We are wired for worship because worship matters to God..

This week, we have been answering the question “Does worship really matter?” by looking at two different passages that are recorded for is in a letter in the Bible called the book of Psalms. Wednesday, we saw, in Psalm 96, the psalmist commanding humanity to worship the Lord by bringing humanity back to the definition of worship, which is a life that is lived in a way that is focused on and that responds to God’s character and activity in the world so as to value the Lord supremely.

The psalmist then revealed the reality that, just as we saw in Psalm 19, the creation worships and makes much of the Lord as a result of the awesome acts of God’s activity in the creation that will come to fulfillment upon Jesus return to earth. At the end of God’s story here on earth, Jesus will return to usher in the kingdom of Heaven in its fullest sense and to judge with justice all of humanity. Today, we see this reality revealed for us in a section of the very final letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Revelation. Let’s look at that together, beginning in Revelation 4:1:

After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things." Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads. Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God;

Here we see John, who is the author of the book of Revelation, begin this section of his letter by trying to explain all that he saw when he was given a glimpse of what it was like to be in the presence of God the Father in the throne room of Heaven. As John saw God the Father sitting on His throne in Heaven, he struggled to describe what he saw. John explained that the glory, splendor and majesty of the God who dwells in unapproachable light could best be described by the brightest of gems. Around the throne of God were twenty four elders.

While there have been many views and suggestions as to who this group of Elders are and who they represent, most likely, based on what these Elders say and do throughout the book of Revelation, the elders are a special class or group of angelic beings of high authority that assist is the execution of God's divine plan and purposes. The angelic beings holiness and royal role in God’s story was described by the white garments that they wore and the crowns that were on their heads.

In addition, John explains that he witnessed the presence of the perfection, splendor, and majesty of the Holy Spirit, which he described as the seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. After describing the scene that he was witnessing, John described what happened in the throne room of Heaven in verse 6:6:

 and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. The first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME." And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, "Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created."

Now the first question that arises here is “who are the four living creatures?” The four living creatures, who form an inner circle closest to the throne, as are the cherubim that are described in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Ezekiel. These four living creatures are an exalted order of angelic beings that are consistently engaged in the worship of God. John then explained that these four exalted angelic beings, at all times, for all eternity, proclaim "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."

Now can you imagine what that must have looked like? Can you imagine what that must have sounded like?

 

"HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."

 "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."

 "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND WHO IS TO COME."

John then explained that as the cherubim proclaimed their worship of the Lord, the twenty four angelic beings fell before the Lord casting their lives and their role in God’s story before the Lord as an act of worship that proclaimed the Lord as being of supreme value:  "Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created." These angelic beings proclaimed that the Lord was worthy of a life that is lived in a way that is focused on and that responds to God’s character and activity in the world so as to value the Lord supremely.

And it is here that we see revealed for us the timeless reality that we are wired for worship because worship matters to God. You see, the answer to the question “does worship really matter?" is that worship really matters to God because worship simply put, is a response to what we value most: Worship is a life that is lived in response to what we value most. Worship is a lifestyle that is lived in a way that is focused on and that responds to the Lord’s character and activity in the world so as to view the Lord as being of supreme and ultimate value and worth.

Now a natural objection that could arise here is “Well Dave, God sounds arrogant. God sounds needy. It sounds like God is just running around like ‘worship Me, worship Me, worship Me’. It sounds like God is He is full of Himself”. If that question and objection is running through your mind, I just want to let you know that is a fair question and objection to have.

And if we were able to have a conversation, here would be my response: You are absolutely right. God is all about God. Because this morning, if you were God, who else would you be into? If you were God, would you be into you? I don’t think so. If you were God would you be into me? I don’t think so? God is into God. God is totally into Himself. God is full of Himself.

