Welcomed Worship

The following is from Montrose Baptist Church's AM Worship service on February 21, 2010.

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What a concept! We can approach a worship service like a ball game.
Now, most of us found this amusing and funny. Yet, it seems like such a far-fetched concept that someone would approach worship like a sporting event. Obviously, there are not announcers doing interviews here this morning. There are not commentators sitting in a balcony. And certainly, we would never think of choir members, the music minister, or the pastor as players.
Or would we?
Can I be honest with you? One of my greatest fears for the modern church comes in the temptation to make worship a spectator sport. We trudge through a few songs. We listen to the special music performance. And then we hope the preacher gets finished by noon.
We come in and fill our pew, or our seat, and after we get through with the service, we proclaim the worship time is over. Yet, if we’re honest, many times, depending on your heart and attitude, worship for you may have never began.
Worship is more than attendance at a service. It is more than singing along with the book. It is more than listening to the preacher. Worship is not something that we observe. It is not even an hour we set aside each week.
So what is worship?
I would invite you to join with me this morning as we look at Psalm 63.

Read text. (Psalm 63:1-7)

We shared earlier what worship is not. We even asked the question, “What is worship?”
Certainly Psalm 63 gives us an example, an insight as to what welcomed worship looks like.
Perhaps the most accepted, concise definition for worship in modern theological circles comes from Bruce Leafblad, worship professor at SouthWestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He basically sums up what we find in the sixty-third Psalm. He says, “Worship is communion with God in which believers, by grace, center their mind's attention and their heart's affection on the Lord, humbly glorifying God in response to His greatness and His worth."
You could preach an entire message just from his definition. Yet, we are going to use it as a reference- as a summary of the worship we find in our text this morning.
While we’ve offered a definition, I believe that we can learn a few components of true, God-pleasing worship from David’s psalm. First, we find that welcomed worship is marked by…

1.) Proper Direction
“O God, You are my God…” v. 1aThe fact is that we are made to worship. We are divinely designed with the capacity and natural tendency to worship. Proper worship is determined in part by a proper direction.
In short, it is not as much a question of how you worship, as it is a matter of WHO you worship.
David makes his formal declaration at the very beginning of this psalm. He makes his aim and the intended recipient of his praise very clear. He says, “O God, You are my God.”
David understands his capacity to worship and he seeks to make known that his praise is reserved for his God. He is demonstrating the proper direction for our worship to flow.
While modern worship styles are constantly evolving, the mechanics of worship have not. We must still make a conscious choice about the direction and recipient of our praise and adoration.
This morning as you are sitting there, you’re probably thinking, “Well, I’m here, ain’t I?” Yet, we must understand that our faithful attendance does not mean that our worship is always properly directed.
We have an infinite number of choices about where to direct our worship. In fact, some worship money. Others worship their jobs. Some worship their parents. Others worship their children. Some worship the church. Even others, their spouses. And then there is the one most common. We worship ourselves.
As we mentioned earlier, we are made to worship. We are created to offer praise and adoration. The first component of welcomed, God-pleasing worship is found in the proper assignment and direction of our worship.
Our worship must be properly directed, and it should also by fueled by a…

