Worship is… Living Your Life Honoring
Jesus
Judi Barrett
Main text: Romans 12: 1-2
Many Christians come together in a church building on Sunday
morning to worship the LORD which is wonderful, but if the rest of the week in
spent without much thought of Jesus, do we truly worship him? Talk to someone
who is a real fan of some
I have heard nearly all of my life how Jesus died for
us. Well, yes, He did and who else do you know that would be willing to die for you, except
maybe your parents and then sometimes that is doubtful. In reality Jesus did so
much for us than that and continues to do so.
He was in with the Father in His glory, doing just fine, and came to
earth to be a man for us. He became something so much less than what He
had been, walked around on this dusty earth in sandals for 33 years doing only
good to people and teaching them the truth about who we are and why we are,
etc. During that time, He was ridiculed,
made fun of, hungry, tired, etc. Then experienced such an awful death that He
did not deserve. Not only that but it
didn’t end there. He ascended to the Father
where He continues work for us. He is
interceding for us now. He has not
stopped working for us. He said that He
and the Father would make their abode in us.
The Holy Spirit is with us and in us.
We are the vessel in which God
lives – how can a Christian’s life be anything less than a living worship of
Jesus.
Some people seem to believe that God is at church, at the church building. They put on their best behavior when they walk in the door, I mean after all, you’re at church, right??
But God lives at church when His people are at church, when
they go home – He goes home too, to their house. It should be constantly evident to those around us that God dwells
in us.
That’s why it’s important – every word and every deed
be done or be said as though saying them or doing them to Jesus. (Col 3:17 -
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father
through him.)
When the word says “Present
yourselves as living sacrifices in Romans 12:1, it’s not as though we
have to give up something good, be put out of something that we need, sacrifice
as though causing ourselves a hardship – the word “sacrifice” did not quite
mean the same during Biblical times that it does in this day and age. We use
the word a little differently today. We
say, “I sacrificed so my children could get an education” etc. In both instances it means giving something,
but we use it a little more loosely in our times.
The rest of the verse sums it up well – “holy
and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship.”
If we are to live on and in the
spiritual plane, like those that were truly on fire for God in the Bible, then
we must be doing every deed and saying every word conscious that God’s Holy
Spirit is inside of us and is being drug through whatever we are saying and/or
doing.
He’s promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us….
I wonder if sometimes He doesn’t regret that promise!! (Hebrews 13:5)
“Do not conform any
longer [Stop doing it now] to
the “pattern” of this world.” Webster says that a pattern is a person or
thing considered worthy of imitation or copying. A model, plan or set of forms used as a guide
in making things. A
regular or habitual way of acting.
A predictable route, movement, or one that has been
established by rule or order. To
make, do, shape, or plan in imitation of a model or pattern.
We are not to consider the way
that this world acts, speaks, or lives as worthy of imitation or copying. It is not to be the plan that we use as a
guide in forming our lives. The way that
we live each day becomes how we have lived our lives. We can have good intentions for today or for
tomorrow, but when we get to tomorrow, it’s how we did
yesterday that counts. It’s what we are
doing not what we plan to do.
We are to be from a different mold
than the world is from. We are not to
speak and/or act like every one else.
People should see that our pattern is different – we’re cut out different
– we do not fit in. Remember Pattern
Parade for kids.
“But be transformed” – How?? “By the renewing of your mind.” Our mind is our control center – controlling
every part of our body. Renew it and we will renew and transform all we say and
do up to the Spiritual plane. Renew it
by filling it with Godly things, not things of this world. Renew it by reading GOD’S WORD, by reading
commentaries to help us understand, by reading other Godly books written by
Christians, by listening to Christian music, by praying always in everything
that we do. Renew it by thinking about
the things of God. Fill it up with
Jesus.
Look at the promise that goes with
this –“Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His
good, pleasing, and perfect will.”
You will be transformed to the
point that you know what God’s will is in matters – you’ll know what is most
pleasing to God given choices that you have – His pleasing will – will come out
in you.
