Worship: An Attitude of Gratitude

by:  Lonnie Lane

Most of us are aware of the verse that says, “True worshipers
will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such
people the Father seeks to be His worshipers” (John 4:23). The verse
brings up two obvious questions: What does He mean by truth and how do you
relate to God “in spirit?”

Perhaps this issue is elementary for some of you, but for
others it may untangle a few theological knots you’ve struggled with. Relating
to God in spirit, meaning by or through the Holy Spirit, is one of those “you
had to be there” situations. If you haven’t experienced it, it remains a
mystery. Even as a Spirit filled believer, it remained a mystery to me for several
years, when I had no one to explain it to me. And I thought I was the only one
who didn’t get it so I was afraid to ask. Not wanting any of you to have this same
dilemma, we are dealing with it here.

It would seem from the verse that unless people are seeking to relate to God by His Spirit they
cannot be true worshippers. Well, the only way you can have access to the Holy
Spirit is to know God through the Yeshua. I know this is ‘Relating to God 101.’
But I have found that, because few churches actually “disciple” new believers,
many are confused for years about how the whole thing works, and even about God
Himself, let alone how to worship. Yeshua said, “Truly, truly,” (I guess He really meant it – He used two “truly’s”
which in Hebrew means to greatly emphasize its meaning, so pay attention to
what He’s saying), “unless one is born
again he cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3). He’s saying that without
being born again we cannot “see” (perceive, understand or experientially
access) anything of the Kingdom
of God. The reason is
that “a natural man does not accept the
things of the Spirit of God, for they
are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” A natural
man is a man without the indwelling Spirit of God. But once you put your trust
in Yeshua, amazing as it is, you become as “the
temple of God and… the Spirit of God dwells in you” (1 Corinthians
3:16).

Yeshua’s preaching
was always of the Kingdom in which alone truth is found. He said, “For this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is
of the truth hears My voice” (John 18:37). You would have thought He
would say it the other way around. That hearing His voice, they would then know
the truth. But He seems to be saying that you cannot “hear” (grasp) what He’s
saying until you are “of the truth” which means being born again. Here’s why:

We are born again when we believe the truth that Yeshua’s
death was payment for our sins, so we turn away from our sins, and we yield to
Him as Lord of our lives, entering into a whole new way of life with God. At
that time, we become united with God and the Spirit of God comes and in-dwells
our spirits: “The one who joins himself to the Lord is one
spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:17). We find we are now aware of and
responsive to God as if we just started life all over again, this time with
God. When we accepted Yeshua’s payment for our sins, we accepted His payment of
a debt we were unable to pay and now we are free of the debt. The debt of sin that separated us from God is paid
in full by Messiah Yeshua so that we are no longer separated from God. And we
begin a new relationship with Him and our spirits are now united with God’s
Spirit.

God’s Spirit isn’t separate from Father God, nor is His
Spirit a separate God-Person for God is one: “The LORD is our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy
6:4).  There
aren’t three Gods, but one God who manifests Himself in various ways. It is the
Spirit of God who invisibly
works to bring us into what the Son, Yeshua, by His obedience to the will
and purpose of the Father, purchased
for us. So you can see three aspects of God’s character and nature at work here:
the Father’s will and purpose, Yeshua’s obedience even unto His death; and the
work of the Spirit to make it a reality in our lives. When we are born again we
are released from the guilt of sin and the imprisonment it brings to our souls
and our bodies. The freedom from sin
and guilt that Yeshua bought for us with His blood is made real to us by His
Spirit, who works to make His Lordship real to us in many ways. As the Holy
Spirit is really the Spirit of Yeshua, and the Spirit of the Father, the Spirit
is Lord as much as the Father and Yeshua are Lord: “Now the Lord is the Spirit,
and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Corinthians 3:17).
So His presence in our lives is God’s presence in our lives.

To look at it from a human perspective, consider that you and I are one
person, yet we have a body, a soul and a spirit, with each part of us
functioning in its own way to make one whole and integrated individual. In a
similar way, God is the same God whether we are observing Him as Father, Son or
Spirit. And since there are no boundaries in God, sometimes we can observe all
three at the same time: “After being
baptized, Yeshua came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens
were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice
out of the heavens said, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased’”
(Matthew 3:16, 17). Note: The Spirit
of God came “as” a dove; He is a Spirit, not a “bird.”

