The King's Church in Ilford
The following is the text of the talk given on 25th October 2009 by Georges Kisombola
"Are You a Thanksgiver, a Praiser, or a Worshipper?"
Reading: John 4:23-24
23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
It is said that one of the most misunderstood terms in English language is the word "worship". We often confuse the word worship with thanksgiving and praise.
1) The Bible teaches us in numerous places that we are to give thanks to God for what he has done.
The word "thanksgiving" appears 26 times in the NIV. Such memorable passages as the following:
Psalm 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name
Isaiah 51:3 The LORD will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing.
The term "give thanks" appears about 30 times: Including such memorable passages as:
1 Chronicles 16:8 Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.
The term "thanksgiving" simply means: to render thanks to God for blessings granted.
Thanksgiving is an easy thing for us, because the act of thanksgiving always hinges on the fact that God has already done something for us.
2) And, then there is the term "praise". Praise is also something that is most often easy for us to accomplish, because our praise hinges on something that God has already done.
It's usually not too difficult for us to fulfill:
In Psalm 150:1-6 almost each verse starts with PRAISE. Praise the LORD. Because the word of our testimony in the congregation makes us excited about what God has done for us. Testimonies of Healing, Salvation, Deliverance, Provision make us desire to give thanks to God and praise Him for what he has done in our midst. There is nothing wrong with that, in fact the Bible commands us to give praise in the sanctuary, to praise God for what He has done. I never want to forget the fact that (9) times in scripture David said: Psalm 106:1 1 Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. I love to praise the Lord! I love to give Him thanks for all He's done! But, it is possible to be a thanks giver, and a praiser, and yet not be a worshiper. Because you see, the term worship means something entirely different.
Worship simply means "pure adoration to God, not based on acts of blessing, but based on His nature and the fact that He is God alone!"
You see, thanksgiving and praise are contingent on what God has done! But, worship is contingent on Who God is! It's easy to give thanks, and praise, but it's not always easy to worship! Why?
Because true worship says:
- Even though I lost my job, I'll still worship you, because you are God and you have not changed!
- Even though my marriage is falling apart, I'll still worship you for you are God, and you have not changed!
- Even though my family turns against me, I'll still worship you, for you are God and you have not changed!
True worship says, no matter what is happening in my life, you are God and Your excellent greatness has not changed!
True worship says, no matter whether or not:
I have food on the table - Money in the bank - Peace in my home - I'm being blessed or not
I'll still stand with my hands raised and worship, because no matter what you have or have not done, you are God and there is none beside you!
True Worship says I exalt you because you are:
Alpha and Omega - Beginning and end - Chief Cornerstone - Deliverer - Everlasting Father - First and Last - Good Shepherd - Holy One - I am - Jesus - King of Kings - Lamb of God - Mediator - Prince of Peace - Quick and Righteous Judge - Redeemer - Saviour - True Vine - Unquenchable Fire - Victorious King - Word made flesh - Express Image of God - Yahweh - Zion's Conquering King
I) I THINK IT IS INTERESTING THAT JESUS USED THIS TERM TO DESCRIBE THE KIND OF PEOPLE THAT THE FATHER IS SEEKING.
Jesus didn't say that the Father was seeking thanks givers, or praisers, but he said, "God is seeking people who will worship Him!"
A) Abraham had been a praiser and a thanksgiver for a long time. And with good reason, for the Bible says he was a wealthy man. He was a man well respected by his peers, and specifically, a "friend of God". It's easy to praise and give thanks when you're well stocked with gold, silver, cattle, wealth.
It's easy to praise when God is giving to you.
But, Abraham learned about worship when God not only stopped giving TO him, but instead required something OF him.
When all the wealth and riches couldn't save the life of the son that God had given Abraham, and God said, "Now, we'll see how much you really love me, and not just what I can do for you." And on the day that Abraham became a true worshiper, the Bible says: Genesis 22:5 5 He said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you." Abraham, you've enjoyed the blessings of God for a long time, and your faithfulness to God has never really been tested, but today, you learned what it means to simply worship God for who He is!
B) Job was another man who had no problem praising God.
Job 1:1-3 1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
It's easy to praise when you have such great substance.
It's easy to give the Lord thanks when He has given you so much.
It's easy to love God as long as you're on the receiving end.
But, Job learned about true worship in a single day, when everything that he had was stripped from him, without explanation, without apology, without warning. But, look at the character of Job after the final messenger had left with the news that all of his children and their spouses had been destroyed.
Job 1:20-22 20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 21 and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. [a] The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised." 22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. Job knew how to be a praiser and a thanks giver, but on that day he learned how to be a worshiper! Job learned what it meant to praise God when God was taking from him, and not when God was just giving to him!
