Part 3, True Worship

Worship is the faithful and sacrificial response to the gracious revelation of God in Christ. Jesus fulfilled worship and so it is only in him that we truly worship. He is the complete revelation of the Father, in Spirit and in Truth.

When you turn away from the world, the flesh, and the devil with the trusting-turn, because of this revelation, you have begun your walk of worship towards knowing Jesus Christ in order to worship him. Like the wise men in Matthew 2:2, you can also truely say, "I am here to worship him." But like the wise men, you also are on a learning curve. They needed more information. They came to Jerusalem, but did not find the new-born King. When worship is your purpose for being here, you are in a constant state of learning; learning more and more about the one you worship, The Lord Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, many have dropped out of the school of worship in order to pursue other amusements that appeal more to the flesh.

Back to the upper room. When Jesus took the bread and the wine and created the new model for worship, he was teaching. John's account brings this out with clarity. John devotes a fourth of his account of the gospel to the upper room teaching on the Holy Spirit and worship. It was around that table with the pieces of the Passover, the bread and the wine that Jesus gave new meaning to, that became their classroom.

Some of you may recoil by my next statement, but consider this: true worship is about you and what you are receiving from The Lord in the way of knowledge. I use the word "knowledge" in the Hebrew definition of the word "yada" which means an intimate, interactive, creative relationship. In the Old Testament, when you "knew" something or someone, you and it or they were personally involved with each other and something new was the result. "Adam knew his wife, Eve, and she gave birth to a son."

If you are not learning and knowing Jesus Christ more and more, you are not yet to the place of worship. He is that place, and in him you learn and something new is created in your life, HIS LIFE! And HIS LIFE gives the Father great pleasure. This is true worship.

More on this tomorrow.