Not everything that
is called “spiritual” is of God. We may seek to know God with our souls,
but unless we are born again by the Spirit of God, we are only operating in the
soul realm – on soulish things – which are not truly of God. Therefore, we do
not qualify as worshiping God in spirit and in truth. Anything that denies or
replaces Yeshua’s work on the cross as the only way to salvation, or adds
anything or any person as intermediaries, such as dead saints or Mary, for
instance, is false and unbiblical. Many religious and all cultish practices are
derived from the soul realm and not from the Spirit of God. They are not of the
spirit, including if our bodies are so that we are ‘doing’ something physical
we think is necessary to come to God. Our souls can also be influenced by
demonic sources, which cannot be of the truth. So we are not able to connect
with God but remain in soulishness, unable to enjoy the wonderful pleasure of
worshipping God or being in His presence. New Age practices and philosophy, to
give an example, are not truth and miss knowing God because it is based on
false concepts of God and of the unity it proposes. Indeed, there is no true
worship of a higher being if you think you are part of the higher being. That
would be self-worship and we call that narcissism, even if it includes other
self-worshippers.

To look at it from above, Father God is located in a place in heaven, upon a
great majestic throne. God the Father and God the Son share the throne in the
highest heaven. And even more interesting, the Bible never says there are two
thrones. It appears as if the throne is always spoken of as one throne, not
two, as in, “the throne of God and of the Lamb”
(Revelation 22:3).  Circling around the
throne are myriads of angels, cherubim, seraphim, and saints who have gone on to
heaven who sing His praises and bask in the immeasurable pleasure of His
presence in perfect love. John describes what he saw when God took him to
heaven this way: “And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round
about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten
thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.  Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb
that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and
honor, and glory, and blessing” (Revelation 5:11, 12)

That folks, is our destiny if we are born again. Never let
anything ‘down here’ derail you from that destination. But God is also here
with us. He is omnipresent – as in present everywhere – so through His Holy
Spirit, God interacts with creation everywhere creation is! This includes the
intimate affairs of each person. The
Son, on one level, was an historic Person who was also a manifestation of God
on the earth. But who remains Lord of our lives in very intimate and immediate ways,
while seated in heaven at “the right hand
of God,” which is a metaphor for sharing equal authority of God. When we
hear God’s voice or feel His presence, or sense His leading us, it is work of the
Holy Spirit to us who is administering Yeshua’s Lordship in our lives, reminding
us of His words to us, and empowering us to carry out the will of God the
Father.

Once we are born again the Bible
begins to make sense to us where it did not before.  We become aware that there is a realm in
which God operates and has affect on our lives and that this new spiritual
realm is not the same as the earthly realm. As His word becomes more real to us
and we begin to value what it says more, we become Kingdom thinkers, and little
by little, we become more like Yeshua as we think more Biblically. The more we
come to know God, the more we realize His goodness, the more we are moved to
worship.  It’s the Spirit of God that
does all that work in us. In time, we learn to walk by the Spirit, knowing when
He is speaking to us, or nudging us to do or not do something. We learn to feel
His presence at certain times, like when we’re worshipping or when we’re
ministering His love to someone in some way. That love compassion we feel for
someone else is a manifestation of the Spirit of God. Or sometimes we are aware
of His presence just because our thoughts turn to Him and He responds to us.
That just made me smile just thinking about those times.

In fact, I have found that when I turn my thoughts to
God in the midst of a busy day or busy thoughts, I can feel my body instantly
relax, as if He is saying, “I’m here. Just trust in Me and let me give you My
peace.”  Yes, Lord!!  Yeshua called the Holy Spirit “The Comforter”. His presence is comforting,
to be sure. But the Spirit also makes Yeshua real to us, so that we can
experience His presence, and not just know of Him as the God-Man who once lived
on earth and is now in heaven.  “When
the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the
Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, he shall testify of me” (John 15:26). Nothing is more
comforting in this life than the presence of the Lord. Sometimes it’s just
sweet, sometimes it’s powerful. Sometimes He just makes us aware of something
that will set us free.

It continually amazes me that, with all that goes on in the
universe, not just events but the maintaining of all that comprises the
universe, both microscopically (the teeny) and macroscopically (the huge), God
cares about insignificant little us, and goes to the trouble to make us aware
of His presence in the most minute matters of our spiritual, emotional and
physical lives. We talk so easily about how the Lord leads us, corrects us,
lets us know what He wants or doesn’t in our lives, what we need to be saying
or doing in a situation – all so very specifically involved with us – and as
close as a whisper in our ear. And yet, He is the Almighty God, the Creator and
Lord of the universes (plural). He is so big and so powerful and is responsible
for having created and now maintaining all the universal complexities that
exist.  Give a moment’s thought to how
much we know scientifically that the people in the Bible at any given time were
entirely unaware of but which we take for granted. Consider what we know of
medicine and the functions of our bodies, or astronomy to measure the suns and
planets, or of molecular biology, or time warps, or electromagnetic fields, or
microbes, germs, viruses, mitochondria…the list goes on and on. And yet, He is
so personally tender with us and so attentive to our needs and so committed to
our specific individual spiritual growth and our wellbeing spiritually,
emotionally, and physically. The more we realize of Him and His character and
nature and how much our lives are influenced by His attentiveness or greatness,
we find ourselves with a great deal of gratitude and thankfulness. The Creator
of the universe has drawn us to Himself and allowed us to come to know Him personally!
He talks to us and hears what we say to
Him with a listening ear. He is just so awesome, as in awe inspiring, isn’t He?  Awe, incidentally, means wonder, fear,
reverence, astonishment, amazement, stupefaction, veneration, respect, admiration,
shock, and worship. All that applies, doesn’t it? The more we know of Him, the
more we are awed by Him, the more worship becomes a spontaneous response to
Him.