God is totally into Himself because for God to point you to something that was less than the best would mean that God did not know what was truly best, which would mean that God was not really God. You see, God is totally full of Himself because there is no other being other than God that is deserving of our worship. There is no other being that is all powerful, all knowing, ever present, everlasting, never changing, perfectly right and just, perfectly merciful and loving. So, who else would God point you to when it comes to living a life in response to who or what is most valuable?

And that is why worship matters. Worship really matters because we were wired for worship. We were wired for worship to live a life in the relationship with God that we were created for. We were wired for worship because we were created to live in a way that is focused on and that responds to the Lord’s character and activity in the world so as to view the Lord as being of supreme and ultimate value.

And worship matters because when we live a life that values something other than the Lord as most valuable, we are settling for less than the best. Worship matters to God because we matter to God. And while God is nor lacking for worship, when we refuse to worship Him, we are lacking because we are living a life that has settled for second best.

So who or what do you worship? Who or what do you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty towards? 

Does God Demand Our Worship?

This week we are asking the question "Does worship really matter?" To answer that question we are looking at the playlist of worship of the Jewish people, which is recorded for us in a letter in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Psalms. Yesterday, we saw a man named David reveal for us the profound truth that the Heavens are telling the glory of God.

In other words, the universe that God created is actively worshipping the Lord in a way the recounts the splendor, radiance, and majesty of the Lord. The universe declares and provides the evidence of God’s character and activity in the world. The start of every day speaks in a way that informs us of the glory of God. The activity of the universe during every evening declares its knowledge of the greatness and splendor of God

Even if every human being on the planet refused to worship the Lord, the Lord would not be lacking in worship. Even if every angelic being refused to worship the Lord, the Lord would not be lacking worship. The Lord would not be lacking worship because the entire created universe worships the Lord. The entire universe worships the Lord in a way that recounts and declares the splendor, radiance and majesty of the Lord. Today, we see another song on this playlist of worship of the Jewish people, which is found in Psalm 96:1:

Sing to the LORD a new song; Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, bless His name; Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day. Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.

Here the Psalmist commands the Jewish people and the entire earth to sing to the Lord a new song. Now the Psalmist is not commanding humanity to write a new worship song every day to sing to the Lord. Instead he is commanding humanity to live every single day as an act of worship to the Lord. When the psalmist uses the word bless here, this word bless means to praise.

In addition, to proclaim good tidings conveys the sense of proclaiming and making known how the Lord is actively at work in the world to bring rescue and repair to lives of those who were once separated from God as a result of their selfishness and rebellion. The Psalmist is commanding humanity to tell of the splendor, radiance, and majesty of the Lord as seen in His extraordinary activity in the world that provides humanity the opportunity to experience forgiveness and the relationship with God that they were created for.

Now a natural question that could arise here is “Well Dave, why is the psalmist commanding us to worship the Lord? I mean, that sounds like the Lord demands our worship?” We see the psalmist provide the answer to that question in verses 4:

  For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him, Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.

Here we see the psalmist reveal for us the reality that the reason why he was commanding humanity to worship the Lord was due to the fact that there is only One being that is deserving of our worship. And that One being is the Lord.  Every other object of worship that people were placing as highest value in their lives was a part of creation that was a false and faulty god.  

However, the Lord is the Creator of the universe. The Lord alone was worthy of being the object of worship that people were placing of highest value in their lives because the Lord alone demonstrated the splendor, majesty, power and beauty that was deserving of worship.

Instead of worshipping the creation, which as we saw in Psalm 19, worships the Lord, humanity is to respond by living a life that views Him as being of ultimate value and worth as the Creator of everything that exists. And because of that reality, we see the Psalmist say the following in verse 7-13:

 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory of His name; Bring an offering and come into His courts. Worship the LORD in holy attire; Tremble before Him, all the earth. Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity." Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy Before the LORD, for He is coming, For He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness And the peoples in His faithfulness.

Now when the Psalmist uses the word ascribe here, this word literally means to give. So the Psalmist here is commanding humanity to give to the Lord the honor and power that He alone is deserving of as the Lord. When the psalmist uses the word worship, this word literally means to bow down. In addition, when the psalmist uses the phrase holy attire, he is not referring to dressing up in a suit.

