True Worship
by
John
MacArthur, Jr.
Word
of Grace Communications
ã 1982, 1985 by
John MacArthur, Jr.
All
rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission
in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied
in critical articles or reviews.
Note:
Permission was received for Bible Bulletin Board (www.biblebb.com) to transcribe this book for
posting on their website, and all original copyrights and other rights are
still in effect.
Selected Scriptures
Tape GC 2006
3
True
Worship - Part 3
Outline
Introduction
Review
1.
The Importance of Worship
A. Scripture Is
Dominated with It
B. Destiny Is
Determined by It
1. Unacceptable worship
2.
Acceptable worship
a)
The picture of true worshipers
b)
The production of true worshipers
c)
The perspective of true worshipers
Lesson
d)
The personal characteristics of true worshipers
(1)
Our treatment of fellow believers
(2)
Winning someone to Jesus Christ
(3)
Giving money to meet needs
(4)
Living a life of goodness, righteousness, and truth
(5)
Being filled with the fruits of righteousness
(6)
Living a life of godliness and honesty
(7)
Praising God and giving Him thanks
e)
The purpose for the assembly of true worshipers
C. Eternity and Redemptive History Are
Described by It
1.
Pre-creation history
2.
Pre-Fall history
3.
Post-Fall history
a)
Cain and Abel
b)
The patriarchs
c)
The nation
(1)
In the desert
(2)
In the Promised Land
d)
Jesus
4.
Present history
5.
Future history
a)
Revelation 4:10-11a
b)
Revelation 5:14
34
c) Revelation 11:15b-17a
d)
Revelation 14:6-7
e)
Revelation 15:4a
f)
Revelation 19:4
g)
Revelation 19:10a
h)
Revelation 22:8-9
D.
Christ Commanded It
Introduction
Someone once said, “Worship is to Christian living
what the mainspring is to a watch.” To worship God is the very core of a
Christian’s response to God - the very heart of his activity. You say, “What
does it mean to worship?” It’s simply to recognize the worth, value, majesty,
honor, and glory of God. The chief duty of every believer is to see the worth
of God and to give Him the honor and glory that is due His name.
Review
Thus far in our study of worship we have looked at:
I. THE
IMPORTANCE OF WORSHIP
A.
Scripture is Dominated with It (see pp. 11-14)
B.
Destiny Is Determined by It
1.
Unacceptable worship
Now, there are many examples I could use to
illustrate unacceptable worship, but I chose the following one because of its
relevance to today.
Masonry:
fraternal order or false religion?
In 1717 a group that is now
known as the Masonic Lodge, or the Masons, was
formed.
Although they do not wish to be known as a religion, they are, by
definition,
clearly a religion - and a classic illustration of unacceptable worship.
The
Iowa Quarterly Bulletin of April 1917 (p.54), a Masonic publication,
says
this:
“Masonry is a Divinely appointed institution, designed to draw men nearer to
God,
to give them a clearer conception of their proper relationship to God as their
Heavenly
Father, to men as their brethren and the ultimate destiny of the human
soul.”
Now that’s obviously a religion - even though they don’t want to admit it!
Albert
Pike, who has been called by fellow Masons “one of the most distinguished
Masons
the Western World has produced,” says in Morals and Dogmas, page 23
(this
is also found in Hertel’s Bible, page 9, which is the Mason’s edition of the
Bible):
“It [Masonry] reverences all the great reformers. It sees in Moses, the Law-
giver
of the Jews, in Confucius and Zoroaster, in Jesus of Nazareth, and in the
Arabian
Iconoclast, Great Teachers of Morality, and Eminent Reformers, if no
more;
And allows every brother of the Order to assign to each such higher and
even
Divine Character as his Creed and Truth require....
