When it comes to worshiping and praising God, it is a mistake to think that He accepts anything that we offer. From Genesis to Revelation, we learn that genuine worship and praise of our Heavenly Father cannot be forced or generated from repetitive rituals. It cannot be our sloppy seconds or afterthought thirds. We must offer God our best because this is what He deserves.
We learn from His creation of Adam that God wanted to be close to His created beings. He wanted intimacy in His relationship with us, and He created us with everything we need to foster and maintain that intimacy. Through our union, fellowship, and devotion to and with God, He left no detail incomplete. He fashioned within us the capacity for true worship and praise. These two, worship and praise to our God, affirm our commitment to give Him glory and honor. They acknowledge that we understand who God is, and that we recognize that He alone is worthy to be worshiped and praised continually, without end.
To worship and praise our Heavenly Father, the Creator of all that is, is to practice truth. Anyone glorious deserves glory, and there is none glorious but Him, the One True Living God. Jesus Christ said in John 4:24(ESV), “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” Genesis 1:26-27 tells us that we were made in the image of God. We were created in His likeness, and we have the capacity through Jesus Christ to imitate God’s nature and character. As His born-again people, we can come into God’s presence. He’s made this possible through Christ, and it gave Him great pleasure to do so. He’s made us a mirror reflection of His glory and brilliance, and this truth should set our souls on fire for Him.
Ephesians 2:10(NLT) tells us, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” When God looks at us, this is what He sees. He sees His masterpiece in Christ! Throughout the years, religions, traditions, and many other practices have tried to make their way into the relationship God wants with us, but much of this He hasn’t sanctioned. Adam and Eve existed very simply with God, unencumbered with all the things we’ve brought into worship and praise. Many people find themselves caught up in rituals and routines that are outside the boundaries of what God deserves. They’ve refused to read and study God’s Word and have neglected to realize that true worship and praise is a result of knowing the truth of who God is.
1Corinthians 14:33 tells us that God is not the author of confusion. Our Heavenly Father is a God of order. When He establishes standards and principles for our character and living, it is because those are the best way to achieve all that He has instructed us to fulfill and achieve. Our Lord and Savior tells us in John 10:10(NKJV), “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” Through our Master Jesus, God tells us that He has made it available for us to live a more than abundant life, and He tells us exactly how to achieve this more than abundant life in His Word. We are to imitate the character and example of Christ, because this is what God wants and it’s what He has created us to do and be.
Living by faith means living according to what God has said in His Word. It’s living the truth, and living the truth is the way to worship and praise our Heavenly Father. So many of us miss this. Instead of giving glory and praise to God, we steal it for ourselves. When someone compliments us for a job well done or something as insignificant as wearing a beautiful outfit, we don’t think about all that God has done to make it all possible. Even if it’s silently within our own minds, we don’t say “Thank you” to Him for what He’s done. Instead, we think it’s due to our own skill, talent, and ability. We set ourselves up for praise, and we take all the glory. If we think that way for even the tiniest fraction of a second, we’ve denied Him the worship and praise that He’s due.
Worship is only for the Lord. No other deserves it and no other can handle it. We need to pray for a revelation of this and get it way down in our souls. In the Old Testament, when David was a mere ruddy-faced boy, he knew in the deepest part of his young heart that Goliath, a giant, was no match for God. He told King Saul, in 1Samuel 17:37(NLT), “The LORD who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!” When he faced the giant, ready for battle, Goliath cursed and taunted him, but David said in 1Samuel 17:45-46(NLT), “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel!”
David spoke the truth, and whenever and wherever the truth is believed, faith is fueled and poised to show out through the power of God. We live beneath our privilege when we allow ourselves to forget His glory, power, and honor. We place ourselves center-stage, when we have no glory, power, righteousness, or strength to call our own. Everything that we are and will ever be is because of God. Even at his young age, David knew this. He had faced some things. He’d been up against lions and bears, and he witnessed repeatedly how the Lord had saved him and given him victory. He understood that everything about him was possible because of God. He gave God the praise instead of trying to steal it for himself. We need to think like David.
We must worship God in spirit and truth. The greatness of His being and the desire for His presence must be in our hearts to set the atmosphere for worship and praise. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, said in John 5:30(NLT), “30 I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.” Our Master Jesus said that he could do nothing on his own, and neither can we. Worship and praise aren’t a struggle when we know God and we’re truly thankful for how He’s blessed us. His praise will forever be on our lips when we comprehend that with everything we’ve ever done and will ever do, it’s all because of Him. He alone deserves our highest worship and praise, and He has equipped us with all we will ever need to come into His glorious presence with the honor and gratitude that He requires.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
“God Deserves True Worship and Praise”, written by Reverend Fran Mack. Edits by Kim Times and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.