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Season 3, Episode 3
For Friday, February 5, 2016
“God Is Not Our Waiter”
HOST: Wade Webster
Show Notes:
Sadly, I’m afraid that some come to worship with the mindset that God is their waiter. They come expecting to be served. They want the worship to cater to their desires. Most of all, they don’t want it to take long. If they get what they want, they might toss a couple of dollars in the plate at the end of the service and come back.
We must understand that worship isn’t about getting, it is about giving. It isn’t about what we want, it is about what God wants. God is not there to serve us. We are there to serve and to adore Him. He isn’t there to take orders from us. He is there to make His will known to us. The worship doesn’t need to please us, it needs to please Him.
In this study, we will examine the One Hundredth Psalm. As we do this, we will see three roles that God plays in contrast to the roles that we play. Hopefully, as we get ready to worship this week, this study will help us to prepare our minds.
Episode Transcript:
Many people treat God as a waiter. They want Him to serve them. They want Him to quickly come and take their orders. They want Him close enough to be at their beck and call, but distant enough to not make them uncomfortable. If He gives them exactly what they want, as quickly as they want it, they will leave Him a couple of dollars at the end and come again.
Sadly, I’m afraid that some come to worship with this mindset. They come expecting to be served. They want the worship to cater to their desires. Most of all, they don’t want it to take long. If they get what they want, they might toss a couple of dollars in the plate at the end of the service and come back.
We must understand that worship isn’t about getting, it is about giving. It isn’t about what we want, it is about what God wants. God is not there to serve us. We are there to serve and to adore Him. He isn’t there to take orders from us. He is there to make His will known to us. The worship doesn’t need to please us, it needs to please Him.
The one hundredth psalm reminds us of God’s place and our place. We read, “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” (Psa. 100:1-5). In the psalm we see three roles where God is superior to us – master, creator, and shepherd.
First, God is the Master and we are the servants. The psalm begins with the instruction for us to “serve the Lord” (100:2). Clearly, we are in the role of servants and he is in the role of Master. The third verse of the psalm further reinforces this truth. The psalmist declared, “Know ye that the Lord he is God.” The term Lord means master or ruler. The Master is God. Since God is the Master, and we are the servants, it is our responsibility to serve Him. Not only are we to serve God, we are to serve Him with gladness.
Second, God is the Maker, and we are the made. The psalmist declared, “It is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves” (100:3). Since God is the Creator and we are the created, it makes sense that we are to serve and worship Him.
Third, God is the Shepherd, and we are the sheep. The psalmist declared, “We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture” (100:3). The image of Shepherd is often used to describe God. It pictures His provision, protection, and pity extremely well. Who doesn’t know and love the 23rd psalm? Since God is the shepherd, and we are the sheep, it is our responsibility to hear His voice and to follow Him. He is in the lead, not us.
As we get ready to worship this week, we need to remember that God is not our waiter. He is not there to serve us, we are there to serve and to worship Him.
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