35
We do not undervalue the
importance of any Truth. We utter no word that can be
deemed
irreverent by anyone of any faith. We do not tell the Moslem that it is only
important
for him to believe that there is but one God, and wholly unessential
whether
Mohamet was His prophet. We do not tell the Hebrew that the Messiah
whom
he expects was born in
he
is a heretic because he will not so believe. And as little do we tell the
sincere
Christian
that Jesus of Nazareth was but a man like us, or His history but the unreal
revival
of an older legend. To do either is beyond our jurisdiction. Masonry, of no
one
age, belongs to all time; of no one religion, it finds its great truths in all.
To
every
Mason, there is a God; One Supreme, Infinite in Goodness, Wisdom, Fore-
sight,
Justice, and Benevolence; Creator, Disposer, and Preserver of all things.
How,
or by what intermediates He creates and acts, and in what way He unfolds
and
manifests Himself, Masonry leaves to creeds and religions to inquire.” In other
words,
they say they believe in God, but you can decide who He is, what He
wants,
and
how to get to Him.
When
a person becomes a Mason, he’s not allowed to speak certain secret words.
If
you have ever known a Mason, you are probably aware of the fact that he would
never
reveal any or those secret words. However, I would like to reveal them: The
most
sacred word, assumed to be the word for God, is transmitted to the candidate
as
he is “raised” into the Master Mason Degree, as he assumes the position of the
“five
points of fellowship” (toe to toe, knee to knee, chest to chest, cheek to
cheek,
and
mouth to ear). Whispered into his ear is the word Mah-Ha-Bone. This
“sacred”
word,
the candidate is told, must never be spoken aloud, never revealed, and
always
concealed.
The
Mason in the Royal Arch Degree (York Rite), a degree through which the
Knight
Templar is to pass on his way to the supposed “Christian Degree,” has
another
secret name revealed to him at his initiation ceremony. The name of the
True
God, “rediscovered,” is “Jah-Bul-On.” This is the Royal Arch Masons’
“Trinity.”
“Jah” is an abbreviation for the Hebrew name for God: Jahweh,
Jehovah.
“Bul” is the name for the Assyrian deity and is mentioned throughout the
Old
Testament as “Baal.” “On” is the Egyptian sun god.
Pike,
in Morals and Dogmas (p. 854) says, “To achieve it [salvation] the Mason
must
first attain a solid conviction, founded upon reason, that he hath within him a
spiritual
nature, a soul that is not to die when the body is dissolved, but is to
continue
to exist and to advance toward perfection through all ages of eternity, and
to
see more and more clearly, as it draws nearer unto God the light of the Divine
Presence.”
Frankly, that’s a bunch of hocus-pocus that means nothing.
In
the Mason’s Bible (p.34) it says, “In the opening of the lodge, the Great
Architect
of the Universe must be worshiped, and his blessings upon the work
about
to be done must be supplicated; at the same time, prayer should be offered
for
peace and harmony in the closing of
36
the lodge.” This
non-descriptive “Great Architect” must be worshiped. Who is he?
Any
god you design.
Pike
also claims that at Masonic altars, “the Christian, the Hebrew, the Moslem, the
Brahmin,
the followers of Confucius and Zoroaster, can assemble as brethren and
unite
in prayer to the one God.”
In
Short Talk Bulletin (Vol. 36, No.8, p.7) it says, “The chaplain of the
masonic
lodge
who prays as the voice of the lodge does not pray in the name of the
Carpenter
of
the
Grand Artificer or the Great Architect of the Universe. Under that title men of
all
faiths may find each his own deity. Failure to mention any deity by name is not
denial,
but merely the practice of a gracious courtesy, so that each man for whom
prayer
is offered can hear the name of his own deity in the all inclusive title of
Great
Architect.”
Well,
I think you get the point. Masonry is a satanic false religion. It says,
“Yes,
we
believe in the true God,” but reduces Him to a wrong form, and worships Him
in
a wrong manner, with a wrong heart attitude. It’s unacceptable; unfortunately
there
are myriad such unacceptable kinds of worship. Those who practice them
may
think they’re worshiping God - but they’re not!
