Worship

Images or Altars?

“If God were small enough to be understood, He would not be big enough to be worshiped.” – Evelyn Underhill

We were designed to worship God, but we all know that sometimes that worship gets diverted into other things. The people of Israel were prone to worshiping idols made of stone, wood, or metal, so God made it clear in the very first of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) that they were not to make images. Period.

But there was something he did want them to make: Later in the same chapter we find God saying, “. . . an altar of earth you shall make for me”

Don’t make images, but do make altars. And what are altars for? He explains that, too. They are for offering sacrifices in worship of the one true God.

The God we worship is beyond limit. Anything we do to give him shape makes him something less than who he really is.

On the other hand, an altar acknowledges his existence, his presence, his authority, and his worthiness to be worshipped and adored. It sees him to be limitless, all-present, beyond understanding. And it provides a place for us to meet him in all his glory.

Sometimes we all need to examine what goes on in the deepest parts of our minds and hearts. Are we tending more toward seeing God according to our personal definition of him, a being we might be able to bargain with, manipulate, or control? Or do we see him as the transcendent, all encompassing God to be held in awe and reverential fear? To be worshiped and adored. Let’s make altars, not idols.

“The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.” – Isaiah 40:28b

Letting Him Speak

“When God speaks to you, he is not writing a new book of Scripture; rather, he is applying to your life what he has already said in his Word.” – Henry Blackaby

Ready for a spiritual experiment? Try this:

Worship Jesus. Adore him for who he is, what he’s done, and what he promises.

Remember. Ask him to bring to help you remember a story about him from one of the Gospels. See which event comes to mind (don’t sort through several – just take the first one).

Meditate for a few minutes on that story.

For me recently it was the account of Jesus raising Jairus’s daughter. The detail I zeroed in on was that, though there were many people there, Jesus allowed only three to go in with him. My heart went immediately to “I want to be one of the three!” I want to be close to Jesus, one of his most trusted companions, one who can see everything he does and hear everything he says.

Draw a conclusion.

Jesus reminded me that, if I wanted to be like Peter, James, and John, I need to stay close to him and not lag behind. I need to ask questions and listen for answers. I need to suggest things I’d like him to do and then learn from his response – just as they did throughout the Gospels.

When we give Jesus our attention, he responds. His response encourages us and deepens our desire for more of him. If you’re ready for that connection, you might want to try a spiritual experiment like this one.

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” – John 16:13

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A Big World. A Big God

“God made man small and the universe big to say something about himself.” – John Piper

Have you been looking at some of the pictures of space and stars and galaxies that are being captured by the James Webb Space Telescope? They are revealing . . .

. . . the vastness of the universe – bigger than we thought it was, endless maybe.

. . . the details of the universe – like icy compounds of complex organic molecules that scientists can identify from millions of miles away.

. . . the beauty of the universe that inspires awe just because it is there in dramatic expanse and color.

Then we think about the God who created it. The creator is greater than the creation. How limitless our God must be in terms of his mind, power, and authority. The more we learn about the universe, the more we stand in awe of him.

And that leads to something else:

When we stop to think about how great God is, we begin to understand that we can’t demand anything of him. We can’t control or manipulate him. And we are wise not to be angry at him or disappointed in him. Who are we compared to God? Who are we to question him? To second guess him? The universe, as it unfolds before us, invites us to do one thing: Worship the one who created it.

We will never completely understand God and his nature, but the more we allow ourselves to ponder his greatness, the more we will learn to depend on him and trust him and, eventually, to love him. We don’t have to understand everything. We just have to receive what he offers of himself and his gifts. And that is enough.

“These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power.” – Job 26:14

Photo of Saturn from NASA’s website, taken from the James Webb Space Telescope, 2024.

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Watch, Wonder, Worship

“The deeper our troubles, the louder our thanks to God who as led us through all and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life’s song. “- Charles Spurgeon

Might God be at work around us and we are missing it?

The writer of Hebrews talks about God’s own people seeing his works for 40 years in the desert and still not trusting him to take care of them. He said they had hardened their hearts so they would not/could not understand the significance of what God was doing for them.

They ate the manna, but didn’t realize he was providing food because he loved them.

They drank the water from the rock and didn’t recognize his power.

They won wars and didn’t understand his purpose.

