Truth and Worship #2

We have to repair of our worldly thinking and think God's thoughts after him. God has established how we are to worship in Scripture.

This is the truth pulpit with Don green founding pastor of truth Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio hello I'm Bill right today as Don continues teaching God's people. God's word is going to show us that unless we are true worshipers of God. Our lives have no positive or eternal significance or meaning. Let's join Don now report to of a message called truth and worship your of the truth. Pulpit listen as I read Isaiah 66 verse two.

You can jot it down in your notes for later. Isaiah 66 or read verses one and two for the context. Thus says the Lord. Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool.

He is greatly exalted far above any geographic possible location if the earth is his footstool.

How do we think any physical structure on earth means anything to him and and therefore sanctifies us simply by where we are at at any given moment. Heaven is my throne, the earth is my footstool. Where, then, is a house you could build for me for my handmade all these things.

Thus, all these things came into being, declares the Lord God says I created the heavens and the earth don't think that anything that Shoemaker that you do with your hands impresses me possibility. I spoke the universe into existence and you want to talk to me about your little you know your red brick building with pillars on the front. My handmade all these things us all things came into being, declares the Lord. Here's the point for today for those in this room but this one I will look to him who is humble and contrite of spirit and who trembles at my word here is worship here is worship God. I see the 66 books of the Bible, I see your word and I understand something of the content of it and I bow before and I tremble at the majesty of your written revelation. I tremble at the majesty of the revelation in the incarnate Word of the Lord Jesus Christ. I tremble at that father, I tremble at your holiness that you have made yourself known like this. I tremble at in the presence of pure unadulterated in error and infallible truth, knowing that I am a man whose lips are unclean, and my lips speak lies.

I tremble at that because I see how how different, in essence, your word is from who I am on my own tremble added and I bow before you. I exalt you in my presence, rather than exalting myself in your presence that contrition of spirit.

God, I I am not the man that I should be not the woman that I should be. I'm a man of unclean lips. I live among a people of unclean lips, and here I am in the presence of your truth in revealed in your word written and incarnate God. This fills me with a sense of fear majesty and I respond to you in that way even in the Old Testament we see that worship was spiritual, not outward. The outward sacrifices were never the essence of worship. True worship was always in word the sacrifices in the Mosaic system were mere shadows to teach God's people to approach him through the sacrifice of an innocent victim to picture for them. Their sin to picture for them. Their need of a substitute and bloodshed on their behalf if they are enter into the presence of a holy God. This was the lifelong lesson of centuries of Old Testament worship.

The sacrifices themselves, apart from repentant faith were never acceptable to God and so beloved bringing this into today for us what you and I have to understand is that going through the motions of a cold formality without hard engagement is not true worship.

And the sad reality is I reflect on my own life and you know I'm probably for most of us, you know that that much of what we have done in the name of worship has not really been worship because it's been done with a mind that was not engaged a heart that was not engaged in in the matter hard not responding to worship, just going through the motions. True worship is spiritual. True worship is lofty.

True worship requires the inner man to engage himself or herself with the truth of God, and there must be that attitude of trusting faith.

Jesus said, thinking about of the New Testament terms.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God. Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Beloved, do you see it again and again and again I've multiplied texts to make this simple point to you that even in the Beatitudes, Jesus is emphasizing the inner man hunger or thirst, righteousness, seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be added to this is the lofty standard of worship because God is a spirit worship must be spiritual in order to be true now going back to the gospel of John chapter 3 just to just to set this text from chapter 4 in its broader context. What all of this means beloved. What we see the necessity of is that for a man to offer true worship like what were talking about here.

A man born into sin under the domination of the devil under the wrath of God. There is an utter impossibility for an unsaved man to offer true worship to God. Even his prayer is an abomination.

What this means is, is that you must be born again. You must receive new life from God if you are going to offer true worship to him at all. Look at John chapter 3 verse three and I won't spend much time here, but I need to at least make the point Jesus speaking to Nicodemus, a ruler and a teacher of the Jews in that time Jesus speaks to a man like that a leader in the chosen people, a leader and teacher in Israel.

And Jesus looks at him and said to him, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.

There must be a revolutionary change by the power of God in your inner man, you cannot enter the kingdom at all. Nicodemus said to him, how can that happen. How can a man be born when he is old. How can I be born again, given who I am and that this stage in my life.

Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Beloved only in Jesus Christ and by the new birth. Can anyone know and truly worship God. True worship must be spiritual. Secondly, turning back to John chapter 4.

Worship must be spiritual and secondly the other side of the coin to this worship must be true, it must be true. God only accepts biblical worship. He only accepts biblical worship there. Look at there in verse 24 with me. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth, I noticed that word must there you know it must be it must take place. This way is a very fascinating term in the original language must is an indication that there is no other option and and must in in this this specific Greek term. The word day PEI not DA why day indicates that this is the divine plan, it is necessary, it must happen in this way, or it does not happen. It all. In other words, this is the divine mandate for worship. It must be done in truth he requires it to be done in truth and so beloved. That means that God sets the terms on which we worship. We cannot simply make up our own approach to worship weird.

We do not have that liberty. God is God and God has said this is how I must be worship by my people and the people who are not mine cannot worship me because they are dead in sin and they are under judgment they need to be born again for my people. I have revealed how I want to be worship that is found in my word, and that is the way and that alone is the way in which I must be worship. Jesus says there in verse 24 that we must worship in spirit we seen that and truth. Let's consider what that means. Here a little bit truth matters to God even if it does not matter to men. The fact that you and I may be indifferent to truth and not think that it's all that important in the midst of the very busy lives we lead. We should not project our carelessness and indifference onto a holy God to God truth matters regarding whether men care about it or not. It does matter to God and he says that worship to me must be made in accordance with biblical truth beloved, when we find that truth. How do we know what God finds acceptable worship to be will look it ought to be obvious to us by now that we can't measure true worship by which church has the most cars in its parking lot on a Sunday morning by which church has the biggest building are the most people in attendance. That says nothing about whether it is true or not, it might be an indication of earthly popularity, but false teachers were popular in Jesus day and true teaching by Jesus drove the crowds away rather than attracting them as you read at the end of John chapter 6, many who followed him were no longer following him anymore. It's not a popularity contest. We can't take a barn a pole and determine what truth is, we can assign to a a church marketer that we see on a social media feed to who promises to build our church. We can't rely on that to know if our worship is true or not and if it's not true, it doesn't matter how many people come to join us in our idolatry.

The numbers don't matter.

We have to repent of our worldly thinking and of our carnal aspirations and think God's thoughts after him and what God wants in worship. Here's the critical point. Beloved God has established how we are to worship in Scripture. In second Timothy 316 verse that we look at for many reasons. Very often, but just understand this as I read it to you. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. Scripture equips us for worship.

If God is seeking people to be true worshipers, then isn't it obvious when he is given us a word that is adequate for everything that we need for life and godliness. Isn't it obvious that we would find within the four corners of the Bible. What God requires for worship. We don't need big creative teams. We don't need to pay a big platform budget to find out what acceptable worship is and bring in, the youngest most immature people who have creative gifts in order to make our worship something that's pleasing to God.

That's that's the entirely wrong way to think about things is is to look to human ingenuity and creativity to find the secret to worship.

There is no secret. It's all revealed in Scripture. That's what we need to pay attention to and what do we find in spiritual worship. When the Holy Spirit from God is working and influencing people what does Scripture say the elements of true worship are well. I want to take you to a couple of passages in Scripture. Look at the book of acts chapter 2 with me. The book of acts chapter 2. What is the biblical emphasis will start in verse 38 because it reinforces the repentant faith aspect that we been talking about Peter having preach the gospel to the Jews in that day they said, brethren, what shall we do, and Peter answered him. In verse 38, he said repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit for the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off as many as the Lord our God will call to himself God calls them to himself God causes one to be born again. They repent they believe in Christ there baptized as an expression of their of their faith and Peter in a generation that was of of of wickedness that had just crucified the Messiah with many other words he solemnly testified verse 40 and kept on exhorting them saying be saved from this perverse generation, he calls them out of the world. He calls them to recognize the wickedness of the environment in which they live. To renounce it to reject it, denounce it and to come to Christ leaving the world behind and giving everything about themselves only and exclusively to Christ alone in a repentant faith. That's what conversion looks like it's not just this sentimental sense of asking Jesus into your heart. There is a recognition that the world in which I live in is wicked. I myself am wicked and sinful. I need to flee from all of that and go to Christ alone.

