  Our devotional scripture today for Holy Week was Mark 14:3-9, and it reads as follows: While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they harshly rebuked her . “Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” The lady in Mark 14:3-9, who came to Jesus with an expensive alabaster box full of perfume, is still known today throughout the world. For what is she even remembered? Wasting her best on the Lord Jesus. She "wasted" her most precious possession on the main focus of her life and love, the Lamb who would take away the sin of the world. This story perfectly illustrates the meaning of true worship. Can you see it in your mind's eye. This woman rushes to her room and runs to her chest of drawers. Ruffling through its contents, she finds a carefully wrapped alabaster bottle filled with the most precious of perfumes. As she looks down at it, she remembers it worth, but inside her heart she bursts to share it with the Master. What would He say? What would He think if she poured it upon Him out of the love she felt in her heart? Would He be angry or would He see into the depths of her soul and see how deep her love was for Him? As her thoughts imagine that moment, she can hardly contain herself and rushes to the object of her adoration. This woman gave her most valuable possession to show her heart felt love for the Master. Now that is some kind of worship! The alabaster flask was an expensive clay jar that was used to carry oil or perfume and it was crafted by the best craftsmen. It was very expensive to buy. The only way to get the to open the flask in those days was to break it open. As she broke the flask she showed the brokenness in her life and her desire to be broken for the Lord. I've ever heard a powerful example of what whole-hearted worship is, this would be it: breaking open your alabaster box (your heart) on a consistent basis in praise and worship. Are we consistent in pouring forth our hearts and sharing our love with the Father? If not, we need to start breaking open the spiritual vial of costly perfume to anoint the Lord through prayer and praise on a daily basis. This is really just our reasonable service and offering to the Living God. Three very important points are made here in this passage of scripture:
I truly believe that this woman did not have time to think about what she was doing. She seized the opportunity and she ran. She wasn’t worried about people’s reaction, all she desired was to glorify Jesus. She wasn’t qualified to worship but God qualified her. She did a significant thing in the bible as she anointed Jesus ministry placing and validating it with honor, brokenness, beauty and affection in it. She did an extraordinary thing and if a sinner can bring such worship before God what kind of worship are we to bring, us the saved ones who are called of the Lord. I invite you to enter into The Sanctuary for Alabaster Worship. Alabaster Worshiper is someone who loves Jesus completely, and one that exemplifies surrender, humility, and total abandonment to the Lord. Someone who loves Jesus completely, and one that exemplifies surrender, humility, and total abandonment to the Lord. Someone who puts Jesus before anything and everything. Alabaster Worship is worship from deep within the recess of the Spirit, it’s not for show off but the glorification of God. It is an overflow from within a heart that is pouring itself before God. I pray that God opens our eyes to know how to worship Him as he is meant to be worshipped to bring brokenness, humility, honor and beauty into his presence. In The Sanctuary on Worship Wednesday break open your alabaster jar, yield up to the Lord the most precious, costly things of your life. The sweet communion with God will be so rich, it will draw you back time and time again. As it always is with obedient servants, God will be sure to fill your alabaster jar over and over again.
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3/20/2013 0 Comments Speak Life This morning I awoke with "Speak Life" ringing in my ears and this passage of scripture was brought to mind, Proverbs 18:21: "Death and life are in the power of the tongue. And those who love it will eat its fruit." How many of us are guilty of allowing our thoughts become words that bring fear, defeat, destruction and death into the lives of others and our own. This tongue is little, but its power and influence for good or bad are out of proportion to its size. The words people say wield great power. God takes notice of every word we say, even that which we ourselves do not notice. A person’s life largely reflects the fruit of his tongue. The solution for the problem of controlling our tongues is to seek divine wisdom. To speak life is to speak God’s perspective on any issue of life; to speak death is to declare life’s negatives, to declare defeat, or complain constantly. A man may do a great deal of good, or a great deal of hurt, both to others and to himself, according to the use he makes of his tongue. Words have a weighty influence on our eternal destiny. Are we speaking God's words of life into our loves ones, into our marriages, into our ministries, into our coworkers, into our neighbors, into strangers we meet daily, into the dry, deserted places in our lives or are we speaking DEATH? As long as we are thinking or speaking negatively of anything or anybody, we do not have His mind, nor His heart. We die each time we utter ill words, they cause us to abide in death. To walk in His life, we must have His fullness, His heart and His mind. There cannot be any negative thoughts or words spoken, because they will result in death. Today on this Worship Wednesday began to speak God's word of life into your destiny, into the dry dormant places, into those relationships, into your finances, into your mind and thoughts. As you are worshiping today, ask the Holy Spirit to help you recognize the power of your tongue, to help you to be conscious of what you say, to help you to remember that you have the power to speak life intolife into those dry bones so that they live again. Ask Him to make your mouth “a fountain of life” to "Speak Life". 3/13/2013 0 Comments A Call to Worship I remember growing up each time we gathered in church, my Father would call us to worship. I never understood truly what he was inviting us to, but as I grew in my faith, I have learned that it is an invitation for us as believers to gather together on one accord to commune, worship, and hear from our Almighty Father. Psalms 95 serves as the introduction to a series of Psalms devoted to the "Call of Worship". It has long been regarded as an invitation to worship. Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the Lord is the great God, And the great King above all gods. In His hand are the deep places of the earth; The heights of the hills are His also. The sea is His, for He made it; And His hands formed the dry land. Oh come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice: "Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, As in the day of trial in the wilderness, When your fathers tested Me; They tried Me, though they saw My work. For forty years I was grieved with that generation, And said, 'It is a people who go astray in their hearts, And they do not know My ways.' So I swore in My wrath, 'They shall not enter My rest.' " (1-11) "This psalm helps the believer to reorient and focus his thinking and practice concerning worship. It turns our attention and affection toward God. A “Call to Worship” is to readjust our thinking. How we regard what happens on Sunday mornings in many churches, many of us refer to the overall event as the "worship service." We really (either consciously or subconsciously) divide it into two parts. Some may even have someone called the "worship leader" who provides direction to all the events leading up to the message which is brought by someone called the "preacher." Verse 7 in the Psalm gives us just such a transition. The process of coming together, giving expression to our joy and thanksgiving, seeing God's awesomeness and realizing His great love for us ultimately leads us to being receptive to "hear His voice." In these verses, the Psalmist mentions at least several reasons for praising and to hear from the Lord. Not only are we to sing joyfully, but we are to sing aloud thankfully. Our expressions of praise and rejoicing should be with joy and thanksgiving and they should be done enthusiastically as suggested by the repeated call to "shout" to the Lord. As if joy and thanksgiving were not enough, the Psalmist moves on with an even more compelling reason to sing, praise and shout unto a Great God - He is an awesome God. He is extreme, vast, magnificent, and so much more that makes him indescribable. As if being a "Great God" were not enough, He is also a "Great King." This speaks of His rule and reign as King as well as His Kingdom. The Psalmist seems to have no other word to appropriately describe His Godhead and Kingship beyond "Great." (Verse 3) Second, He is the Owner of everything from the deepest valleys to the highest hills - all the land and all the sea. To say that He holds it in His hand speaks of the greatness of our God. (Verse 4-5) Third, He is the Creator of all that is. (Verse 5). The overflow of joy and thanksgiving in shouts of song and praise along with the realization of the awesomeness of God must culminate in Worship. We don't kneel much in the twenty-first century. The spirit of the self-made person is alive and well. Today's philosophy is to get as much power as possible and submit to no authority. The lack of respect for authority is prevalent. Children don't respect their parents, students don't respect their teachers, and employees don't respect their employers. Respect for the things of our God is on the decline. Our God is worthy to be worshiped because He is so much greater than we are. Finally the passage says that He is worthy to be worshipped because He is a personal God. Though He is the God of many, He is able to be the God of one, mine. That means He knows us, each one, and we know Him. Such a relationship has been His intent and plan from the beginning. The redeemed worship because they understand that they are already the people of His pasture and He is their God. True worshipers are also eagerly looking forward to that time when we are gathered to Him to dwell in His presence forever. Our Lord is to be worshiped for He alone is Worthy. The process of coming together, giving expression to our joy and thanksgiving, seeing God's awesomeness and realizing His great love for us ultimately leads us to being receptive to "hear His voice." Hearing His voice, which comes from the proclamation of the word, is an essential part of the worship experience. Without hearing the word proclaimed then we may become like the Children of Israel in the wilderness who demonstrated faithlessness. We know that "faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." The consequence of unbelief and rebellion would be that we would not heed the call to worship. Failing to worship Him and choosing rather to question and rebel against Him is not acceptable and is the very thing the Psalmist warns against. The consequence of failing to worship this Great God is twofold. First, there is a lack of knowledge concerning the ways of God. Failing to recognize and follow His ways are sure recipes for sin. In order to follow His ways we must spend time getting to know Him. A rebellious spirit will hinder that endeavor. Second, according to the scripture there is no rest. How many times do we miss the opportunities of rest in Jesus because we are rebellious in Spirit? A true worshiper of God is more concerned with worshipping Holy God than promoting their personal agenda. A true worshiper understands that God indeed knows the thoughts of man. Worship is not merely a given action to be performed. Worship is heartfelt and genuinely offered to a Holy and omniscient God. True worship is not birthed out of ritual or compulsion rather out of privilege. Worshiping God should be from the joy in our hearts because of who He has been in our lives. He has done great and mighty things for us and our worship of Him should be from a heart of thanksgiving for all that He has done. Worshiping Him with joy and thanksgiving is how we are to worship. The text does not mention worshiping with hymns or praise choruses. That is trivial in the grand scheme of things. The debate over such issues has become greater than the worship of a Holy God. Selfish and personal preferences have infiltrated the time of worship and the people of God have involved themselves in debates over the style of worship and missed the opportunity to worship. God is not concerned with whether we use hymns, praise choruses, or instruments to praise Him. The call is simply to worship Him. A call to worship includes laying aside our personal desires, preferences, and plans and picking up the attitude of praise. So, today in The Sanctuary we extend to you an "Call to Worship"…come let us worship Holy God and sing joyfully to Him as He alone is worthy. Invite him in and tell him "You want Him and how you love Him"! |
What is Worship?
The Apostle Paul described true worship perfectly in Romans 12:1:
“I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God which is your spiritual service of worship." Worship is first of all an experience. It may express itself through certain forms, but it is not primarily a form. It is an experience. It is a consciousness of the presence of God and a response to that consciousness. Worship expresses itself as an outreach of the deepest emotions of the soul in adoration, reverence, homage, exaltation, and praise to the Almighty. We hope that our Worship Wednesday creates a deeper more meaningful worship experience for you. Visit our other inspirational blog
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