How could they have missed his presence, his power, his love, his intervention?

We can criticize their blindness, but maybe we would be wise, instead, to ask if we are making the same mistake. Do we credit “coincidence” with bumping into an old friend? Do we think it was “good luck” that we got the job? Do we think it “fortunate” that our bonus came just when the medical bills arrived?

God is active in our lives every day. We need to look for his hand at work and then thank him. Thank him in the morning for a new day. Thank him through the day for every good thing that happens to you. Thank him at night for his faithfulness. Then worship him for who he is and for how much he loves us. That’s the whole point! Knowing him. Loving him. Worshiping him.

“Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let them say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’” – 1 Chronicles 16:31

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My House

“To think his thoughts, to choose his will, to love his loves, to judge with his judgments, and thus to know that he is in us, is to be at home.” – George MacDonald

How’s life at your house? I thought it interesting recently to read about the building of the temple in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 1-7). It was beautiful, and it became the place where God chose to show himself to those who would worship him there. In Solomon’s dedicatory prayer, he sees it as a house of confession, worship, prayer – and also of celebration, feasting, and music. Fast forward to the New Testament, where Jesus enters the temple, God’s house, and says, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations” (from Mark 11:17).

Don’t we want that at our houses, too? A place where God shows himself present to instruct, affirm, correct, and lead. A place where we pray and can worship him in the quietness of the morning. A place where God is honored. Then, too, a place of fun, feasts, and, music.

What about your house? Whether it’s cabin-sized or temple-sized, is it a house of prayer? A house of celebration? A house filled with music and joy? Martin Luther said it this way: “The whole world could abound with the services to the Lord . . . – not only in churches but also in the home, kitchen, workshop, field.”

Let’s make our homes places where God is recognized, honored, and worshipped. It can change everything.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. – Colossians 3:16-17

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Why do I pray?

And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” – Isaiah 6:3

Though I can’t see you, Lord, I know you are with me.

I pray because I believe you listen to me.

You love me.

You want what’s best for me.

You’re always working behind the scenes of my life.

You’re powerful enough to do whatever pleases you.

You will someday make all things right.

I pray because talking to you helps me order my tangled thoughts.

I pray not just hoping you will answer, but because I know I will be heard.

I pray because there is more to this life than what I can see. My prayers help me access the unseen life where everything is ordered, justice prevails, no one dies, and you rule. Prayer is my connection to that world and that connection makes everything in this world more bearable, more hopeful, less frightening.

I thank you when my prayers break out into worship. When it finally dawns on me that I’m talking to the one who created me and the entire universe around me. I am talking to the one who is holy, powerful, present everywhere, knowing everything, and living in unapproachable light. Yet I dare to enter your light because you have invited me to come. I stand amazed that I can be in your presence at all. Amazed at you.

You respond always in love, grace, and mercy. You bring me peace and fill me with hope. You create in me a clean heart, a renewed mind, and a desire to leave this place of prayer to serve you and my fellow travelers with joy. I am so thankful. Amen.

That’s why I pray.

“Prayer is keeping company with God.” – Philip Yancey

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Smile!

“I will celebrate before the Lord,” 2 Samuel 6:21b

Did you know that walking with God is not always about being serious? There are supposed to be times of celebration, belly laughs, and seeing the lighter side.

Remember when David brought the Ark of God to Jerusalem after its long absence? He was so happy he danced in front of the Ark, and it wasn’t a carefully choreographed dance, either. It is described as dancing and leaping – a spontaneous burst of joy.

Then there’s the time when Ezra found the Book of the Law, dusty from disuse for many years. He read it to the people and they were overcome with grief to think of how many ways they had failed God. After awhile, Nehemiah stepped in, dismissed the sad meeting, and called for a party, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine . . . for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).

So, how happy are your morning devotional times? Do you smile when you talk to God? Does joy sneak into your heart as you read Scripture and begin to understand the pleasure God takes in his creation and in his people?

How happy are the worship times at your church? Is it a place where singing and praise-filled people worship a joy-filled God?

How happy are you when you look at God’s artwork in the sky, the freshness of new snow, or the wiggles of puppies? The things God makes should lead us to agree with Dallas Willard who said, “God is the happiest, most joyful being in the universe.”

Shouldn’t knowing him stir up happiness in us? Let’s live joy today!

