I WONDER AS I WANDER

This was the 6th message in the Heart of Worship Series. By this time, I had given up the notion that I could cover all of the biblical stories of worship. At some point, I needed to deal with how all of these worship stories and foundational principles of worship related to our particular church and corporate worship. But, before I went there, there was a theme I had seen several times as I did my study for this series; and it was the theme of awe and wonder in worship.

This concentrates on what worship is all about: considering God's character and being in complete wonder about who God is and what He has done. In a world that doesn't want to take time to consider anything, it is important to take the time to consider how to incorporate wonder back into our life worship.

I WONDER AS I WANDER

Please turn in your Bible to Romans 1.
I have been immersing myself in this topic of worship in the Bible, and have come to a somewhat depressing conclusion. There is no way to fully teach all that the Bible has to say about worship. I set out to work our way through the stories of worship in the Scriptures and I realized something that actually instructed me:

Pretty much every story in the Bible is a part of the story of worship. It really is incredible. But, it also means that I have been frustrated recently in trying to keep this message series down to three months long rather than three years long. I want to preach all the stories of worship and I can’t. So, today, I want to tell a couple more stories of worship and then, next week, we will get into the biblical and controversial discussion of music in worship; and finally we will get to the biblical vision for worship here at Grace.

David Jeremiah, in his book My Heart’s Desire, tells this story: “The American space program launched our imaginations when men first landed on the moon. Do you remember? One story of the space program’s fascination happened during the last days of our Apollo flights. Jacob Needleman was one of the reporters gathered to cover the launch of Apollo 17 in 1975.

The launch was scheduled for evening, and the reporters were making a social occasion out of it. They strolled the lawn of the press section, where refreshments were laid out on picnic tables. They snacked, drank, and cracked their usual jokes drenched in sarcasm. That’s the way of reporters, who see and report the worst of the world’s events on a daily basis.

Finally it was time for the great atlas rocket, a thirty-five-story tower of power, to hurtle into the heavens. There was the familiar countdown, then the launch. As Needleman tells the story in Bill Moyer’s book A World of Ideas II, the reporters were suddenly all but blinded by a vast field of orange light. Their eyes could barely handle the intensity. Then, in deafening silence – given that sound travels less rapidly than light – the great rocket thundered into the dark canopy of night. The sound waves arrived seconds later in full force with a cataclysmic whoooooooosh and a mighty hummmmm that jangled the reporter’ bones. They felt their toes tremble with the earth.

The rocket traveled higher, then higher still as the first stage ignited in spectacular blue flame. It seemed to have become a star, bearing three men bound for glory. And then all of it was gone, vanished into the periphery of the atmosphere and the depths of space. There was silence among the press corps. The interrupted wisecracks died on the reporters’ lips, not to be recalled. Needleman saw the men’s eyes filled with light, their mouths wide open, their faces lit by the inner glow of sheer wonder.

Most amazing of all was the sight of hardened cynical newspapermen whose whole bearing seemed changed. The edge had been knocked off; smiles were now authentic and gentle. Conversation was quiet and reverent. Men were helping each other with their chairs and notebooks. If only for a moment in time, a sense of awe had taken possession of them and changed their behavior patterns.”

There are things we see that completely amaze us. And those things change us: our attitudes, and many times our lives. This morning, we need to take the time to consider our wonder about God. Not so much the “why did God do that” kind of wonder, but the “isn’t God amazing” kind of wonder. It needs to be a part of our corporate worship; but it also must be a part of our everyday life worship.

Do you remember the working definition we have given for our Heart of Worship message series? Can anyone say it? Let me get you started.

“Worship is responding to who God is and what He has done by giving ourselves completely to Him.”

This morning, our focus will be on the first part of that definition: “who God is and what He has done”. We respond in worship because of who God is, so we need to consider His character. We respond in worship because of what He has done, so we need to consider His amazing works.

Wonder is “the seed of science” said Emerson
“Philosophy begins in wonder” said Alfred North Whitehead
“To be surprised, to wonder, is to begin to understand” – Jose Ortega Gasset “Wonder is the basis of worship” wrote Thomas Carlyle.

