Not long ago I encountered a person who spoke very respectfully to me which I appreciated. Albeit based upon this person’s past behavior towards me, I also felt mixed thoughts and feelings swirling furiously within me. No doubt you have also experienced that type of thing. In my case I chose to believe there had been a change of heart and the kind words spoken were authentically heart-felt. Yet skepticism continued lurking in the shadows.
Jesus must have experienced something very similar. The Pharisees and teachers of the law challenged Him about His disciples failing to follow the traditions of the elders. He responded saying, These people [Jewish leaders] honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me (Matthew 15:8, NIV) Isaiah also witnessed the same. Ironically, the outward religious activities the Jews who he was addressing appeared to be stellar if considered today. Isaiah 1:11-15 records the people were practicing the very things we would identify to be signs of authentic spirituality:
- offering multitudes of sacrifices
- appearing faithfully to worship before the Lord
- keeping the special traditional religious days of worship
- spreading out their hands [the Hebrew indicates a classic act of humility] as they prayed
- offering many prayers.
Through Isaiah God called out their empty rhetoric saying stop it, these things are detestable to me, I’m sick and tired of them, I will not listen to you. What? These people were following God’s instructions for worship and now He is saying stop all this vain and empty activity. Why? “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men (Isaiah 29:13, NIV).
Writing a prophetic letter, John called out one of the more reputable churches having believers doing many good things by saying, I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent (Revelation 2:2-5, ESV)
Like me, I believe God wanted to believe the best in believers, yet His righteous character motivated Him to flash a warning light calling them to reexamine the condition of love in their inner being towards Him. Spiritually adulterous thoughts had slowly been contaminating their pure, loving worship towards Him.
Worship is essentially recognizing God’s honor, gladly feeling the worth of it and ascribing such to Him in all ways appropriate to His character. Yes, I’m ashamed to admit that while I express worship to Him, there are times when it is adulteress in that my mind is on the music (whether I like the song selection, how the worship leader is performing, what the musicians are wearing, the rhythm, level of performance, etc.), the speaker’s content and delivery, or who is or is not in church that day. You understand because I am sure this occasionally happens to all of us.
Let’s not allow this to defeat us but rather to prompt us to take more deliberate initiative to prepare our mind and body before we come to worship so that we can JOYFULLY worship Him for who He is.
Food for thought. Thanks for posting!