2. Acceptable worship
Acceptable
worship determines our destiny and distinguishes us as believers. In
fact,
the goal of salvation is to create true worshipers.
a) The picture of true worshipers (see pp. 27-28)
Psalm
24:3-6 is perhaps the loveliest Old Testament picture of a true
worshiper.
It says, “Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who shall
stand
in his holy place? He who hath clean hands, and a pure heart, who
hath
not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall
receive
the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his
salvation.
This is the generation of them who seek him, who seek thy face.”
True
worshipers are the pure, the righteous, and the holy.
b) The production of true worshipers (see pp.
28-31)
In
our last lesson we saw that the primary purpose of redemption is to
create
true worshipers who worship God acceptably.
c) The perspective of true worshipers (pp. 31-32)
Picking
up where we left off, we ended the last lesson looking at Hebrews
12:28-29. The writer of Hebrews
says, “Wherefore, receiving a kingdom
which
cannot be moved, let us have grace, by which we may serve [Gk.,
latreuo,
‘worship’] God acceptably with reverence and godly fear; for our
God
is a consuming fire.” When we worship God acceptably, there is to
be
a
37
balance between reverence and
fear. Reverence can be looked at as
positive-affirming
the value and worth of God. Fear can be looked at as
negative-affirming
the judging, chastening, punishing, “consuming fire” of
verse
29. So, a true worshiper worships out of reverence for God, as well
as
fear of Him.
If
we have been redeemed, we are the true worshipers. And as true
worshipers,
we must worship acceptably. Now, I admit that even though
we
are true worshipers, we don’t always worship as truly as we ought
because
of the sin that is in us; but that is our goal. We are called to
worship
God acceptably with the positive affirmation that because He is a
consuming
fire, we have reason to fear if we don’t worship Him
acceptably.
Lesson
d) The personal characteristics of true
worshipers
How
do we manifest true acceptable worship in our everyday lives?
(1) Our treatment of fellow believers
Romans
14 talks about not making a weaker brother stumble or
destroying
him with the liberty we may have. Then in verse 18a
to
God.” In other words, acceptable worship is a matter of how we
treat
our fellow believers.
(2) Winning someone to Jesus Christ
In
Romans 15:16,
into
the ministry, makes an amazing statement: “That I should be the
minister
of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of
God,
that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable.” In
other
words,
that
were given to God. So winning someone to Jesus Christ is
acceptable
worship. The gaining of a soul can be offered to God as
an
act of holy, acceptable worship.
(3) Giving money to meet needs
money
they had sent him. He was glad they sent it because it was an
act
of love. In
having
received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from
you,
an odor of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing
to
God.” Their gift of money to meet
sacrifice
to God. Acceptable worship is giving your resources to
support
the saints, the work of the church, and the ministry of
Christ.
38
Now the sum of these first three characteristics of acceptable
worship
- how we treat fellow Christians, winning non-Christians
to
Christ, and giving money to meet needs - is sharing. Worship is
sharing
- sharing
your love, sharing the gospel, and sharing your
resources.
That exalts, honors, and glorifies God because it puts
Him
on display through your life and shows that you’re obedient to
Him.
It also shows that you love those whom He loves - the saints,
the
lost, and the needy. Sharing is acceptable worship.
(4) Living a life of goodness, righteousness,
and truth
In
Ephesians 5:8b-10
(for
the fruit of the Spirit [lit., ‘light’] is in all goodness and
righteousness
and truth), proving what is acceptable unto
the
Lord.” Living a life of goodness, righteousness, and truth
(i.e.,
personal holiness) is a life of acceptable worship.
(5) Being filled with the fruits of
righteousness
In
Philippians
“Filled
with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ,
unto
the glory and praise of God.” So again we see that righteousness,
holiness,
goodness, and godliness is acceptable worship.