Instead, this phrase literally means the splendor of His holiness. The psalmist is referring to the splendor of the Lord’s unique otherness that sets Him apart as being distinctly different from the rest of the creation. The psalmist here is commanding humanity to worship the Lord by bringing humanity back to the definition of worship, which is a life that is lived in a way that is focused on and that responds to God’s character and activity in the world so as to value the Lord supremely.

The psalmist then reveals the reality that, just as we saw in Psalm 19, the creation worships and makes much of the Lord as a result of the awesome acts of God’s activity in the creation that will come to fulfillment upon Jesus return to earth. At the end of God’s story here on earth, Jesus will return to usher in the kingdom of Heaven in its fullest sense and to judge with justice all of humanity.

We see this reality revealed for us in a section of the very final letter that is recorded for us in the Bible called the book of Revelation. Friday, we will jump into the book of Revelation together...

Does worship really matter?

At the church where I serve we are spending our time together asking and answering the questions “What is worship? Who actually worships? Why are we supposed to worship? What happens when we worship? And how are we supposed to worship?” Does worship really matter?"

We are discovering that all humanity has been wired for worship. And during this time our hope and prayer is that God would move in our heads, hearts, and hands in a way that results in us understanding and embracing the life of worship that we were created for in a way that results in us worshipping Jesus with our lives.

Last week, we discovered the timeless reality that we are wired for worship because we all worship something. You see, the question is not whether or not you worship. The question is “who or what do you worship”? Because worship, simply put, is a response to what we value most: Worship is a life that is lived in response to what we value most. If you want to know what you truly worship, simply look at there you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty, because that is what you worship. And regardless of what we say, our worship is more about what we do than what we say. Often what we say we worship is betrayed by what we actually worship with our time, talent, and treasure.

This week, I would like for us to spend our time together asking and answering the second question in this series, which is “Does worship really matter?” Now a natural question or objection to this idea that we all worship something, if you could have a conversation with to express your question or objection, the conversation would sound something like this: “Well, Dave does worship really matter? Even if I agree with your definition that worship is a life lived in response to what we value most, is worship really that big a deal? Does it really matter whether or not I worship God?”

If those questions and objections are running through your mind, I just want to let you know that those are great questions to be asking. And to answer those questions, I would like for us to spend our time together looking at three different passages that are found in two different letters that are recorded for us in the Bible. And it is in these three different passages that we will discover a timeless answer to the question “Does worship really matter?”

The first passage that we are going to look at is found in a section of a letter in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Psalms. Now the book of Psalms are a collection of prayers and songs that were spoken and sung by the Jewish people that were collected together to form the first playlist of worship for the people of God. This playlist was then preserved and recorded for us in the Bible. So let’s look at a part of this playlist together, which is found in Psalm 19:1-4:

For the choir director. A Psalm of David. The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world.

Here we see a man named David, who was the most famous king to even lead the Jewish people, demonstrate the heart that he had to worship the Lord. King David wrote a song of worship for one of the worship leaders to perform as part of the worship that would occur in the Temple in Jerusalem, which is where the Jewish people would gather to worship the Lord. And as part of this song of worship, we see King David proclaim a profound truth about worship.

And that profound truth is that the Heavens are telling the glory of God. In other words, the universe that God created is actively worshipping the Lord in a way the recounts the splendor, radiance, and majesty of the Lord. The universe declares and provides the evidence of God’s character and activity in the world. The start of every day speaks in a way that informs us of the glory of God. The activity of the universe during every evening declares its knowledge of the greatness and splendor of God.

King David then explains that the universe worships the Lord in a way that recounts and informs us of the glory of God not through words. The universe worships the Lord in a way that recounts and informs us of the glory of God not by singing a worship song.

