This week, we’re exploring how a church community should be committed to connectedness to God in worship.
Humans will never be more connected to God than in the kingdom of heaven, or the kingdom of God. The Bible includes the book of Revelation, which recounts John’s vision of the kingdom of heaven. Here’s what he described about angels, and then humans:
Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE Lord GOD ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS, AND IS, AND IS TO COME.” Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” (Revelation 4:8-11)
Even in the kingdom, there is worship. The word may not appear in this reading, but the core meaning is there. Worship means “to give worth to something.” And the words “you are worthy” are right at the beginning of the words the elders say in their heavenly worship.
You can tell what someone values by how they spend money, time. You can see what’s worth their limited resources. Worship is spending our limited time on God. It’s an expression of love.
In our Marriage and Parenting courses, we introduce the five love languages. Some communicate and receive love through words, touch, acts of service, time, and others through gifts.
In the same way, we can show love to God through various “languages”. Worship includes prayer, and music, confessing sins, asking forgiveness, reminding ourselves what we believe, reading the Bible together, and more. All aspects of how communities of Christians worship.
These are all ways to communicate God’s worth in our eyes. You can see it in this reading. The elders say, “You are worthy to receive glory and honor and power” but then they tell him why: he is the creator of everything.
He knows all this, of course. But this is a time for humans, mortals, to feed that back to him. To acknowledge he is at the cetner of our lives, not the periphery, and we’re not going to deny it.
Question: How do you know someone values you? What do they say, do, or not?
Reminder: Earlier in this series, we saw the importance of reading the Bible together in sync, so our new daily bible readings start today in our mobile app and web site.
Read the Bible in Sync Today
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We're looking at identifying good or bad spiritual influences in our lives. We looked at two tests or "fruit" yesterday, today we see two more.
They are Short-Lived
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Jesus is saying that false teaching is like a tree with bad fruit…it’s best use is as firewood…
It has no lasting value…no help for the future. Just a little warm glow while it lasts, then it’s gone forever.
This is why we so often go from false teaching to teaching…so many spiritual books at the bookstore - they never truly satisfy, or last.
We are sometimes tempted to say…it’s okay. I know it’s not true, but it’s fun, or it makes me feel good and inspired to read it.
But they are not harmless. This is like saying you’ll keep a dead tree standing, just in case you need it for firewood some day.
False teachings are dangerous, because they get inside our heads and hearts. They can suck up our time, energy, devotion, everything. They can consume us. Better to cut the tree down and have a big bonfire today.
Motives
This is the difference between a wolf and a lost sheep who’s wandered away…Jesus points us to the inner motivation, as he did over and over again in the Sermon on the Mount.
He says a wolf is ravenous…so hungry, he/she will do anything to get their desire, whether they are hungry for control, power, money, fame, etc.
Wolves exist, since the first church was established, there have been those who’ve sought personal gain from Jesus & church, and they still exist today…
But if you are truly seeking to follow Jesus, you can probably identify some times you’ve strayed towards a false prophet too.
We’ve all been there. I know I’ve read, and really liked, things in the past.
But later, as I grew as a follower of Jesus, realized they were not helpful at all.
Wish someone had told me: you deserve better….the real thing earlier.
It's good to recognize you’re not always right, gone astray, and decided to pursue the truth. You should be much more concerned if you were completely certain of your own righteousness and thought you had nothing to learn.
Question: Who has been a negative spiritual influence in your life? Did they seem more like a sinister wolf, or a misguided, lost sheep?
