Devotion 4: A Joyful Heart of Worship
Standing in the crowd, listening to voices singing, the auditorium filled with music and voices praising the Holy God of Heaven, I am often overwhelmed to the point I cannot sing. Instead, I can only stand in awe of the God who loves me and provides salvation for me. This scene is often what people consider worship, and it is worship if our hearts are truly in it. However, it is not the only way we can worship.
Worship is a state of the heart and should be in everything we do. We are fortunate to live in an age of grace. We have the historical fact of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Old Testament Scriptures point to that very moment in time, and we have the testimonies in the New Testament proving the Old Testament prophecies are truth. That alone should cause our hearts to worship God.
In Hebrews 12:22-24, we read, “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.”
With Christ as our Lord, we are already enrolled in Heaven where joy and freedom flourish. The blood of a perfect Christ was shed to redeem sinners, so we can live a perfect eternal life. Through Jesus, we can be in the presence of our Holy God. God is all-powerful, full of justice, and cannot overlook sin. However, through the new covenant of the shed blood of Jesus, the redeemed dwell with God on Mount Zion, a glorious place where those made perfect through the sacrifice of that blood will live eternally. We have the promise of a loving, righteous, forgiving relationship with our Savior.
If we have a sinful thought or behavior, we know we are already forgiven, which moves us to be obedient and immediately repent of any sins, and that is worship. We know Christ already paid our penalty and we live in joy as Jesus lived. When we sin, we do not have to mourn, beat ourselves up, or wallow in self-pity. We repent of the sin, then joyfully go through the world telling others about this amazing gift. That is worship. We worship when we realize God’s wonder, power, and majesty. We enjoy God’s grace and mercy and seek to glorify Him and recognize only He deserves our adoration and our honor. That is how we worship, not to get something from Him, but just because He deserves it.
Although worship can be in the form of singing, worship is acknowledging that God is all-powerful and should receive glory through everything we say and do. Knowing God’s Word and joyfully obeying His commands is the ultimate form of worship. Worship is showing admiration for the God who created us and made all things to glorify Him.