C) Three Hebrew children
The three Hebrew boys, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, more commonly known to us as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, which were their Babylonian names, had no problem giving thanks to God. They had been elevated in the King's Court because of their talents, skills, and abilities. They had been chosen to work their way up the ladder of Babylonian success.
But, one fateful day, their resolve was tested. Will we go on being successful according to the world's standards, even if it means denying our God?
Or will we stand for what's right, even if it means dying in the furnace?
It's easy to praise when things are going well, and I have favor in the king's eyes. But, what will I do now? And their answer was swift, and without delay!
Daniel 3:17-18 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
These three words have impacted me so much "BUT IF NOT"!
These three young men went from being praisers on that day to being TRUE worshipers!
They said:
- We know that God CAN do it, but even if he doesn't we will still worship HIM!
- We know that God can keep us safe, but even if He doesn't, it doesn't change the way we feel about HIM!
In this generation of prosperity, when all we seem to look for is more, more, more, Oh God! Teach us how to worship You even if You do nothing for us at all! Teach us to say "BUT IF NOT!"
Let me tell you, in each of the cases I just brought to you for consideration, the story didn't end with a son being lost, or with Job sitting in a pile of ashes, or with the Hebrew children being burned to a crisp!
God's people went through some hard times, but when they stayed true to God, and learned how to worship in the hard times, eventually God brought them through and blessed them more mightily than ever before!
- You might be in the furnace now, but learn how to worship!
- You might be stripped down to nothing now, but learn how to worship!
- You might have lost everything, but learn how to worship, because God is not through yet!
II) SOMEONE SAID RECENTLY, "THE PROBLEM WITH US IS THAT WE SEEK GOD'S HAND, AND NOT HIS FACE"
- We seek what God can do for us, and not an intimate relationship with Him.
- We only seek the blessing of God, and not the communion with Him.
- We praise, but we never really worship.
Can we as a church truly worship God even when HE is not blessing? Or even more critically, when He is taking things from us?
The Bible tells of a group of 86 priests that were sitting around one day, testifying of God's mighty acts, and sharing what God had done for them. When an evil man named Doeg came upon them and destroyed all but one of these Godly men. And one escaped by the name of Abiathar. And the Bible says:
1 Samuel 23:6 6 Now Abiathar son of Ahimelech had brought the ephod down with him when he fled to David at Keilah.
- Now, that may not seem like much to you, but you must understand that the ephod was a symbol of prayer, worship, communion with God.
- And it was never designed to be carried in one's hand, it was designed to be worn around one's chest, close to the heart.
And, Abiathar was wearing his worship when things were going well, but when things were not going so well, he took off his worship!
God is not looking for people who will just worship when it's convenient, but will wear their worship every day, wherever they go!
God is not looking for people who will just worship when things are going well, but will keep that worship on when things are not going well!
That is why Jesus said that a true worshiper will worship in spirit and in truth: It's easy to worship when things are going well, and we're excited, and our spirits are high and we're on a mountain top experience,
But, it's harder to worship in truth, because:
- Truth says God can heal, but for some reason He hasn't
- Truth says, God can provide, but for some reason He hasn't
- Truth says, God is able, but for some reason He's not willing,
But a true worshiper says, I know God is able, BUT IF NOT, I will still worship!
Truth says: 1 Thessalonians 5:18 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Not just in the good times, but in the bad times too!
Not just when God is giving, but when He is taking away!
Not just when God is moving, but when He is standing still!
Not just when God is speaking, but when He is silent!
But people that will just come together and worship Him because of Who HE is!
Robertson McQuilkin, former president of Columbia International University of Columbia, South Carolina, wrote this testimony:
Life was heavy on me. My dearest friend and intimate companion, my delightful wife Muriel, was slipping away, one painful loss at a time, as Alzheimer's disease ravaged her brain. Just as the full impact of what was happening to us hit home, the life of Bob, our eldest son, was snuffed out in a diving accident.
Two years later, to care for Muriel, I left my life work at its peak. I was numb. Not bitter, let alone angry. Why should I be? That's the way life is, life in a broken world. But the passion in my love for God had evaporated, leaving a residue of resignation where once had been vibrant faith.
I knew that I was in deep trouble, and I did the only thing I knew to do-I went away to a mountain hideaway for prayer and fasting. It took about twenty-four hours to shake free of preoccupation with my own wounds and to focus on the excellencies of God. As I did, slowly love began to be rekindled. And with love came joy.
I wrote God a love letter, naming forty-one of his marvelous gifts to me, spotlighting eleven of his grandest acts in history, and exulting in ten of his characteristics that exceed my imagination. Surely he enjoyed my gratitude-who doesn't appreciate gratitude?
But I discovered something else. Something happened to me. I call it the reflex action of thanksgiving. My love flamed up from the dying embers, and my spirit soared. I discovered that ingratitude impoverishes-but that a heavy heart lifts on the wings of praise.