Instead, the “sound” of the worship of the universe that makes much of the God is revealed and recounted through the awesome act of God’s activity in the creation. The sound of the worship of the universe is revealed and recounted in the expanse and activity of the universe. To prove his point, King David points to the God’s activity in the creation of time and the luminaries that serve as signs that mark the passage of time and provide light to the earth. Notice King David’s words in the second half of 4:

In them He has placed a tent for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

King David points to the sun as evidence of the creation’s worship of the Lord. The sun, which is 93 million miles away from the earth; the sun whose light takes 8 minutes to travel from the sun to the earth, worships the Lord by recounting and revealing the splendor, radiance, and majesty of the Lord at every sunrise. King David uses the word picture of a tent used in a wedding ceremony to point to the greatness and grandeur of the universe.

The sun, like a bridegroom emerging from a tent, proclaims the splendor and majesty of the Lord as it rises in the sky every day. Every day, as the sun travels its course across the sky, the sun proclaims the glory of God as the source of life and light.

Even if every human being on the planet refused to worship the Lord, the Lord would not be lacking in worship. Even if every angelic being refused to worship the Lord, the Lord would not be lacking worship. The Lord would not be lacking worship because the entire created universe worships the Lord. The entire universe worships the Lord in a way that recounts and declares the splendor, radiance and majesty of the Lord.

And a few chapters later in the book of Psalms, we see another song on this playlist. We will look at that song tomorrow…

We are wired for worship because we all worship something...

This week, we have been looking at an event from history that is recorded for us in a section of a letter in the Bible called the book of Acts. As Paul studied the culture of Athens, his desire to engage the residents of Athens with the message of the gospel was provoked. Luke then explained that how Paul engaged people with the message of the gospel gave him further opportunities to share the message of the gospel. Paul joined in the conversations that others were already having in such a way that gave him the opportunity to engage in those conversations instead of simply attempting to force his conversation on others.

And the reason why they were having those conversations; the reason why Paul could have the opportunity to engage in those conversations is because everybody worships something. Today, we see Luke reveal for us what happened as the conversation between Paul and the leading religious and educational experts of Athens continued in Acts 17:22:

 So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. "For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.

Now Paul’s statement, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: “Men of Athens, I perceive that you are very religious people. I have come to see that you are very religious people because throughout your city there are objects of devotion and worship, because you have recognized that everyone worships something. And as I looked carefully at the objects of your devotion and worship, I even came across an altar which said ‘to an unknown god’. Therefore, I want to announce and make known to you the God that you sense that exists but do not yet know by name.” Paul then begins to share the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel to the city of Athens in verse 24:

"The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.'

Now did you notice how Paul shared the message of the gospel with the residents of Athens? Did you notice that Paul did not quote a single Bible verse? Now some of you might be thinking “Well how can you say that he shared the gospel without using the Bible?” You see, instead of using quotes from the Bible which many of the residents of Athens would have been unfamiliar with, Paul turned the residents of Athens attention to God’s activity in history that they would be familiar with.

Paul started by pointing out the residents of Athens what they already knew about the God that they did not know by name. Paul reminded the residents of Athens that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name did not need a place to live and does not need anything from man because He is the Creator of the universe who is large and in charge of everything in the universe. Paul reminded the residents of Athens that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name determined the length of their lives and the nations that they inhabited. And the reason that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name did what he did was so that humanity would have a sense that he existed and would search for Him.

Paul then hammered home the point that humanity was created by this God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name by quoting not from the Bible, but from two poets that the residents of Athens were very familiar with.  Paul quoted from the Cretan poet Epimenides and the Cilician poet Aratus, to reveal the reality that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name had been revealing Himself to them through the creation and their conscience. Paul then brought the message of the gospel that he was announcing to its climactic conclusion in verses 29:

 "Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some began to sneer, but others said, "We shall hear you again concerning this." So Paul went out of their midst. But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Paul transitioned from the reality that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name had been revealing Himself to them through the creation and their conscience to the reality that the God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name had sent His Son Jesus to provide them an opportunity to be rescued from their selfishness and rebellion that was revealed by their worship of false gods. The God that they sensed that existed but did not know by name had sent His Son Jesus, to reveal Himself to humanity so that humanity come to know and worship Him as a result of believing, trusting, and following Jesus as a result of His life, death, and resurrection.

