Cheerful worship is what our glorious God is worthy of. And this is what He calls for. He seeks worshippers who know to shout joyfully and serve gladly and come before Him with joyful singing. May the Lord grant us the wisdom to nurture our hearts to always be ready to engage with Him in worship with hearts cleansed of sin, minds saturated with His truth and with hearts overflowing with gratitude.
Psalm 100, Thankful, Thoughtful, Cheerful Worship (Part 2)
Psalm 100, Thankful, Thoughtful, Cheerful Worship
God is worthy of the most excellent kind of worship. In Psalm 100 we find a universal summons for all the earth to bring to God this most elevated and acceptable worship to Yahweh, our Maker, Sustainer and Redeemer. In this first study in Psalm 100, we look at the grounds for gratitude in worship, namely, creation, care and the cross. May the Lord purge any tinge of unbelief from our hearts and by His Holy Spirit enable us to be true worshippers who evermore come to Him with thankful hearts.
John 12:1-8, What is Christ Worth to You? (Part 3)
We were saved primarily to be worshippers, not benefactors. In this study, we examine the final verses of this passage and consider the great value and importance of worshipping Christ over the admirable yet lesser priority of charity and the abominable ambition of selfish gain. The chief end of man is indeed to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. May we worship and serve the Lord as He so rightly deserves.
John 12:1-8, What is Christ Worth to You? (Part 2)
Christ was worthless to Judas. His protest of Mary’s lavish gift puts on display what was in his heart: atheism and contempt. He has no understanding of God who is to be worshipped, who is revealed in the Son of God incarnate; and he expresses disdain for the Lord whom he values far less than Mary’s perfume. This is the heart of the unconverted: worship-less and contemptuous toward Jesus. But to the converted, Christ is everything to us, and we long to worship the Lord day and night forever and ever, as we will in heaven, for we are His worshippers.
John 12:1-8, What is Christ Worth to You?
John takes us from the conspiracy of the Jews to Jesus’ triumphal entry by way of a burial preparation. Jesus heads to Jerusalem to die. In this transition passage, John highlights for us the worthiness of Christ. The Son of God who bore our sins is worth more than anything else in this world. We find this front and center through two individuals of Mary and Judas. Christ’s worth was superlative and supreme for Mary. The opposite was true of Judas. May the Holy Spirit probe our hearts and help us see just what Christ is worth to us.
John 11:49-57, No Setbacks for Our Sovereign God (Part 2)
Evil conspiracies and governmental orders cannot thwart the purposes of God. This is God’s world and all things work together under His providential control to advance His plan of redemption. May our God mature us to put our trust in Him when we are afraid (Ps. 56:3) of the unsettling events around us. This is God’s world and we trust in Him.
John 11:45-53, No Setbacks for Our Sovereign God
The aftermath of Lazarus’ resurrection may be seen as a setback to Jesus’ ministry. While many of the Jews who had come to Bethany believe, some take word to Jesus’ enemies, the Pharisees, and this triggers a chain reaction that sets the stage for Jesus’ crucifixion. Is this all a setback in the plan of God? No. This is all a part of God’s plan of redemption. Whether it is hostility in general or it is the highest level of government authority, God is bigger them all and weaves the black thread of evil into His beautiful tapestry of redemption, to bring many sons to glory, first His only begotten Son, then His many adopted sons.