The Cost of Worship

"Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, ¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: ¹¹ "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."

Revelation 4:9-11

In a world preoccupied with acquiring, how thought provoking it is to fix our eyes on this heavenly scene of worship.  When the living creatures praise God who sits on the throne, the elders fall before Him and worship Him.  Their worship is not limited to words, but they cast their crowns before the throne of God.  These were crowns given them by God.  Crowns are valuable.  Even more importantly, they represent authority.  Usually tooled from precious metals and adorned with priceless jewels, it wouldn't be the sort of thing a person would think to throw.  Yet so great is the power, worthiness, and goodness of God that the only thing the elders could do was to cast their crowns at the feet of the One who lives forever and ever.

David said he would not offer the LORD what cost him nothing.  Worship for these men was costly, but no cost was too great when they perceived God's splendour, majesty, and favour.  Their riches and roles were laid before the throne of God, left at His feet as an offering of praise.  Worship is more than words, a song, or a body laid prostrate on the ground:  it is a cry of adoration and sacrifice unto God from the heart.  Worship is giving back to God all He has given us, counting all loss so He might be glorified.  It is the natural response of a regenerated soul of thanks and rejoicing, knowing we are unworthy even to speak the name of the living God, much less serve Him or be adopted into His family as children.

The casting of crowns points us to the One who is worthy of all praise:  Jesus Christ.  We should not praise the men who have sacrificed, but the One who deserves such an offering.  It is not what we bring in our hands before the throne, but the God who sits upon it both now and forever.  At the same time we do well to consider:  have I cast my crown before His throne?  Have I freely given back to God the most precious possessions and treasured aspects of my life?  Has my worship stopped short of such sacrifice because I count the gift more worthy than the Giver?

May our lives be a proclamation of the everlasting truth:  "You are worthy, O LORD, to receive glory and honour and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."  God has given us new life through Christ.  We of all men ought to be most generous and thankful, especially concerning our Saviour.  Let us seek to offer a sacrifice of praise worthy of His greatness, not so the gift will be recognised by men, but that God will receive glory.

Have You Seen the One You Love?

The Shulamite says in Song of Songs 3:1-4:  "By night on my bed I sought the one I love; I sought him, but I did not find him. ² "I will rise now," I said, "and go about the city; in the streets and in the squares I will seek the one I love." I sought him, but I did not find him. ³ The watchmen who go about the city found me; I said, "Have you seen the one I love?" ⁴ Scarcely had I passed by them, when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let him go, until I had brought him to the house of my mother, and into the chamber of her who conceived me."

Have you ever felt far from God?  Even people who have trusted in God sometimes feel far from Him.  We know that if God feels far it is not He that has abandoned us, but we have lost sight of Him.  Sometimes it is our doing through wandering, a season of trial may overtake us, or an attack of the enemy of our souls may lay us low.  We know Whom we have loved, but He does not always feel as close to us as He ought.  God's face shines upon us continually with grace and love, yet we can become calloused to His presence.  We are forgetful and easily distracted.  After a dark season we may as the Shulamite come to our senses, and in our waking moments discover we cannot find the presence of the One we love.  How troubling this is!

What happens next is critical and an indicator of our heart.  What should we do?  Do we drown in despair and sorrow?  Do we call frantically upon God to reveal Himself?  Do we become angry or disillusioned?  Or do we care to such a degree that we will relentlessly pursue our Saviour in devotion and worship?  The Shulamite did not confine her love for her beloved to the bedroom or palace, but took to the street in the dead of night to seek the one she loved.  It was not long before she was met by the watchmen.  After consulting with them, it was not long until she met face to face with her love.  In her words, "I held him and would not let him go!"

Though there is great depth of meaning in this passage beyond what can be delved in volumes, allow me to point to the important role of the watchmen.  The watchmen found the frantic woman who ran through the darkened streets looking for the lover she had lost sight of.  The Shulamite asked a question of them:  "Have you seen the one I love?"  The response or words spoken are not recorded.  But it was not long after their interaction that she found her betrothed.  When we read this verse last week in homegroup, it occurred to me that the watchmen act as the Holy Spirit does, prompting our hearts to enter into the LORD's presence.  It is God who has come to us; He has sought us out and found us.  When we lose direction or heart, He is the One who draws us to Himself.

Christians are told many times in scripture to be sober and watchful.  All of us are called to be watchmen, and the pastor doubly so.  Quoting Charles Jefferson, "Men are called to pray and to watch.  Now, if every man is surrounded by perils, if the universe is alive with forces hostile to the soul, then watchfulness becomes one of the most critical of all the pastor's responsibilities.  To him precious lives are committed, lives for which he is to render an account.  Watching, surveying, scanning the horizon, peering in to the darkness of days not yet born, spying out the interior nature of forces which are working like insidious and poisonous leavens, calculating the advent of storms asleep as yet in the caves of coming days - all this is pastoral work." (The Minister as Shepherd, pg. 37)  It is easier at times to watch for dangers coming outside a fellowship than the condition of the people within.  We are all called to make disciples, that is, to encourage and lead people in following Jesus.  Disciples are not made in a day.  The command of Jesus should not be limited to the evangelism of the unsaved, but the continual discipling of those who genuinely love Christ and seek Him.  The watchmen found the woman, but it was important that she found her lover.  Each of us must seek and find God for ourselves, and we need the Holy Spirit to guide us.