Worship, by the way,
does not have to mean singing to Him, although heaven appears to be
permeated with songs of worship, myriads of angels and persons singing so that
it all blends together in one glorious harmonious symphony. That’s what people
who have been there tell us. Worship can be the thoughts in your heart or
whatever you do just because you love and appreciate Him. For all my writing, teaching
and ‘wordsmithing,’ some of my most treasured worship times are just being
silent before Him and thinking about Him, or meditating with Him on a verse to
see into the depths of it beyond the apparent words, or listening for what He
might want to tell me. I love being quiet with the Lord when He quiets my soul
in His presence. That too is worship.

On the other hand, if we offer our ‘works’ of worship as an
obligation, or a ritual we think we’re supposed to do without much thought of
honoring God but rather out of fear of NOT doing it, or we do it so automatically
that it is a ritual rather than a meaningful exchange between us and the Lord,
then whatever we’re doing isn’t received by God as worship. Worship is a love
response, or a longing for more connection with Him which is also out of love.
Worship is a response to His goodness and holiness, to Who He is as Omnipotent
(all powerful) Savior, Omniscient (all knowing) Lord and Omnipresent (all
present) Helper. Even if we don’t have any feelings or desire to praise Him,
the very thought that you exist because He created you, because of all that has
come into your life as good and all that lies before you for eternity, these
are reasons enough to worship Him. Gratefulness goes a long way into worship.

Try spontaneously
singing your gratefulness to Him and see if the Holy Spirit doesn’t give
you wings to take it to a higher level. Even to just plain live that way,
blessing God as naturally as breathing, and as glorious acknowledging Him, who
is brighter than the light of the sun. I don’t mean you have to be speaking
“glory” all day, but your thoughts turn to God and your heart warms just
knowing He’s there with you. So you send Him a loving smile and some
thanksgiving and tell Him you love Him. That too is worship. Tithing, by the
way, is also an act of worship. Joyfully giving to Him in thanksgiving for all
He gives to you. Or offerings can be worship when your heart rejoices as you
give to someone to bless them. God who is the Ultimate Giver will respond to
your generous heart by allowing you to feel His joy over your giving. The giver
really is more blessed than the receiver when you do it from a heart that loves
the Lord.

One of the words that
is used continually in heavenly worship is “worthy,” such as, “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” (Revelation 4:11). The
word Worthy in Greek has to do with the virtues and qualities of our precious Yeshua
that resulted in Him being the one
time sacrifice for the sins of all human beings ever to live on the
earth, including you. But it is possible to have the words of this verse or any
verse, be just words to us? Something we know as we know the alphabet or the
words to a song and yet have little impact on our spirits? At least not to the
level that it evokes awe and worship from us, or even gratitude that He has
allowed us to know Him and all His wondrous ways. Perhaps taking time and
allowing the Spirit of God to make verses such as this real to us, so that it
sinks down into our hearts, will bring an awe to our souls and praise to our
lips.

To appreciate the cleansing blood of Yeshua
is to carry a sense of His holiness and of wanting to be clean before Him. I
don’t know about you, but it seems to me that the church on the whole, as the
representatives of Messiah to the world today, is not looking too holy for the
most part. Although there does seem to be a cloud the size of a fist in the
skies of revival that give hope of a ground swell of repentance and hearts that
are crying out to God for His mercy. Perhaps it needs to start with
appreciation for who He is and what He’s done for us. Perhaps we need to be
more in touch with His love for us. As we are more and more aware of  His love for us, we will more and more love
Him in return, because, “we love, because
He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). It may be worship is the key to unlock that revival in
our own lives we all desire, as well as in our country.

“Now may the God of
hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in
hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).  Amen.

Reprint of this article is permitted as long as you use the following; Use by permission by Messianic Vision, www.sidroth.org, 2011.

Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif.  All rights reserved. Used by permission.