Luke then reveals that the crowds that heard Paul’s message responded in three timeless ways to the message of the gospel. There were some in the crowd who sneered, or mocked the gospel that Paul had proclaimed. There were others in the crowd who had questions and wanted to continue to engage in conversation and dialogue with Paul. And there were some in the crowd who responded to the message of the gospel as proclaimed by Paul by placing their confident trust in what God had done through Jesus life, death, and resurrection so as to believe, trust, and follow Jesus as Lord and Leader.

Notice, however, that no one denied that they worshipped something. And the reason why no one denied that they worshipped something is because in the core of our beings, we are wired for worship. And it is in this event from history that we see reinforced the timeless reality that we are wired for worship because we all worship something.

You see, the question is not whether or not you worship. The question is “what do you worship”? The question is “What do you leverage your life towards as a response of worship?” Because worship, simply put, is a response to what we value most: Worship is a life that is lived in response to what we value most.

If you want to know what you truly worship, simply look at there you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty, because that is what you worship. And regardless of what we say, our worship is more about what we do than what we say. Often what we say we worship is betrayed by what we actually worship with our time, talent, and treasure.

So who or what do you worship? Who or what do you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty towards? 

Being Provoked By Worship...

This week, we are launching into a discussion about the concept of worship. We talked about the reality that everybody worships something. We then explained that the reason why everybody worships something is due to the fact that worship, simply put, is a response to what we value most. Worship is a life that is lived in response to what we value most.

If you want to know what you truly worship, simply look at where you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty, because that is what you worship. And regardless of what we say, our worship is more about what we do than what we say. Often what we say we worship is betrayed by what we actually worship with our time, talent, and treasure.

Today, though, I don’t want you to take my word that everyone worships something. Instead, the fact that everyone worships something is not a new thing. The fact that everyone worships something is a human nature thing. We see this reality revealed for us in an event from history that is recorded for us in a section of a letter in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Acts. So, let’s jump into this event from history together, beginning in Acts 17:15-16:

Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left. Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols.

Luke, who is the author of the book of Acts, brings us into this event from history by providing for us the context in which this event from history would take place. This event from history occurred during Paul’s second missionary journey, which took place between 49-52 A.D. After planting a church in the city of Thessalonica, which was located in northern Greece, the Apostle Paul left Silas and Timothy in Thessalonica to travel to Athens, which is located in southern Greece.

After arriving in Athens, Paul sent those who traveled with him to Athens back to Thessalonica with a message for Silas and Timothy to come join him in Athens as soon as possible. Luke then explains that as Paul was waiting for Silas and Timothy to arrive in Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols. What is interesting here is that this word provoked, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to cause a state of inward arousal that stimulates one to action. In addition, when Luke uses the word observing, this word literally means to observe something with sustained attention.

You see, as Paul was waiting in Athens for Silas and Timothy, Paul began to study the culture of Athens. And as Paul studied the culture of Athens, he discovered the timeless reality that everyone worships something. You see, the city of Athens was a multicultural city that people from all over the known world would travel to. Athens was also one of the intellectual capitals of the world and had a world famous university. Athens was also a place where the Arts flourished.

And as a result, the city of Athens was full of art that depicted the various images that represented the gods of the religious systems around the known world. So, as Paul studied the culture of Athens, Paul’s desire to engage those in Athens with the message of the gospel was aroused after observing those in Athens who worshipped false gods. We see how Paul engaged the residents of Athens in verse Acts 17:17-21:

 So he was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place every day with those who happened to be present. And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him. Some were saying, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" Others, "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,"-- because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming? "For you are bringing some strange things to our ears; so we want to know what these things mean." (Now all the Athenians and the strangers visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.)

