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Season 2, Episode 10
For Friday, October 9, 2015
“The Wonder of Worship”
HOST: Wade Webster
Show Notes:
- I think that we sometimes forget the wonder of worship. We forget that in worship we come into the presence of Almighty God. In this study, we will examine the 95th and 100th Psalms. We will see the rejoicing and the reverence that are required of those who draw near to God.
Episode Transcript:
Charles Lindbergh made the first solo flight across the Atlantic in a plane called the Spirit of St. Louis. On the 70th anniversary of this historic occasion, Reeve Lindbergh, Charles’ daughter, was invited to speak at the Smithsonian Museum of Air & Space. Since the little plane that Lindbergh had used was suspended from the ceiling of the museum, arrangements had been made to have a cherry-picker on hand so that Reeve could see the plane up close. As the cherry-picker lifted Reeve and her young son Ben up to the plane, Reeve was overcome with emotion at the sight of the plane, and she exclaimed to her son, “Isn’t this amazing? Isn’t this wonderful?” Oblivious to the magnitude of the moment, Ben replied, “Yeah, I’ve never been in a cherry-picker before.”
I’m afraid that we can sometimes be like young Ben when we come to worship. We can miss the significance and the wonder of the moment. We can forget that we are entering into the presence of God. David, the sweet psalmist of Israel, seems to have grasped the wonder of worship.
Consider what David wrote in the Ninety-Fifth Psalm:
O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth:the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O 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 (Psa. 95:1-7).
Consider what David also wrote in the One Hundredth Psalm:
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Please note that both of these psalms speak of our coming into God’s presence in worship:
Psalm 95
“Let us come before his presence” (Psa. 95:2).
“Let us kneel before the Lord our maker” (Psa. 95:7).
Psalm 100
“Come before his presence with singing” (Psa. 100:2).
“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise” (Psa. 100:4).
The psalmist clearly understood that in worship we are in the presence of God. He further understood the attitudes and actions that should accompany such a serious and solemn privilege.
First, we should come before God’s presence with rejoicing. Consider both of these psalms:
Psalm 95 –
“O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms” (Psa. 95:1-2).
Psalm 100
“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing” (Psa. 100:1-2).
“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name” (Psa. 100:4).
Please notice that we are to come into God’s presence with singing, joyful noises, thanksgiving, and praise. When we realize that we are in the presence of God, it will not be difficult for us to come before Him with rejoicing.
Second, we should come before God’s presence with reverence. Consider both of these psalms:
Psalm 95 –
“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker” (Psa. 95:6).
Psalm 100 –
“Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture” (Psa. 100:3).
The Ninety-Fifth Psalm speaks of the worshippers as bowing down and kneeling before his Maker. The One Hundredth Psalm reminds us that the Lord is God and not us. He made us. We didn’t make ourselves. Since this is the case, we must humble ourselves before Him. When we realize that we are in the presence of God, it will not be hard for us to come before Him in reverence.
This week, as we get ready to worship, let’s remember that in worship we are entering into the presence of God. Let’s make sure that we don’t lose the child-like wonder that should accompany worship. Let’s enter into God’s presence this week with rejoicing and reverence.
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- Email: wade@thelightnetwork.tv
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