After the Shulamite found the one she loved, she did not rest until she had shared him with her closest family members.  She immediately took him to her mother.  We are to share Christ with those we know.  We ought not to neglect the introduction of our Saviour and Lover of our souls from those closest to us.  We should be active in sharing Christ with those who already know Him as well so they might be encouraged and exhorted to glorify Him always.  Let us as believers always seek to hold fast to Christ, seeking Him alone.  Do you notice when His presence is strangely absent?  How many hours or days must pass before we realise it?  Even a moment without our Saviour is one too many.  Let us seek guidance from the Holy Spirit so we might abide in Christ.  May we also keep watch over those who are in the faith that they too might cling to the One they love.

A Lost Cause?

I overheard a song yesterday in a restaurant and commented to my friend, "Do you know what band that is?  Who is the artist?  It sounds like Beck."  Much to my surprise, my friend pulled out his mobile phone and fired up "Shazam," an app which in seconds was able to discern the song amid the chatter and noises of a crowded restaurant!  Will the modern conveniences of technology ever cease?  The song we heard above the background was "Lost Cause" by Beck.  Listening to the song made me feel good, but when I read the lyrics later it made me sad.  It is a tragic message that resonates in a fallen world.

The refrain goes, "Baby you're lost; baby you're lost; baby you're a lost cause.  I'm tired of fighting; I'm tired of fighting - fighting for a lost cause."  From a human perspective, we have all known people who needed help beyond themselves but have refused it.  It can be disheartening and even devastating when people are ensnared in addictions or behaviours that are killing them and it can feel like there is nothing we can do about it.  As Beck sings "Lost Cause," I can feel the despair in his voice from the depths of his soul.  It's like a person who invests everything in a relationship just to experience pain and betrayal and finally walks away, wounded and broken.

It is easy for people to look at other people like a "lost cause" not worth fighting for, but that is not how God views people.  Jesus Christ came and laid down His life to save lost sinners.  Nothing is too hard for Him!  Therefore there is no one on this planet who is a lost cause.  They may be fallen, deceitful, filled with hate and bitterness, and have committed great wickedness.  But Jesus is able to save to the utmost all who repent and trust in Him!  For the God who created the universe and all that exists, nothing is too hard - not even wayward, foolish, lost men.  People only seem lost causes when we have lost sight of God, His power, and love.  Even a little faith in God is enough to move mountains.

There are many causes in the world.  No person is a lost cause because Jesus not only has the power to find, but to save!

The Resurrected Life

What do you suppose is the best evidence of Jesus Christ's resurrection?  The empty tomb?  The historical evidence?  The biblical accounts?  While all of these are credible, there might be evidence that holds more sway than all these:  the new life of a born-again believer.  A transformed life through the power of the Holy Spirit is a divine revelation of God's love, power, and grace as our living Saviour Jesus Christ lives His life through us.  People might discount the authority of scripture in ignorance.  They may wrongly believe that the resurrection account was a fabrication.  But they cannot long deny the transformation of a person by a real relationship with the living God.

Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 3:16, "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory."  Jesus is Immanuel, God with us clothed in human flesh.  After His crucifixion, three days later Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to many before His ascension.  He chose to leave His disciples behind, but He did not leave them alone.  He prayed the Father who sent the Holy Spirit to empower Christ's followers to be witnesses to glorify His name throughout the world.  An empty tomb carved out of a rock still speaks, but living witnesses have a more powerful testimony still.  Jesus affirmed in John 14:12:  "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father."

How great is the work and calling of every Christian disciple!  We are not worthy through our efforts, but we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.  Great is the scope of the need, hard are the hearts, blind are the eyes, and deaf are the ears.  But our God shall supply all our needs.  His strength is sufficient for us.  He came to open the eyes of the blind, set the captives free, and raise the dead - and desires His work to continue through us!  It is written in 1 Corinthians 4:1-2, "Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. ² Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful."  While on earth we are not yet perfected, but we are called to be faithful.  We must be faithful to Jesus, His Word, be obedient to His commands, and love one another as He has loved us.  We are called to abide in Christ and boldly hold forth the mystery of the Gospel revealed in these last days.  We are unable, but God is able.

Let us pursue this high calling, that our Christ-led Spirit-empowered lives might provide the best evidence of Christ's life and love for the glory of God.  Let us work with our hands what is good "...for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).  Praise His name for the gift of forgiveness, salvation, and the gifts He has given to men!