Me

Humour

Links

Pics

Articles

Feedback

Updates

Map

Info

Fun

Search

- Worship Bible Study -

1. What is it?
   The word "worship" comes from an Old English word, "weorthscipe" literally meaning "worth-ship" - that is, to give something or somebody worth.
   The Greek word in the New Testament that is usually translated "worship" is "proskyneo" which means, literally translated, "to come towards to kiss (the hand of)." It is used some 59 times in the New Testament.
   It is a sign of love, adoration, and respect towards the one being worshipped.
   W.E. Vine, in his "Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words" says, "The worship of God is nowhere defined in Scripture. A consideration of the verbs shows it is not confined to praise. Broadly it may be regarded as the direct acknowledgement of God, of His nature, attributes, way and claims, whether by the outgoing of the heart in praise and thanksgiving or by deed done in such acknowledgement." For example, in Acts 17:24-25 the word used means "to do service to" or "to serve."
   
   
2. Why do we do it?
   • It is our response to God when He does something big in our lives, such as saving us in the first place. Scriptural examples of this include:
     • The Philippian jailer saved, Acts 16:25-34.
     • The lame man healed, Acts 3:1-9.
     • Church growth, Acts 2:40-47.
   • Jesus commands us to worship Him. He gives this directive in John 4:24 as well as in other places.
   • Scripture commands it!
     Not because God wants us to do nothing all day except repeatedly tell Him how good he is, but because He also knows it is good for us! Paul encourages the Romans to offer themselves as "living sacrifices" in Romans 12:1.
     Now that expression - "living sacrifices" - is something of an oxymoron in that if there is any characteristic that defines a sacrifice is that it is dead! So how can one possibly be a living sacrifice? The term is used to indicate how we are to be people totally offered to God.
     One last little gem here - Matthew 4:8-10. How absurd! Satan is asking Jesus to worship him! Jesus however quite rightly turns the tables and tells Satan that you are to worship God alone.
   
   
3. How do we do it?
   
   • Praise and Worship - the two often go together - this is the sung part of worship, encouraging each other that God is good, telling Him how much He means to us, thanking Him for all the good things He has done in our lives. But what about "when the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come" (as Matt Redman put it so beautifully)?
   • Giving - this is giving of the works of our hands - money, time, skills, etc.
   • Work - do it wholeheartedly. If a job is worth doing it's worth doing half a job. No, not really...
   • Prayer - all kinds of prayer. Worship prayers, thanksgiving, requests for others (intercessions), personal requests. God wants us to do all these things, see Philippians 4:6.
   • Lifestyle - the way we lead our lives. Do our lives glorify God or are we being selfish? Check out our attitudes towards others, our relationships towards them, how we treat them. Especially for our families, church members, work colleagues, friends, and anybody else we might come into contact with. See Philippians 4:2-7.
   
   
4. How do we do it?
   
   • Worship pleases God - He inhabits the praises of His people - but without faith it is impossible to please God. So first things first - we must have faith in God. See Hebrews 11:5-6. Perhaps this is one reason why non-believers find it hard to accept that we WANT to praise God because if the faith isn't there, what's the point?
   • Hebrews 11:6 tells us that God will bless those who do worship Him. So there is a positive benefit in worshipping our Creator! By the way, the great cloud of witnesses referred to in chapter 12 of Hebrews is referring to the "hall of faith" - those who are documented for us in chapter 11. They were all men and women of faith who really pleased God.

On this encouraging note it may be a good idea to spend some time seeking Him now, asking Him to show Himself to you in a real way, and enable you to worship Him as He would like you to. It's well worth it!

Need an Extradisambiguator? Click here!

---