Warren Wiersbe tells us that “many words cluster around the idea of wonder: amazement, surprise, astonishment, bewilderment, admiration, awe, and fascination, to name but a few. The word in the Hebrew Bible means “to distinguish, to separate. In our English versions, the word is translated “hidden, marvelous, too high, too hard. The Greek words in the New Testament are similar: “amazement, marvelous, admiration, wonderful work, something strange.”

Warren Wiersbe, in his book Real Worship, said: “This is the paradox of Christian worship: we seek to see the invisible, know the unknowable, comprehend the incomprehensible, and experience the eternal.” Let’s listen to that again:

“This is the paradox of Christian worship: we seek to see the invisible, know the unknowable, comprehend the incomprehensible, and experience the eternal.”

But, we find from life experience, that living in the wonder of worship of God is not what most people do. There is a decision that every person must make:

1. WONDER AT THE CREATIVE GOD OR WORSHIP THE CREATION

Many times in Scripture, those who saw what God did were filled with wonder:
· Elihu, in response to what God was allowing in Job’s life – “Behold, God is great, and we do not know him” (Job 36:26)
· Zophar, another so called friend of Job - “Can you search out the deep things of God?” Can you find out the limits of the Almighty?” (Job 11:7)
· And the Apostle Paul, after talking about how God goes about saving people and the doctrine of election – “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33)

Those are examples of true wonder at who God is and what He has done. Probably one of the greatest examples that every person has the opportunity to respond to is the created world and created bodies we live in. Not only that, but there is the wonder of the great blessings God has given man.

A century ago, G.K. Chesterton wrote: “The world is not lacking in wonders, but in a sense of wonder”

What was a sight in God’s creation, that brought wonder to you? [Grand Canyon, An Ocean]

For me, one was a view in Zion National Park in Utah, Sitting at the top of one of the cliffs, just looking out over the incredible scenery and spending time praising God. And nothing created can top my amazement and wonder when I looked for the first time at our newborn babies. Amazing!

You are there in Psalm 8:
David was wondering about the amazing, creative God. Let’s voice His wonder as a group. The verses will come up one at a time in two parts. This side, including this side of the balcony will say the first part out loud; and then this side, including this side of the balcony will say the next part out loud. Consider what you are saying to the creator:

Please stand with me.
I will point to your side when it is time to read:

Psalm 8:1-5-
1 - “O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.

2 - Out of the mouth of babes and infants, you have established strength because of your foes,

To still the enemy and the avenger.

3 - When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

The moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

4 - What is man that you are mindful of him,

And the son of man that you care for him?

5 - Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

And crowned him with glory and honor.”

Thank you. You may be seated.
If you take time to consider the creation, then you must wonder at the Creator – who He is and what He has done. But, unfortunately, that is not how most respond. Most respond the way it is described by Paul in Romans. Please look with me at:

Romans 1:20,21,25 – “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceive, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened…because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.”

Warren Wiersbe stated a sad truth and commentary on our generation: “When we look at creation and see only ourselves, then we start to think that we are the Creator; the result is idolatry.”

This is more than just a decision on whether or not we are going to believe that God is the Creator of all. There is a decision to be made that has to do with life worship. Whom are we going to follow? Whom is going to receive our wonder? For whom will we live each day? There is a decision that each person must make:

2. WONDER AT THE ONE AND ONLY TRUE GOD OR WORSHIP MAN’S REPLACEMENT

David Jeremiah states how wonder is connected to our definition of worship. He said: “Our heart’s desire, even if you haven’t come to realize it, is to live every moment in the wonder of worship.”

This is about choosing who you will wonder at and follow today; and tomorrow and the next day. This is not just about Sunday going to church worship or singing songs worship. This is life worship.

Please turn in your Bible to I Kings 17.
On your journey of life as you wander through, have you noticed things that others have done that have made you wonder about them? For example:
· A garbage woman in Florida in Florida found a plastic bag stuffed with $65,000 – enough to pay her salary for two years – yet she immediately turned it in to authorities – wow!
· In Pittsburgh, a man tried to get change for a $1 million bill at a Giant Eagle store. When the checker refused, the man threatened her with a gun – a scanner gun, that is. He was arrested. Must have been a Steelers fan!
· Another person in Pittsburgh – a woman there is suing Kmart because a store charged her an extra 28 cents on a 12-pack of toilet tissue after improperly applying state sales tax to this nontaxable item. Does that make you wonder?
· A Missouri man may face jail time after stealing a 52 cent doughnut. On his way out, he pushed a store clerk. Since police are classifying that as minor assault, the misdemeanor shoplifting charge turns into strong-arm robbery, which has a potential prison term of 5-15 years!

