Faithful In Worship

“History knows them as the forty martyrs of Sebaste. They were soldiers in the imperial army, One day the Emperor Licinius sent down an edict commanding all soldiers to offer a sacrifice to his pagan god. Forty of the soldiers were followers of Christ, and they refused. “The emperor in the middle of winter marched them onto a frozen lake and stripped them of their clothes. Refuse to worship your God and you will be spared from death,’ he told them. Not one man came forward. So he left them there, huddled together to contemplate his offer. When morning came, thirty-nine of the men had frozen to death. One survivor finally recanted his confession in order to live. The officer in charge that night had been so moved by the scene that during his watch he’d come to Jesus, so he broke rank and walked out onto the ice. Stripping his clothes he openly confessed his faith in Christ. The furious emperor demanded that he also reject his worship of Jesus, but he refused. When the ordeal was over, the Roman soldiers carried forty frozen faithful men off the ice.”

There is nothing or no one more important than our faithfulness to, and worship of Jesus. Who Are You Worshiping? During the tenure of the great orator Henry Ward Beecher, a visiting minister (Beecher’s brother) once substituted for the popular pastor.  A large audience had already assembled to hear Beecher, and when the substitute pastor stepped into the pulpit, several disappointed listeners began to move toward the exits. That’s when the minister stood and said loudly, “All who have come here today to worship Henry Ward Beecher may now withdraw from the church. All who have come to worship God keep your seats!”

Sunday I’ll continue my new series on Faithfulness and talk about what the scripture says about faithfulness in worship. We have been designed to know God and honor Him. We do that with our worship. In his commentary on the gospel of Matthew, New Testament Greek scholar William Mounce defines worship with a quote from William Temple the former renowned archbishop of Canterbury who said, “Worship is quickening the conscience by the holiness of God, feeding the mind with the truth of God, purging the imagination by the beauty of God, opening the heart to the love of God, and devoting the will to the purpose of God.”

Worship is more than simply attending a church service… I am convinced that you can go to church and still not worship. That is why Jesus said, “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”” (John 4:24) Now don’t use that as an excuse not to be in church… instead allow church to inspire and assist you in connecting with God in worship.

At Ridgecrest it is our desire to bring glory to God when we gather each week. It is the reason why our music is carefully thought out and prayed over. It is why I spend hours preparing the messages to help connect each of us with God and His truth. And it is the reason that each week we ask the Holy Spirit to fill this place with His presence… but the last component is you! Worship is not just an event produced by our team; it is an encounter with the living God that requires your involvement. Friends we are not spectators, we are participators. David said, “Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.” (Psalm 22:3)

So, let me encourage you in the New Year to be Faithful in Worship throughout the year. To come into His presence, to enter His courts with praise, and to experience the wonder of worship with this loving family of God at Ridgecrest. And remember, God is always trying to take you someplace new. I love being your Pastor!

For God’s Glory Alone,
Pastor Ray


Image: Unsplash