Worship is extreme adoration-
considering something to be above all else.
Our lives are to be worship of
Jesus. We are to consider Him and His
will to be above all else.
The heathen and unsaved offer sacrifices or gifts to obtain
mercy. They try to bargain with God,
they believe that being good will buy God’s mercy. God
gave us mercy while we were still sinners.
(Romans 5:8 - But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for
us.). God did not ask for a sacrifice or
gift from us to induce Him to grant
us mercy. He became His own sacrifice, He gave us a gift, the gift of
mercy. Our living sacrifice or living worship unto Him –
walking on the spiritual level (as opposed to walking on the physical level, in
the flesh) is our fitting response to His mercy already given to us. In fact it’s the only way that we can do it –
through His gift of grace and by His Holy Spirit that comes to live inside
these bodies with our spirit. That is
the only way that we can live at that level.
Our spirit is to become one with the God’s Holy Spirit just as Jesus prayed for us in John 17 (Jn 17:20 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.)
How
was the Father and Jesus one? In spirit. AND He prayed that “all of them may be one,
Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.”
He also prayed that we would be in Them. We usually think in terms of Them being in us, but we are to be in Them also. That tells me that something is required of
me. I need to be renewing my mind,
living daily in Them in spirit, just as Their Spirit
lives in me. (Keeping my mind on God and my heart pure, doing the LORD’S will,
keeping the big picture in mind…. Doing what is best for the
Think about this: If God ever answered any prayer, don’t you
think that He answered Jesus’ prayer for us?
Our spirit living in unison with God’s Spirit is demonstrated by the desires and choices that we make. And we fulfill those desires and choices with our bodies. Our body is the vehicle through which the spirit serves. The body is the tool or instrument. It will exhibit either Godly desires and choices OR it will exhibit sinful desires and choices.
Presenting our bodies as living sacrifices is to be thought about and done deliberately, by choice: our choice. The dead animals that were sacrificed had no conscious part in the worship service – no choice – they were dead. We are living sacrifices and we choose to be so, so why hold any part back. It’s our choice to be a Christian. It’s not like we’re trying to bargain and see how little we can give that will qualify. If we are thinking on those terms, then we’ve missed the boat! We’re not worshipping - if we are not being a living sacrifice – a living worship service.
Remember that worship is extreme adoration – complete following, acknowledging that there is nothing better, no one greater, nothing that can compare with something. So if we feel that way about God the Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit, our lives should be an evident testimony to that OR maybe we are divided in what we really worship in this life.
A dedicated life will become the transformed life. The things that will impede the transformation come from the secular world that teaches selfish desires and immediate gratification regardless of the consequences. The world’s ways and thoughts can so easily invade our lives.
The
Greek word translated here is
“aion” which means “age” but is similar in meaning to “kosmos” the term
for “world”. We have been set free from
this evil age which has Satan for its god.
We must live in this age but we do so by the powers of the age to come
in the future. John
We are in this world as witnesses of God, but we are not
here for conformity to this world This world is a
passing phenomenon. This world and what
is important now and to this society …what impresses humans is a passing
phenomenon. What Satan presents on TV and magazines etc as
being the thing – the very, very – hyped up – talked up – made to glitter – is
a “short term” thing – a pretty package – with death inside it.
The word “transformed” in verse 2
is “metamorphoo” the same word that was translated as
“transfigured” in describing Jesus in Mark 9:2-3. What does that tell us?? Just as Jesus came to do the Father’s will –
so are we!! The Christian’s service OR
living sacrifice OR living act of worship should be “doing the Father’s
Will”. The popular WWJD is answered by
saying, “He would do the Father’s will.”
AND so should we.
Don’t talk about doing the
Father’s will – do it! We are to live
our lives by God’s Word not by norms of conduct of a sinful world.
When we are dedicated, that leads
to discernment. We will delight in God’s
will. Making oneself a living sacrifice or a living house of worship, leads
directly and intimately to discerning God’s will for our lives.
VVV