Every day we read about, or hear about something that has happened and we wonder about it for a while. Why did they do that? How could that have happened? In our key story of worship today, you may wonder at what the humans do, but our main wonder must be about who God reveals Himself to be, and what He does.

Last week, in our continued look at the stories of worship in Scripture, we mentioned that Saul was the First King of Israel. David, a man after God’s own heart, was the second king of Israel, and we spent some time in his story. The third and last king of United Israel was Solomon. We talked about him at some length when we worked our way through Ecclesiastes; but one of the main contributions he made was to rebuild the temple, the place that represented the presence of God. However, Solomon also was led away into idolatry and it destroyed the kingdom.

After that, Israel was divided into two parts: The Northern Kingdom, still known as Israel; and the Southern Kingdom, known as Judah. In the Northern Kingdom, Jeroboam, who rebelled against Solomon’s foolish son, Rehoboam, appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites I Kings 12). You may remember, that the issue of who the priests were was a huge issue, as they were representatives of the people in going to God and offering sacrifices. God intended for all to come to Him, but for centuries, only the priests were allowed. This issue of sacrifice is also important to the whole story of worship in Scripture and to our own life of worship story.

The counterfeit priests, that Jeroboam had set up, led people in counterfeit worship experiences in order to worship counterfeit gods – two golden calves. That effort, of people trying to create a substitute religious system became known as the sins of Jeroboam. According to Gerrit Gustafson, The first king after Jeroboam to commit the sins of Jerobaom was the infamous King Ahab, who married the equally infamous Canaanite woman named Jezebel.

I Kings 16:30-33 – “And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD, the god of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.”

But God raised up a prophet to confront the wicked Ahab and give him a consequence for the nation’s idolatry:

I Kings 17: 1 - “Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, as the LORD the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

I Kings 18:1 – “after many days the word of the LORD came to Elijah, in the third era, saying, Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth.”

God works it out that the wicked king Ahab would meet up with his prophet Elijah, and God would use His prophet to set up a challenge:

I Kings 18:17-19 – “When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, Is it you, you troubler of Israel? And he answered, I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father’s house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the LORD and followed the Baals. Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

And that brings us to Mount Carmel and the story of the history-changing power of an awe-inspiring God.

[playing of “Let’s Get ready to rumble”]
Author Gerrit Gustafson pictures the context: “Elijah announced what we will call The great Worship contest. Gather all Israel to Mount Carmel. This would be like a nationally televised contest in our day – the Super Bowl, for instance. Oh, and make sure that the 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah are there – the ones that Jezebel is so chummy with. We’re going to find out who the real god is. Here are the ground rules: Your prophets can worship their gods in any way they want, for as long as they want. Then I’ll worship my God. We’ll know the true God to be the one who answers our sacrifice by fire. Ahab and Baal’s prophets accepted the challenge. Ahab gathered together the people of Israel and the 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah as instructed.”

The view pans across the thousands gathered at Mount Carmel, toward a rough-hewn prophet, Elijah, the Tishbite. His words to Israel were stinging, but bore authority:

I Kings 18:21 – “And Elijah came near to all the people and said, How long will you go limping between two different opinions? I the LORD is god, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him. And the people did not answer him a word.”

Elijah then explains the contest, that the prophets of Baal would build an altar to their God and put a sacrifice on it…

I Kings 18:24 – “And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, he is God. And all the people answered, It is well spoken”

Now, I want you consider something with me concerning this story of worship. This is the same kind of battle line that is drawn in our culture today. This is the continuing battle for worship of our day. Just like Israel, our nation has tried to worship two or more gods at the same time. From one side of the mouth, we say “In God We trust”, and then we make it illegal to actually talk about it in some places. We sing “God Bless America” but we don’t want to say who that God actually is, because it would offend some; and we may allow prayers in some public events, but we are afraid to use the name of Jesus, because others do not believe in Him.

