True worship requires the total abandonment of the works of the flesh (Galatians 5: 16-21)
Many believers claim to worship God according to their own practices or principles. These practices are wrongly regarded as the worship of God because they have a appearance of piety. But what is worship according to God?
1. Worship according to God
The worship of God is the expression of the Christian’s love for God (Deuteronomys 11:1; Mathieu 22: 37). The worship that God accepts is that of Jesus Christ (Matthew 3:17, Acts 4:11-12). It is therefore in Christ and through Christ that a man can worship God. To worship God, one must first have accepted Jesus Christ and have given Him all his life because it is Christ who restores the communion that has been broken between God and Men (1 Timothy 2:5; 2 Corinthians 5:18-19). Since it is the worship of Jesus alone that God approves, anyone who wants to worship God must go through Jesus Christ. Apart from Christ, there is no worship of God (Hebrews 10:5-18; John 14: 6). The worship of God is done in spirit and truth (John 4:21-23, John 3:5-6), that is, the Spirit of Jesus Christ communicates to the Christian Man the love of God and gives him to worship God with all his heart. It does not depend on a temple, much less a congregation (see the four types of church). In a word, worshipping God is about imitating Jesus by having a transformed life because He is the perfect model that God agrees.
From the above, it is clear that all those who have a bond of sin which they do not want to get rid of it are not worshippers of God (Revelation 21:8; Matthew 7:21). Belonging to a religion is not enough, which is why the Lord speaking to the churches in apocalypse said, « What I have against you is that... Revelation 2:4.
2. The practicality of worship
True worship requires the total abandonment of the works of the flesh (Galates 5:16-21), all in order to offer one’s body as a pleasant sacrifice to God (Romans 12:1); for without sanctification, no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). So without sanctification, there is no possible worship of God. Thus, all the actions that the Christian will take will be in a spirit of worship since it is his love for God that drives him to keep himself pure, to love his neighbor, to make offerings to God, to serve God and his neighbor, to give his goods to his neighbour Etc. (1 Corinthians 13: 3; 1 Corinthians 10:31). From this life of practical worship comes a moment of dialogue with God. This is the essence of Christian life. (Mattieu 4:10; 1 stone 2:9; Revelation 1:6). For we were saved to serve and worship God. The Holy Spirit, in prayer, transports us into the contemplation of God. Thus, according to our love for God, we spread songs, cries, dance steps, poems, make vows to the Lord, tell mysteries and even speak in other languages… (2 Corinthians 3:18). This is where God reveals himself more to the worshipper and speaks to him.
3. Adoration and praise
If worship is the manifestation of the Christian’s love for God, praise is the simple recognition of greatness, of God’s infinite power. All creation praises the Lord (Psalms 150:6) but not all worship God because worship is reserved for Christians alone. And this adoration rises to the throne of God as a scent of good smell, which is not the case with praise (James 2:19). However, when praise is soaked in love, it becomes an adoration. That is why only the Christian worships God. NB: any worship done outside the Lord Jesus is idolatry, an abomination before God (Exodus 20: 2-3). All these so-called singers who do not live in sanctification are not worshippers of God. All these concerts of depraved do not please God (Amos 5:23; Mark 7: 6-7). All those who make any offering to God for a purpose other than love, with the intention of winning, being seen, forgiving, etc. are not worshippers of the living God (Amos 5:21; Mathieu 6: 2).