2.) Passionate Desire
“…earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.“ v. 1b
In addition to having properly directed worship, we must also possess a passionate desire for our God.
I love David’s description of his desire for God. He relates it in terms of desperation, the same desperation felt by a man dying of thirst in the desert. David is in the desert, the wilderness, hiding from Absalom or Saul, depending the on the date you accept. He has fled for his life. Yet, his desire is for an encounter with God. He wants the communion with God that comes from worship. In fact, he is desperate for it. His worship is fueled by that passionate desire for an encounter with God.
Our worship must be properly directed, and it should be just as passionate as David’s offering. Welcomed worship desires God’s presence and His glory more than anything else. We should long to see His face with all that is within us.
I am a firm believer that it is not until we reach that point of true desperation that we will find true communion with God. That is worship. Worship is communion with him.
There’s a story about a proud young man who came to Socrates asking for knowledge. He walked up to the muscular philosopher and said, “O great Socrates, I come to your for knowledge.”
Socrates recognized a pompous numbskull when he saw one. He led the young man through the streets, to the sea, chest deep into water. Then he asked, “What do you want?”
“Knowledge, O wise Socrates,” said the young man with a smile. So Socrates put his strong hands on the man’s shoulders and pushed him under. Thirty seconds later, Socrates let him up.
“What do you want?” he asked again.
“Wisdom,” the young man sputtered, “O great and wise Socrates.”
Socrates crunched him under again. Thirty seconds passed, thirty-five. Forty. Socrates let him up. The man was gasping.
“What do you want, young man?”
Between heavy, heaving breaths the fellow wheezed, “Knowledge, O wise and wonderful…”
Socrates jammed him under again. Forty seconds passed. Fifty. “What do you want?”
“Air!” he screeched. “I need air!”
“When you want knowledge as you have just wanted air, then you will have knowledge.”
Like that young man, when we desire God with that same desperation of a drowning man, then we will find Him.
Welcomed worship is marked by a proper direction and by a passionate desire.
It is also marked by…

3.) Practical Demonstration
“Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise You. On my bed I remember You; I think of You through the watches of the night.” v. 3-6While worship is especially dependent on the proper attitude and a right heart, there are still elements of demonstration. There are things that we do in our worship.
David promises that his lips will glorify God. He will praise God for all the days of his life. He will lift up his hands to God. He will sing praises. And he continuously thinks about God.
All of these are practical elements of worship. They are things that we should still be doing today. While it is a good list, it is not an exhaustive list of all of the ways that we can communicate our worship.
Certainly, we want our lips to glorify Him. We should pray and faithfully thank Him for His goodness and grace. We should make His name known among the nations. We should share our faith as part of our worship.
We should sing. I know Bro. Ed especially likes this part. Singing is something that we do as a way to communicate our joy. We should sing to Him a new song.
Now, if you start talking about worship and mention singing, the debate is going to come up about the style of music. Some say that they only worship when they sing hymns. Others believe that they need a praise band and a chorus. There are probably as many different preferences as there are people. It is not as much about style as it is about the message and the heart of the worshipper.
We should be faithful to communicate our love and adoration in worship.
In addition to the things that we just mentioned, there are some instructions and precedents in Scripture that Baptists are not as likely to do.
In this passage, David promises that he will lift up his hands. Now, I don’t know where our timidity and reservations came in, but when was the last time someone lifted their hands? That is the sure way to cause a scene in a Baptist church.
But let’s go a little further.
In 2 Samuel, as David was escorting the ark back to Jerusalem, he was dancing with all of his might before God.
When was the last time that a Baptist broke loose and danced before God.
When was the last time that we were so overjoyed about all that God has done for us that we just had to dance?
I’m afraid that too many share the opinion of one of Emily’s former pastors. Emily took ballet for fifteen or sixteen years. And at a special service at her church, she did a dance to a Christian song. Afterwards, I’ll spare you the exact comment, but she was told that it was inappropriate.
David danced! He shouted! He sang! He lifted up holy hands. David was lost before his God. He didn’t notice anyone else. He simply basked in God’s presence.
Our worship should imitate his.
Welcomed worship begins with the proper direction. It includes a passionate desire to see God’s face and His glory. It involves practical demonstrations. And lastly, we find a…

4.) Promised Development“My soul clings to You; Your right hands upholds me.” v. 7
David not only promised his praise, but he recognized the results of his worship as well.
He said that his soul clings to God and His hand upholds him.
I believe there is a principle and a promise that we can find from David. This was a declaration that true worship produces greater intimacy. True worship equals an encounter with God.
If we will be faithful and diligent to offer proper worship, we will find a closeness with Christ that cannot be surpassed.
Have you ever felt like you were abandoned and alone? Have you ever felt distant from God? You might need to examine whether or not you are truly worshipping.
Worship, inevitably, draws us closer to our God.
Additionally, one of the primary, if not the primary, task of the gathered church is to be a house of corporate worship.
How are we doing? Are we truly worshipping? Are we constantly seeking to exalt the name of Jesus?
Is God receiving your worship? Or is it misdirected?