Exodus 40:16 - Worship God His Way

Exodus 40:16:
Moses did everything just as the Lord commanded him. 

Is there any question that God is concerned about how we worship Him?

The several chapters that precede this verse are filled with detailed instructions about the construction of the tabernacle, the choices of materials to be used -- even the names of the craftsmen who are to do the work!

Without a doubt, God had a definite purpose and design for how He wanted to be worshiped by Israel.

How He is worshiped is something that He is still concerned with today.

Somehow, though, many “religious” people today believe that the method and means for worshiping God is subject to their whim.

You have probably heard a friend or two say they worship God whenever they are out in nature. Or maybe they tell you that they worship God in their “own personal way.” A few might have even told you they can only worship God when they are in a particular place.

God has not given us as detailed instructions as He gave to the Levites, but if you read the New Testament, you can see He has His wishes for us today as well.

Have you looked into the Scriptures to see if the way you are worshiping the Lord is His way? Having the desire to worship the Lord is a great thing, but it is important to worship Him in His way.

Had Noah decided that Cedar was more convenient than Gopher wood, would God have allowed the ark to float?

If having the Sabbath on Thursday made more sense to Moses than Saturday,  would God have been pleased?

John 4:23-24: "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

In Matthew 15:-9, Jesus quoted Isaiah 29:13: “‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’”

How are you worshiping God? Carefully examine Scripture to see if you are pleasing God -- or just pleasing yourself.

Acts 17:22-23 - What Kind of Athenian?

Acts 17:22-23:
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.”

Some say it is "Nature." Some call it the "Cosmos." Some refer to it as "The Great Spirit." Others just call it "The Force."

In some way, most of us recognize there is something greater than ourselves.

These ancient Athenians did also -- and were careful to not exclude whatever it was from their worship. They had built an altar to the "Unknown God."

They had no real idea of how to worship Him, but they recognized a need that was not being met by the other "gods" they worshiped.

Paul, when before them, took advantage of the existence of this altar to begin explaining who their "Unknown God" was.

He did not find it necessary to berate them or ridicule them for their ignorance, but instead, saw it as an opportunity to give them knowledge.

When we are faced with someone who does not know God, do we try to educate them? Or do we tend to think of them as someone beneath us?

As we interact with each other, we will undoubtedly find there are those who know less than we do -- and others who know more.

The Athenians were people who appreciated knowledge -- and to their credit, they wanted to hear more -- and some became believers.

Some sought knowledge for knowledge sake -- but still felt they were in the judgment seat of what they would accept or deny.

Others sought knowledge -- and accepted anything that was true -- even when contrary to their original beliefs. They acted on knowledge.

Which type of "Athenian" are we? As we study and learn, is our goal to only bolster our positions and beliefs? Or are we more interested in learning the truth, and letting it dictate our actions?

To all of us, God is "unknown" to some degree. Studying His word, and learning more and more of Christ, is our way of learning who He is.

As we hear and learn of Him, do we seek to know and catalog our understanding on a dusty shelf? Or does our new found understanding cause us to hunger for more knowledge of God?

John 14:6: Jesus answered, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."