We have been called the Christian nation and we certainly have Christian foundations; but our present society in this great land is far from following Christ. So, every day we see this battle being played out. Is the one and only true God, Jesus Christ in the flesh, the one who is worshiped, or are we going to worship something or someone else, even with religious dressing applied?

This was the battle of Elijah’s day and it continues in daily life worship today. And the setting was in place for them to wonder at the truly amazing, one and only true God. Elijah was saying to them: It is time to make a decision. Decide whom you are going to serve. This is all about sacrifices. Even this very battle on Mount Carmel was built around a sacrifice.

Team Baal was up first.

I Kings 18:26 – “and they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying O Baal answer us….!”

Let’s get a feel for this. I need your help, and no, this does not count as blasphemy. All of you are the prophets of Baal. You are hoping somehow, that you are right and Elijah is wrong. Although you have never heard your god answer any of your prayers before, maybe he would this time. And so you say:

O BAAL ANSWER US [Repeat several times]

Let’s continue in verse 26: “But there was no voice, and no one answered…”

Perhaps you have heard that some athletes like to talk trash to other players, taunting them and mocking them, especially if they are winning. At about noon, Elijah started the “trash talking”. “Hey, guys, maybe you need to yell a little bit louder. I’m sure Baal is just pre-occupied with a few other things. He’s sittin’ by the pool, getting some sun; or maybe he’s in the restroom and doesn’t want to be disturbed. No, I know what it is: he’s taking his god nap. He’s just been sleeping: all day! You must not be yelling loud enough; or convincing him that he should act. Let’s see what you got!

You don’t think Elijah would say such things? Look at verse 27:

I Kings 18:27 – “And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.”

Understand, these were people who had been deceived into thinking that God was not real and they had replaced the true God with other gods. But, they also understood, that with any form of worship, to any god, real or not, there had to be a sacrifice. So, they took it upon themselves, after yelling for hours with no response to take it to another level. Never could the term “fanatic” be used more appropriately than here:

For the next several hours, they continued to dance and run around and cry out to Baal. But they even went further, to a scary extreme. They began taking swords and cutting themselves, spilling out their own blood, in an effort to motivate Baal to send down fire on their sacrifice. But…Nothing changed. Nothing happened. Nothing worked. Their time had come to an end.

I Kings 18:28,29 – “And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.”

I know this seems crazy, but it is not unlike unbelievers today. Although we see the evidence of the one and only true God all around us, they still believe there is no God and attribute His awesome creation to chance. Although we know and feel how God has worked in our hearts and still moves in our lives, most people still attribute everything that happens to luck, chance, fate.

And, on top of that they give themselves completely to the worship of mankind and the worship of self. They pursue comfort, riches and pleasure. Enjoying life is the highest goal, and God will not get in their way. They go to extremes to oppose God’s ways and to expose their beliefs. But, just as with the prophets of Baal, they serve a god that cannot respond, because he does not exist. No matter how loud they yell their beliefs or how much they sacrifice for them, it doesn’t make it true.

So, after about 9 hours of this nonsense, it is Elijah’s turn. It is God’s turn. Elijah prepared his altar and then did something strange, to give himself and God, seemingly, a terrible disadvantage:

I Kings 18:33-35 – “And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood. And he said, do it a second time. And they did it a second time. And he said, Do it a third time. And they did it a third time. And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water.”

He didn’t want to just show that God could make the sacrifice burn, but he wanted to make sure that it was even more amazing than that – that the wonder that would result from this miracle would be impossible to miss.

Elijah is approaching this differently than the prophets of Baal. There is no shouting, no pleading, no cutting, no cultic dancing. He is simply approaching the center of the crowd and talking to God.

I Kings 18:36,37 – “And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I’m your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

This was not just about a great miracle. This was about Elijah showing he was right and they were wrong and finding a satisfaction and justification. This was not just about winning some game. This was about getting worshipers back. This was about the hearts and lives of God’s people being turned around so that they would worship the one and only true God with all of their hearts once more. This was about life worship. And the battle lines that are drawn every day are about life worship. You are hearing false messages from our world every day; and you have a choice to make: To follow and begin to worship others, or to test that message with the truths of God; and then to respond according to who He is and what He has done.