(6) Living a life of godliness and honesty
In
1 Timothy 2:3
the sight of God, our
Savior.” You say, “What is good and
acceptable?”
Look at the end of verse 2: “A quiet and peaceable
life
in all godliness and honesty.” Godliness and honesty, along with
righteousness,
goodness, truth, and holiness, are characteristics of
acceptable
worship.
Now,
I gave you three scriptures that present worship as sharing with
others,
and three scriptures that relate worship to personal holiness.
So
worship is a way of life that manifests itself in personal
righteousness
and extends to loving the brethren, proclaiming to the
lost,
and freeing resources to meet needs. Finally, acceptable worship
is
seen as:
(7) Praising God and giving Him thanks
Hebrews
the
sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips
giving
thanks to his name.” This is really the climax, isn’t it? When
we
come together to worship, we sing, we praise God with our
hearts
and our lips, and we say thanks.
Now
look at verse 16: “But to do good and to share forget not;
for
with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” Did you get that?
God
wants us to come together to praise and
39
glorify His name and to
say thanks to Him. But He doesn’t want us to
forget
that our worship is a way of life - doing good and sharing with
others.
You see? Hebrews 13:15-16 really sums up a worshiping life.
Worship is for every day - not just Sundays
If you think that you can live any way you want on Monday through
Saturday and then go to church on Sunday and worship, you’re dead wrong!
Worship doesn’t occur in a vacuum, nor is it stimulated by artificial
gimmickry. If you have to be in a church building or hear a certain kind of
mood music to worship, what you’re doing isn’t worship. You should be able to
worship God on the freeway during rush hour. But to do so, your heart must be
right. You see, when we come together in the assembly of the saints to worship
God, if it isn’t an extension of a worshiping life, true worship won’t occur.
That is why Hebrew
e)
The purpose of the assembly of true worshipers
Even
though our worship is to be a way of life, we also need to be involved in
the
corporate worship that occurs once a week. Why? Because our worship
on
Sunday stimulates us to worship during the rest of the week. Hebrews 10
says,
“Let us draw near with a true heart....Not forsaking the assembling of
ourselves
together” (vv. 22a, 25a). Why? Because verse 24 tells us that we
are
to come together to stimulate one another “unto love and to good works.”
We
have to be living a life of sharing and righteousness out in the world in
order
to worship. And we are stimulated to do those things as we assemble
ourselves
together for the purpose of worship. One feeds the other. We must
be
in the fellowship of the saints, in the congregation of the righteous, among
the
people in whom God dwells - because it is there that we are stimulated to
love
and good works. As the stimulation affects our soul, we go out “to do
good
and to share” (Heb.13:16a). Then, when we come back into the
assembly,
we overflow in praise with a continual heart of worshipful thanks-
giving.
Now,
if you’re not in this worship “cycle,” you’d better get in. How? Confess
your
sins and start right now. People say, “Well, I’ve got so many problems
in
my Christian life, I just can’t be committed to being consistent.” People
who
say that basically have one of two problems: either they’re not
worshiping
six days a week with a worshiping life, or they’re not worshiping
one
day a week in the assembly of the saints. We need both! If you go to
to
church just when it’s convenient, you’re never going to get your act
together.
You can’t do it on your
40
own
- you’ve got to have
the faithful, consistent stimulation to love and good
works
that a body of people brings to
live
in such an easy-come-easy go, casual, flippant society, that people don’t
make
those kinds of consistent, faithful commitments - and then they wonder
why
they can’t get their act together! We all need to join with a worshiping
assembly
as well as live each day with a worshiping life.
Worship
is important because Scripture is dominated with it, destiny is
determined
by it, and third:
C.
Eternity and Redemptive History Are Described by It
Worship
is important because it’s the major theme of eternity and redemptive
history.
1.
Pre-creation history
In
eternity past, before men were created, what existed? The Trinity and the
angels.
What did they do? Well, Nehemiah 9:6b says, “And the host of heaven
worshipeth
thee.” What went on in eternity past? Worship (Job 38:4-7).
