But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:23-24 ESV)
Plain and simple, and straight to the point, God is tired of those of us who are “playing church.” There is no place in God’s kingdom for “pseudo-Christians!” The Lord said in His Word, “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil” (Matthew 5:37 ESV). Either you are for God, or you are against Him. Matthew 6:24 (KJV) declares, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other…” The bottom line, be honest in your worship to God.
God needs and wants true worshippers. If your worship is for show to man, God and others will see right through that. God and man know if you are for real. If you have to paint on every signpost what you do for God and mankind, your worship is for show only. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ cannot use you with that kind of worship. People are hurting and need a word, so let your witness to them be real. It must come from your heart. If your worship is not real, it is evil and of the darkness. “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11 ESV).
Be careful of your worship because you could be the only Bible who an unsaved person may encounter. Don’t be a turnoff with vain, unrighteous speech. A new person in Christ is one of the easiest targets to be led astray. When you witness to someone who is “a babe in Christ,” please make sure that you have all of “your ducks in a row,” so as not to mislead him or her. God is looking for people who can get a real word through, thus winning souls for Christ. Ezekiel 3:19 (ESV) affirms, “But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.”
When we worship in song, some of us sing to the top of our voices, but do we always mean the words that we sing? Do we always understand the words that we sing? I found an anonymously written illustration on Facebook, “Hymns-The Way We Might Sing Them, If We Were Honest!” As I conclude my message for this week, I will share portions of it. Although this illustration has a humorous side, there is a truthful side to it as well. Take a long, hard look at this list, and see if you can determine the original title of each hymn. Then ask yourself which title fits your worship: the original one or the one in this list. In other words, take an inventory of your worship in song.
“Hymns-The Way We Might Sing Them, If We Were Honest!”
I Surrender, Some
There Shall Be Sprinkles of Blessings
Fill My Spoon, Lord
Oh, How I Like Jesus
I Love to Talk About Telling the Story
Take My Life and Let Me Be
It Is My Secret What God Can Do
Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following
Just As I Pretend to Be
When the Saints Go Sneaking In
Sit Up, Sit Up for Jesus
A Comfy Mattress Is Our God
Self-Esteem to the World, The Lord Is Come
Oh, for a Couple of Tongues to Sing
Amazing Grace, How Interesting the Sound
Go Tell It on the Speed Bump
(Anna Bright is a minister and educator in Walterboro. She can be reached at abrightcolumn@lowcountry.com)
