. When a bad person has control bad things happen, he uses it to oppress people. When a good person has control, good things happen. Proverbs 29:2. “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.” Proverbs 29:2
God wants you to have control but under His control. He wants you to control your circumstances, your environment, resources, your emotions, etc. for Him. He gave you dominion over the earth to rule on His behalf.
The devil controls through self. He lied to Adam by making him believe he did not need the control of God, that he can control himself. That was rebellion.
The answers to the following questions will help you determined who is in control of your life.
1. Who or what is in control of your thoughts? Your thoughts dictate your actions. You are ruled by whatever is controlling your thoughts. Whatever dominates your heart dominates your life. How much of your life is God controlling? Judges 17:6, “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” This is the exact opposite of worship. If you are doing only what is right in your own eyes, then you have no king, and your life will be chaotic. How much of your day do you spend in prayer and study of the Word? Do you have a king in your life, or you are your own king?
2. Who is in control of your relationships? What decides how you relate with people? If your heart is not right towards God, it cannot be right towards men. The true test of a yielded life is how you treat your enemies and those you are better than. When you love people, you will not slander them, hate them or keep malice with them. You will not wish them bad or try to undermine them.
3. Who is running your account? Do you obey biblical laws governing money? Do you surrender your tithe completely and regularly? Do you release your first fruits? Are you ready to trust God with your seed knowing that He will indeed multiply it back to you? It’s not enough to call Him Provider, are you willing to fully rely on Him to provide for your needs? Until you are ready to surrender your resources, your worship is not deep enough.
4. How willing are you to obey Him in all things? Is there anything you’ll find difficult to surrender to God if He demands it? Can you surrender your Isaac if God calls for it? A young man walked away from following Him when asked to sell his goods and give to the poor. Jesus gave up His life because the Father asked Him to. This is ultimate worship!
5. What matters more to you, your ego, dignity, comfort or His instructions? Are you ashamed to preach Jesus because of your self-image? Are you willing to suffer for His Name’s sake?
6. How much of your talent are you using to serve Him? In what way are you serving God? Is God using you anywhere in the church or outside of the Church?
7. Are you willing to go wherever He sends you?
Abraham obeyed every instruction given to him by God, he became the father of many nations. He ended up very rich.
David’s addiction to doing the will of God earned him a big place in the heart of God. God did not only prosper him and his lineage, but his throne was also preserved for Christ to seat on!
Complete surrender guarantees you a permanent place in the Garden of Eden- where everything is provided.
True rest is found in complete surrender.
True blessings are reserved for those surrender everything to Him.
Deepen your fellowship or intimacy with God, but importantly, surrender completely to His rulership and worship will flow out of you effortlessly.
There are those who have not experienced real salvation and there are those who have received Christ as their Saviour but have not surrendered fully to Him to control their lives. I’ll like to pray for both so that we can enjoy praise and His presence in a new dimension.
Welcome to a life of grace and abundance!
I cancel anything that will make you weep or put you to shame; you will not mourn neither will you be mourned, in the Name of Jesus. God will visit you and bless you with financial abundance, in the Name of Jesus!
Happy New Year!
Bishop Dr Charles Olowojoba is the General Overseer of Dayspring Bible Church Worldwide with HQ in Abuja, Nigeria & President, Dayspring Christian Ministries Int’l.
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