2.
Pre-Fall history
When
Adam and Eve were created, they worshiped God as they walked and
talked
with Him in the Garden. However, sin entered the picture when Eve
chose
to worship Satan, and Adam chose to worship Eve. As soon as they
ceased
worshiping God, they fell (Gen. 3:1-13).
3.
Post-Fall history
a) Cain and Abel
In
Genesis 4, the first division among men came between Cain and Abel
over
the way they worshiped. Abel brought an acceptable offering (4:4),
but
Cain’s was unacceptable (4:5).
b) The patriarchs
When
the patriarchs worshiped God properly, they were blessed, but when
they
worshiped Him unacceptably they were chastened.
c) The nation Israel
(1) In the desert
When
the nation of Israel was taken out of Egypt, they wandered for
forty
years in the Sinai Desert until and entire generation died. They
lost
their lives without entering the Promised Land simply because
they
failed to worship God properly (Num.14:22-23). Even Moses
never
entered the land, because he failed to worship God properly
(Num. 20:7-12).
(2) In the Promised Land
When
the nation of Israel finally got into the land, they
41
worshiped
God as He wanted to be worshiped and were subsequently
blessed
(Neh. 9:3; 1 Chron. 29:20-25). However, the time came when
they
did not worship God properly (Acts 7:42-43), so He punished
them
and ultimately scattered them all over the world.
d)
Jesus
When
Jesus began His ministry, He went to Jerusalem, walked into the
place
of worship, took a whip, and cleaned the place out (John 2:13-17).
After
He dealt with the corrupt worshippers in John 2, He called for the
true
worshipers in John 4:23-24. Worship was always the issue-the central
theme
of redemptive history.
4. Present history
When
the church was born, it was an assembly of worshipers. Philippians
3:3
is one of the greatest statements on worship in the Bible - a definition of
the
church: “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit,
and
rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” In other
words,
the church is uniquely identified as God’s people - but not through
physical
circumcision. The church is made up of those who worship God in
their spirit, rejoicing in Christ, with
no confidence in the flesh.
5. Future history
When
history consummates in the glory of the return of Christ, it will
consummate
in worship. Worship is the theme of heaven and of eternity.
For
example:
a) Revelation 4:10-11a - “The four and twenty
elders fall down before Him
that
is seated on the throne, and worship Him that liveth forever and ever,
and
cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou are worthy, O
Lord,
to receive glory and honor and power.”
b)
Revelation 5:14 - “And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the
four
and twenty elders fell down, and worshiped Him that liveth forever
and
ever.”
c) Revelation 11:15b-17a - “And there were great
voices in heaven, saying,
The
kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of
His
Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever. And the four and twenty
elders,
who sat before God on their thrones, fell upon their faces, and
worshiped
God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty.”
d) Revelation 14:6-7 - “And I saw another angel
fly in the midst of heaven,
having
the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth
and to every nation, and kindred,
and tongue, and people, saying with a
loud
voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of his judgment
is
come, and
42
worship
Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains
of
waters.” Notice that the message of the everlasting gospel is to worship
God!
e) Revelation 15:4a - “Who shall not fear thee, O
Lord, and glorify thy
name?
For thou only are holy; for all nations shall come and worship
before thee.”
f) Revelation 19:4 - “And the four and twenty
elders and the four living
creatures
fell down and worshiped God that sat on the throne, saying,
Amen.
Hallelujah!”
g) Revelation 19:10a - “And I [John] fell at
his [the angel’s] feet to worship
him.
And he said unto me, See thou do it not! I am thy fellow servant,
and
of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.”
h) Revelation 22:8-9 - “And I, John, saw these
things, and heard them. And
when
I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the
angel
who showed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it
not;
for I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren, the prophets, and of
them
who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”
That’s
the theme of eternity and redemptive history; to worship the true,
living,
and glorious God.