Now to fully understand what is happening here, we first need to define some terms and answer some questions. When Paul uses the word reasoning here, this word, in the language that this letter was originally written in, means to engage in a conversation and discussion. This word is where we get the English word dialogue.

In other words, Paul did not walk up to people and beat them over the head with his Bible. Instead Paul studied the culture and engaged the culture in a conversation and dialogue about the message and teachings of Jesus. Every day, Paul would engage in conversations about the message and teachings of Jesus in the synagogue, which is where Jewish and non Jewish people who were religious would gather to worship God.

In addition, Luke tells us that Paul would engage in conversation and dialogue in the market place every day with those who happened to be present. Now the market place was the center of civic life in Athens. The marketplace was the coffee shop, the firehouse, so to speak, of Athens. This was the place where irreligious people would tend to gather.

Now this leads us to the questions that we need to ask and answer which is “who were the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers that were conversing with him?” Epicurean philosophers believed that the chief end of man was pleasure and happiness, which was achieved by avoiding excesses, by seeking tranquility and freedom from pain and by loving mankind. They believed that if gods existed they did not become involved in human events.

By contrast, Stoic philosophers believed in a multitude of gods and that man’s purpose and responsibility was directing history through reason. Stoic philosophy was marked by a sense of moral duty and earnestness, which resulted in self-sufficiency and pride.

You see, whether it was people who would be considered religious or irreligious; whether it was people who were engaged in a philosophy of life that was driven by pleasure or by morality; whether it was people who believed in a multitude of gods or who believed that if there was a god, god was a disengaged and disinterested god; Paul recognized the reality that everyone worships something. And because of that reality, Paul desired to engage in a conversation and dialogue, not a fiery and judgmental debate that compared and contrasted what they worshipped to who Paul worshipped.

Luke tells us that as Paul engaged in these conversations and dialogues, “Some were saying, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" In other words, some philosophers were minimizing the message of the gospel and Paul by basically saying ““What does this guy who makes his living by making up his own religion from pieces of other religions want to say”. Others, however, had a much different view:  "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities," For other philosophers, they were having a hard time wrapping their mind around the message of the gospel and its message that Jesus was God who became man in order to die and be raised from death never to die again.

And as a result of these philosophers who were either minimizing of having difficulty understanding the message of the gospel that Paul was proclaiming, Luke tells us that Paul was brought to the Areopagus. Now the Areopagus was the place in Athens where the leading religious and educational experts would meet and evaluate the philosophical and educational positions that were being communicated by people.

But did you notice that Paul was invited to speak at the Areopagus? In other words, even though these philosophers did not buy the message of the gospel, how Paul engaged people with the message of the gospel gave him further opportunities to share the message of the gospel. Paul joined in the conversations that others were already having in such a way that gave him the opportunity to engage in those conversations instead of simply attempting to force his conversation on others.

And the reason why they were having those conversations; the reason why Paul could have the opportunity to engage in those conversations is because everybody worships something.

Friday, we will see Luke reveal for us what happened as the conversation between Paul and the leading religious and educational experts...

A Fundamental Misconception about Worship...

As hard as it is to believe, summer is almost over. And over the next few weeks, we will leave summer in the rearview mirror of our lives as we lean into a new season in our lives. We will lean into a new season involving the return to school, the return of football season, and hopefully, the return of cooler weather. In addition, the end of summer can also involve a return to the regular routine that normally drives our lives. The regular routine of the day that includes bedtimes, work times, and school times.

And for many, the end of the summer involves a return to the regular routine of attending church. For many of us, summer vacations and summer schedules can result in us taking a break from church. I often hear this reality expressed by people who make statements like “I really have to get back to church.” Or “I really miss going to church to worship.” However, here is a question to consider: do we really stop worshipping because we took a break from church? Is worship something that happens only when we are in church?

