Biblical Worship
Gen 22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass;
and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.
This is a most interesting
subject. Unfortunately most folks do not
even know what it means. It does not
mean loving and praising God. It does
not mean singing and shouting, nor praying. In preparation for a book I wrote on this
subject I checked out every time the word "worship" is used in
the bible in its varying forms. There
were at least 20 varying Hebrew or Greek words translated in some form of
worship. The underlying meaning
throughout it all was stooping, falling prostrate, bowing, etc. In other words worship means bowing to the
sovereign will of God.
What Abraham was going to do on top
of that mountain where they would worship was going to be done with a broken
heart. God would not require what He was
Himself Not willing to do. God banished
His first son, Adam, from the garden. In
this chapter Abraham had already in obedience to God banished his son,
Ishmael. He was now to sacrifice his
only legitimate son, Isaac, on the altar as a burnt offering :2. This was to typify God's offering of His Son
as He would do in time.
Abraham would also worship in faith. He believed the promise of God even to resurrection. See Heb. 11:17-19, "By
faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received
the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of
whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that
God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in
a figure."
Abraham also worshiped in the fear of God. That is He bowed to the sovereign will of God
because he feared God. He actually bound
Isaac, laid him on the altar, and was about to cut the jugular vein when he
heard the Lord calling unto him saying, "...Lay not thine hand upon the
lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God,
seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son
from me."
Abraham believed in a Substitute :13. See 1 Pet.3:18, "For Christ also hath
once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:" He believed that Substitute must be provided
by God :8. Isaac, carrying the wood for
the sacrifice of himself, just as Jesus carried His own cross, asked his father
where was the sacrifice. Abraham
answered, "...My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt
offering:..." What God provided then was a sacrificial "ram." He had said God would provide himself a
"lamb." While in the Old Testament we
never read of God providing the lamb; instead the people brought the lambs; yet
in John 1:12 John the Baptist speaking of Jesus, proclaimed, Behold the Lamb of
God that taketh away the sin of the world.
I say it
again. Biblical worship is in faith
bowing to the sovereign Lordship of Christ.
By the way, if you would like to buy my book, send me an email, and I shall tell you how, or see my new website at www.moodyr.com.
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