“Praise is the mode of love which always has some element of joy in it.” – C. S. Lewis

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Does what I’m doing matter?

Who may go up to the mountain of Adonai?
Who can stand in his holy place?
Those with clean hands and pure hearts,
who don’t make vanities the purpose of their lives
or swear oaths just to deceive.
– Psalm 24:3-4 (CJB)

Do you ever avoid approaching God? Or just are not too excited about worshipping  him? You know you’re his child, but you don’t go skipping to the throne room to share your heart with him. King David of old might be able to help us here.

In Psalm 24, he asks who is qualified to worship God. Then he answers his own question: Someone who is honest, has clean hands (actions are right), and a pure heart (attitudes are right). Those qualifications are pretty clear to all of us.

Then he gives one more requirement: Those “who don’t make vanities the purpose of their lives”. To understand what vanities are, we need to look at the book of Ecclesiastes. This author (likely David’s son Solomon) tried everything: wine, women, song, lands, learning, power, and popularity. Nothing satisfied. He said it was all vanity, meaning empty. It had no substance, brought no satisfaction, and vanished into thin air in light of eternity.

Are there “vanities” in your life? Things that are attractive in the moment, but don’t bring long-lasting satisfaction? Or activities that distract you from the true purpose of your life? In our hearts, we know the most important purpose is knowing and following Jesus, worshiping and serving God, loving and caring for our neighbor. When the unimportant takes its proper place, God says we will be ready to worship.

We may all have some sorting out to do!

“Nothing teaches us about the preciousness of the Creator as much as when we learn the emptiness of everything else.”—Charles Spurgeon

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Why worship?

“Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually.” – 1 Chronicles 16:11

Sometimes we have a problem thinking of God “demanding” to be worshipped. If we struggle with that concept, it’s because we don’t really know God. The better we get to know him, the more we realize that inviting us to worship him is one of his great gifts to us. Why?

First, because we were designed to worship something or someone. There is only one being or object in this entire universe worthy of our worship: God Almighty, Jehovah, Adonai. We must worship. But let’s not worship other people, angels, creation. Worship God and only God. He is the one we were created to adore.

Second, because worship completes a circle of connection with God. He loves us, provides for us, leads us in rights paths, protects us. We respond with thanksgiving and worship for who he is and for his intimate involvement in our lives. He keeps on showering his grace upon us and we keep responding in worship. It’s a great circle to be part of!

Third, because worshipping God helps us to see him as he is – high and lifted up, majestic in holiness, great and glorious Triune God, ruler of heaven and earth. The more we see him in his glory, the more worship will naturally flow from our hearts, lips, and lives. And that kind of worship makes us more like Jesus, little-by-little, prayer-by-prayer.

Though worship pleases God, it is amazingly good for us. So, let’s not save it for Sunday morning services. Let’s worship God every day, every hour of the day as we are reminded of his glorious presence with us. Never pass up an opportunity to worship him!

“Worship does not satisfy our hunger for God – it whets our appetite.” Eugene Peterson

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Just Glimpses

“Behold these are but the outskirts of his ways and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?” – Job 26:14

Don’t we all want to know what God is like? Moses wanted that, too, and asked God to show him his glory. God said, in essence, ‘I really like you, Moses, but you can’t look on me and still be alive.’ God decided, though, to share a little more of who he was, so he had Moses stand in a cleft on the mountain and allowed this humble human to see the remnants of his glory as he passed by. 

And, as humans, that’s all we ever see of him – glimpses of his glory. We see a bit of it in thunderstorms and Bible revelations, but just whispers, just shadows. We have to be careful not to try to figure God out based on those remnants or on our own experience. He is bigger, greater, more astounding than anything we could ever even think of! We don’t have the capacity to imagine or grasp his greatness, power, or magnificence.

So what do we do if we want to know more about him? We start with what he has allowed us to see in the Bible and in creation.  He’s strong, present everywhere, majestic, kind, all-knowing, good, holy, artistic, and loving toward all he has made (that includes us!). We, at this point, have to be content with what we can know of him. And what we know is just a faint shadow of the reality of who he is – an almighty, all-loving, awe-inspiring God worthy of our worship!

“Bring me a worm that can comprehend a man, and then I will show you a man that can comprehend the Triune God.” – John Wesley