In order to be saved and so then verse 41, those who had received his word were baptized in that day there were added about 3000 souls. And what did they do. What was the overflow of that. What did their worship then look like. Having repented.

Believe been baptized.

Now, what did they give themselves over to what was worship there. He said they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayer, something of which the world has no interest. The world has no interest in opening the Bible, and teaching it. No interest in fellow shipping, sharing life with the true people of God, no interest in breaking of bread, probably a reference to the remembrance of the communion table. Note no interest in true prayer world does not care about that.

And yet this is what becomes the center of true worship for believers and for church assemblies, you know, we teach the word of God.

We fellowship with one another.

We pray, we break bread. This is this is what true worship looks like you can see another perspective on it in the book of Ephesians.

If you turn there with me in Ephesians chapter 5 in verse 17 God's word says do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the spirit, have your mind controlled by the Holy Spirit in the parallel passage angle Colossians 3 we see that being filled with the spirit is acquainted with a mind that is dwelling richly on the word of Christ. But the word of Christ dwell in you richly, it says. Colossians 3 verse 16. At the same point in a parallel text and what we do. What flows out of that fullness of the spirit speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the father you see it spirit filled person spirit filled heart and the overflow of this in worship is his joyful songs, joyful mutual instruction and an admonition and gratitude. Gratitude, not simply not simply in a generic sense the gratitude that is given to the object and the source of our blessings. Gratitude expressed to Christ. Christ God in human flesh as we saw from chapter 1 verse 14 last time recognizing him for who he is, recognizing that our blessings of salvation come from him and therefore we sing praises to him and we express our gratitude to him as we teach his word. As we gather and fellowship. As we join together in prayer.

This is worship. This is worship from the inner man expressed in these kinds of outward manifestations of truth. What we care about is what God thinks and what God wants, and we believe that God has made that plain in Scripture and we seek to emulate that pattern. Whether we do it well or not will find out at the judgment seat. We do not need modern programs. We do not need big expensive church consultants to come in from outside and to tell us what to do. Here's what you need to do in your church, well look, if it's in the Bible.

We've already got it and so you're just telling us what we already know from Scripture is not in the Bible.

We don't need it and so will just save you know six figures on your consultancy and go on with life. In Deuteronomy chapter 12 it says this Deuteronomy chapter 12 verse 32 it says God says whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to nor take away from it.

Our liberty in worship.

Our marching orders and worship is what is found in Scripture.

If it is commanded in Scripture it for worship. We are to do it.

Beloved, if it is not stated in Scripture, we are not to do it. We are not to add to it what is commanded is what is permitted. What is not commanded is actually forbidden because we must worship in truth and God has revealed his truth in his word. One final aspect about this worshiping in truth, the true worship must be can only be offered through our mediator, the Lord Jesus Christ.

We must consciously go through Christ in order to find our access to God.

First Timothy two verse five says there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus and so true worship must be made through Christ and Christ alone. What we mean by that is that we must consciously repeatedly think on well on rely on the person and work of Jesus Christ.

We do not come to God in our own goodness in our own works.

We come only in Christ. Only in Christ.

Only in Christ for worship because it is only in Christ that an unsafe person can find their way to God. Worship of God must conform to the revelation of God.

That is the exclusive way to worship God and there is no other worship that is not in spirit worship that is not in truth is no worship at all. It's actually a sin against God, even when it's done in his name and so I just ask you are you a true worshiper. Have you been born again. Do you repent from sin.

Do you trust in Christ alone is that your priority and aim in life to be biblical in life and in worship, God said, it must you must worship in spirit and in truth and beloved these questions matter. These questions matter because Christ himself is the one who said that those who worship God must worship in spirit and in truth that's going green with part two of a message called truth and worship your on the truth pulpit. What we hope today's lesson is blessed and encouraged you and you will be able to join us again next time you're on the truth pulpit. Until then you can go to the truth.

Pulpit.com and there you can download podcasts or request CD copies of Don's messages by the way, if you're in the Cincinnati area, check out the service times for truth Community Church. That's also on our website and plan a visit. We would love again come to the truth. Pulpit.com hi Bill, right inviting you to join us next time has gone green continues teaching God's people. God's word from the truth