So, how did God respond?

I Kings 18:38 - “Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.”

Can you picture it? Commentator Gustafson continues: “After praying a simple prayer, Elijah backed up, making room for God’s answer. After a brief wait, a startled shout rose from the crowd: Look! Tens of thousands of faces stared up into the sky. Coming toward the altar like a meteor, a great ball of fire lit up the evening. Its heat consumed the sacrifice, the wood and even the stones of the altar.”

God delivered. And the people fell down in wonder and amazement:

I Kings 18:39 – “And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces…”

This is the response of those who see and understand that there is one and only one true God and they see His work and understand some of who He is.

Matt Redman, the renowned worship leader and song writer said: “When we face up to the glory of God, we soon find ourselves face down in worship.”

And that is where the people who viewed God’s awesome power and the revealing of Himself as the one and only true God, found themselves – on their faces in wonder. And they responded with words of praise, which is worship:

I Kings 18:39 – “And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God.”

Can you hear it? Can you understand that although you were not there on that mountain that day, that you also have seen God’s amazing work, that has shown you that he is the one and only true God? You have seen some of His awesome creation. Many of you have experienced Him changing your heart and turning your life around when He saved you. You have seen God do things that there is no other reasonable explanation for than God. And you know that God has worked in your life in some amazing ways. And your response should be the same response heard that day from the amazed crowd. Let’s say it together:

THE LORD, HE IS GOD. THE LORD HE IS GOD. [repeat it several times]

And more importantly than our words of praise, in response to our wonder of God, is this: That our life worship (how we live) be an everyday response to who God is and what He has done.

SO WHAT? Let me challenge you with some personal responses you can make to God’s Word, as it concerns our wonder in worship:

1. Take time each day to quietly consider one of His creations.
This has been my application to this message this week. To take time to think about one of God’s creation and just wonder at it. I have looked at the stars. I have looked at my children. I have looked at my life. If you will take a few moments each day to wonder at God’s creation, you will be worshiping.

2. Spend time praising God for His amazing grace in your life
· This should include your salvation, which regardless of how you came to Christ, is truly amazing. And if it has been awhile since you have been in sheer wonder about God’s grace in saving you, then it has been too long.
· This should include God’s demonstrations of His grace in your life on top of salvation. Has God been at work in your life? Has He blessed you in many ways. Have you spent some time in wonder for how God has poured His grace upon you? Let me challenge you to do so.

3. As you experience each day, connect the wonder and worship of God to your life

That is, don’t just think of God for a quick moment as you get up. Don’t just think of God when you pray for your meals. Don’t just think of God when you have your personal devotional time each day. Live in the wonder of worship. When something you consider to be good happens, connect it to the wonder of God working in your life. When something you consider to be bad happens, connect it to God’s grace and talk to Him about it, giving Him your trust once again. When you have a decision to make, wonder at God’s wisdom and go to Him. Whatever the circumstances of your life each day, part of your life worship is living in wonder of who God is and what He has done. And it is believing that He is not just the God up there, but that God the Holy Spirit resides in you and is with you each moment of each day.

I want to close this morning by reminding you that when we read stories of worship in the Scripture (such as the first priest, the first king, the first prophet), they are normally just the beginning. Later in history, someone came to fulfill those roles and will one day be worshiped forever. The sacrificial system we read about in the Old Testament stories would one day come to a fulfillment when one more sacrifice would be made: the one and only true God would come down to the earth in human flesh, as Jesus Christ; and He would offer Himself as the one time sacrifice, shedding His blood for the sins of the world.

The Scriptures make this connection, between the wonder and worship of God to the wonder and worship of Jesus Christ – they were the same. But the sacrificial system, where the blood of animals would be offered is replaced with the once for all sacrifice of Christ; and then we are to respond to that with the every moment of every day sacrifice of our lives. God is not just looking for us to say a prayer one time, hoping to go to Heaven. He is looking for those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth – following Jesus Christ daily.

Let’s consider the wonder and amazement in God in the flesh, Jesus Christ, as we close our message today. Are you in continual wonder at who Jesus Christ is and what He has done? How are you going to respond?

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