Worship is the expression of adoration or subservience to someone or something. It doesn’t necessarily equate with love. You may think very highly of a loved one or a great person, but you wouldn’t worship either one; God, and God alone, is worthy of worship.
Worship has a purpose. Some teach that our purpose in worshiping God should be our own happiness, but this hints at shallowness. Consider our discussion of gift-giving a few days ago and what motivates us to buy a friend a birthday present. It shouldn’t be our own happiness. “If I give my friend this item, I’ll feel good about myself.” Instead, we desire to sacrifice something ourselves so we can make that friend happy. If we truly adore and revere God, so much so that we see ourselves as his servant, our ultimate purpose in worship of him will be to please and glorify him. We’ll do this because he is worthy, not because such actions make us happy.
If you have a desire to please and glorify God, consider how you worship him. Worship includes aspects which are part of a typical worship service at a church such as music and Scripture-reading and listening to the preaching of the Word. It also includes what you give financially to your church and to God’s work and how you serve God in your church and with your daily life. You may prefer worshiping through a particular ministry or in a certain way because you are comfortable with that ministry or with that activity or because it’s easy. You may be content with giving time or a few finances if there is still plenty of time or money left for your priorities. However, just as we consider what would please our friend when shopping for a gift for that friend, so we ought to consider what would please God when worshiping him. We should desire to delight him with our worship! Friends who can help us justify personal choices and priorities are easy to find, but that doesn’t make the poor choice or wrong priority a good one. Be honest with yourself: Is your service motivated by what makes you happy or by what God desires?
In the midst of his discussion regarding the superiority of Christ, the writer of Hebrews states, “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire”(Hebrews 12:28-29). In 1 Chronicles 16:29 we read David’s song of thanksgiving. He writes, “Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come before him! Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.” Bring an offering—that’s a sacrificial act. Reverence, awe, the splendor of holiness—do these words describe our worship? A willingness to give up our own ease to worship God in a humble service ministry with little or no recognition, a willingness to sacrifice our likes and our comfort so we can worship God in a way that truly honors him—this is genuine worship.