So,
Scripture calls us to worship, destiny calls us to worship, and just
in
case somebody might fall through the cracks and think they don’t need
to
worship, the fourth reason it’s important to worship is because:
D. Christ Commanded It
In
Matthew 4:10b our Lord says, “For it is written, Thou shalt worship the
Lord,
thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” This statement was made
directly
to Satan, but it applies to every being ever created. All are responsible
to
worship God.
Do
you worship God as a way of life? You should! If you find it difficult to
worship
the Lord when you attend church on Sundays, it isn’t because the music
isn’t
right, or because the atmosphere isn’t right, or because you get distracted. If
you
can’t worship, it’s because you’re not worshiping during the rest of the week.
Worship
can’t just happen once a week - it’s a way of life. And when Christians
do
come together once a week, there should be a bursting out of true praise and
worship
of the heart. The worship that is enjoyed individually will be enriched
and
enhanced when brought into the joy of the assembly. Worship then becomes
all
the more glorious!
Focusing on the Facts
1. What are we to recognize when we worship (see
p.35)?
2. Give a brief description of what the Masonic
Lodge believes about worshiping God and how it relates to other religions (see
pp. 35-37).
43
3. What is
the twofold perspective of true worshipers, according to Hebrews 12:28-29
(see
pp. 37-38)?
4. Match
the ways we can manifest acceptable worship in our daily lives with the
appropriate
verses (see pp. 38-39).
a. Treating fellow believers a.
Hebrews 13:15
b. Leading someone to Christ b. Romans
14:18
c. Giving money for needs c. Philippians 4:18
d. Living a righteous life d. Ephesians 5:8-10
e. Living a peaceable life e. Romans 15:16
f. Giving God thanks f. 1 Timothy 2:3
5. What
three things that glorify God does a worshiper share? Explain how that is
done
(see p.39).
6. Describe
the quality of life that a worshiper is to live (Phil. 1:11; see pp. 39-40).
7. Summarize
the two aspects of worship, as indicated in Hebrews 13:15-16 (see pp.
39-40).
8. Where
should you be able to worship God? What should be the extension of a
worshiping
life (see p. 40)?
9. Why do Christians
need to be involved in corporate worship once a week (Heb.
10:22,
24-25; see p. 41)?
10. Whom did
Adam and Eve choose to worship rather than God (see p.41)?
11. Over what
was the first division among men (see p. 41)?
12. What were
the consequences of Israel failing to worship properly in the desert (Num.
14:22-23; see p. 41)?
13. According
to Philippians 3:3,what type of people is the church made up of (see p.42)?
14. What is
the theme of heaven and eternity? Cite some scriptures to support your
answer (see pp. 42-43).
15. What
mistake did the Apostle John make in Revelation 19:10 and 22: 8-9?
What
was he instructed to do instead (see p. 43)?
16. What is
the fourth reason that worship is important (Matt. 4:10; see p. 43)?
Pondering the Principles
1.Review the personal characteristics of true
worshipers discussed on pages 38-39. Are you
fulfilling
the duty of worshiping properly in each of those areas? In which area are you the weakest? As
you yield
yourself to the control of the Holy Spirit, prayerfully consider how you will
strengthen that area
this week.
2.The writer of Hebrews exhorted his readers, “And
let us consider how to stimulate one
another to
love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the
habit of
some, but encouraging one another;
44
and all the more, as you see the day drawing near” (Heb. 10:24-25; NASB*).
Do you
actually
take time to consider how to stimulate other Christians? How can you stimulate
your peers
without appearing to be a self-acclaimed authority? What suggestion does
1 Peter
5:2-3 offer? Why do you think it’s still necessary to assemble together? Could
Christians
in this modern age merely watch church services on TV and communicate
with other believers
by phone? If you lack commitment and accountability to a local
body of
believers, plan to become a member of a church near you that teaches the Word
of God.
*New American Standard Bible.
45
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