Pastor Kevin’s Korner
If you have been following along for the past few months, you know I have been discussing the topic of worship. For the sake of space and time, I will not review what we have looked at during those months. But please allow me to bring our discussion to a close and share for just a moment about “living for God’s glory.” You see, as we worship God both privately and corporately, the Spirit of God is at work to transform us in the image of God’s Son. This is one of the primary reasons we worship in the first place—to meet with Him and thus be changed. But what does that change look like? How are we supposed to evaluate whether our worship is actually affecting us and the others around us? I want to briefly examine five ways that worshiping God on Sunday should transform the way we live the rest of the week. These ideas are taken from the book Worship Matters by Bob Kauflin.
First, worshiping God should make us grateful. Worshiping God rightly should open our eyes to God’s amazing love and grace. We will remember how in Jesus Christ we are saved and reconciled to our Father, and therefore, we will offer Him our thanksgiving. We will recognize that our greatest need has been taken care of at the cross. And when we gaze on the cross of Christ and truly recognize that we should be hanging there instead, our response will be overflowing gratefulness.
Second, worshiping God should make us humble. There is absolutely nothing about meeting with God in worship that should exalt us. That is exactly why it is so important that we worship God through the lens of the gospel. Nothing humbles us more than worshiping at the foot of the cross. I am a worshiper of God because Jesus died and rose again to make me one, not because I earned the right to be one.
Third, worshiping God should make us secure. The foundation of our security in God is not our preparation and plans, nor what others can provide for our protection. Our security ultimately rests in the unchanging love of God, gloriously displayed at Calvary. One of the reasons Christians often question God’s protection and love is that they fail to keep the crucified and risen Savior at the center of their worship.
Fourth, worshiping God should make us loving. Jesus left His followers with a clear command: “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). He then gave the ultimate illustration of love by laying down His life for those He came to save. It is, therefore, inconsistent to profess that we love God while withholding love from those He came to save. Christians are not perfect, but we should always be loving toward others.
Fifth, genuine worship changes lives. If worshipers leave a service with no thought of becoming more godly in their lives, then the purpose of worship has not been achieved. The clear teaching of Scripture is that genuine worship is life changing. Do you really believe that? God intends to transform us into His image as we worship and praise Him. As we glorify Him, God works in us “both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).
My hope and prayer for this new year is that each of us would become better worshipers of God. That each of us would focus on our private and corporate worship and allow God to transform us and make us more like His Son. Then we would share with others the wonderful reason why we worship God in the first place. Have a blessed month and a great new year.
-- Pastor Kevin