Worship: A Duty & A Delight

Main Text
Psalms 126:1-6

Watchword
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness every night.
Psalms 92:2 NKJV

The core of everything we do should be worship. Evangelism is seen by the psalmist as an act of worship. We should do it because we delight in God, because He has made us glad by the works of His hands. I believe that this note of “delight” is many times missing not only in our worship, but in our witnessing and in all of the works we do as a “duty”. Apostle Paul turns our attention to the mercies of God, he talks of our service as an act of worship motivated by a gladness of heart (Romans 12:1-2). God speaks of our service in terms of a duty which is delightful. His will is not only perfect, but also good and acceptable.

The purpose of evangelism is praise and glorify God. The salvation of souls is God’s business. The primary purpose of evangelism is the proclamation of the goodness of God. Many times the reason why people are not attracted by our witness is because it is only a duty and not a delight. It is not a witness which is an overflow of gladness in response to God’s work in our life. It is a duty that we grudgingly perform and this is much the way our worship is. It is not an overflow of the working of God in our life, it is a simple duty that we grind out.

Worship ought to be the core, the foundation, of all our works. Ultimately all of God’s works are for one purpose—to bring praise to His name through our worship: (Ephesians 1:6;12;14). Worship should be at the heart of everything we do. If we rightly respond to the works of God we will respond in worship. If we are rightly obedient to God we will do it as an act of worship. Let us all seek to be better worshippers of God, not only as our duty, but as our delight.

Confession
You alone are my Creator, Lord and Saviour, for you alone are deserving of my worship, teach me to walk in all of your ways, to serve with all of my being and to learn to love you as you have loved me.

Prayer
Eternal God and Father, by your power and love you have created and redeemed me, guide and strengthen me by your Spirit, that I may give myself to your praise and live each day by it. Amen.

Additional Reading
Titus 3:4-7
Psalms 86:5.