You see, for many of us, we suffer from a fundamental misconception when it comes to the concept of worship. And our fundamental misconception about worship reveals itself in many of the statements that we tend to make when we talk about the concept of worship. For example, maybe you are here this morning and you have heard the following conversation take place: “How was church this morning? Oh, the sermon was okay, but the worship was amazing.”

Or, maybe you have heard this type of conversation: “I used to go to church X, but I didn’t like the worship there, so I decided to go to church Y because of their worship.” Now when you hear those conversations, how is worship being defined? Worship is being defined as music, isn’t it? And how often, if we are brutally honest, do we define worship in a similar fashion?

But is that what defines worship? Is worship something that occurs at a location on a Sunday morning that is fueled by how well a group of people play musical instruments? Is worship about a genre of music and whether or not we connect or like that genre of music? In church world, there have been huge battles over the issue of music in church. And what were those battles called? They were called the worship wars, weren’t they?

So is that what worship is? What is worship? And who actually worships, anyways? Does worship really matter? Why are we supposed to worship? What happens when we worship? And how are we supposed to worship?   To answer these questions, at the church where I serve, we are going to spend the next six weeks together in a sermon series entitled “Wired for worship”.

During this series we are going to answer the question “What is worship”. During this series, we are going to discover that all humanity has been wired for worship. And during this series our hope and prayer is that God would move in our heads, hearts, and hands in a way that results in us understanding and embracing the life of worship that we were created for in a way that results in us worshipping Jesus with our lives.

Now this week, I would like for us to answer the first two questions that I just posed. And those two questions are “What is worship?” and “Who actually worships?” In our current church culture we have a tendency to view and define worship as music. We have a tendency to view and define worship as singing. However, that is far too narrow a view of worship. Worship is not simply singing, reading your Bible and prayer, although it can involve singing, reading your Bible and prayer.

When we talk about and see worship in the letters that make up the Bible, we discover that worship is a response that is focused on who God is, what God has done, and what God has promised to do. Worship is a lifestyle; worship is a life that is lived in a way that is focused on and that responds to God’s character and activity in the world.

However, it is important to understand that regardless of whether or not you buy the whole Jesus, Bible church thing, everyone still worships something. Everyone worships something because, when we talk about worship, we are talking about a life that is leveraged in response to someone or something.

Now right about now, a natural question or objection could be running through your mind. And if you could have a conversation with me to express your question or objection, the conversation would sound something like this: “Well Dave I totally disagree with you. How can you say that everyone worships something? I don’t worship like you Christians worship. And I know a lot of people who do not worship anything. So how can you say that everyone worships something?” If those questions and objections are running through your mind, I just want to let you know that those are great questions to be asking.

And my response to those questions would be this: If you do not think that everyone worships something, just turn on your television on a Saturday afternoon and watch as thousands of people cram into a stadium with their bodies painted with their favorite team colors so that they can raise their hands in the air in adoration as their team scores a touchdown.

If you do not think that everyone worships something, just go see Justin Beiber or Taylor Swift or Rhianna or Drake in concert and watch as people raise their hands and scream at their top of their lungs about how much they love them as they sing their songs. And for those of you who are too old to like that genre of music, just watch as older people act the same way as they try to fit into the clothes that they wore thirty or forty years ago to go see the Rolling Stones or Def Leppard.

You see, worship, simply put, is a response to what we value most. Worship is a life that is lived in response to what we value most. If you want to know what you truly worship, simply look at where you leverage your time, your affection, your energy, and your loyalty, because that is what you worship. And regardless of what we say, our worship is more about what we do than what we say. Often what we say we worship is betrayed by what we actually worship with our time, talent, and treasure.

But I don’t want you to take my word that everyone worships something. Instead, the fact that everyone worships something is not a new thing. The fact that everyone worships something is a human nature thing. We see this reality revealed for us in an event from history that is recorded for us in a section of a letter in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Acts.

Tomorrow, we will begin to look at this event from history together…