Tuesday, January 9, 2018 Reflections on Celebration of Discipline—The Discipline of Worship, Part 2 of 8: The Object of our Worship: The nature of God, leading to confession

Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Reflections on Celebration of Discipline—The Discipline of Worship, Part 2 of 8: The Object of our Worship: The nature of God, leading to confession

Scripture:

Matthew 4:10

“‘You shall worship the Lord your God
    and him only shall you serve.’”

Romans 12:1

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Daniel 2:20-22

²⁰ Daniel answered and said:

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
    to whom belong wisdom and might.
²¹ He changes times and seasons;
    he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
    and knowledge to those who have understanding;
²² he reveals deep and hidden things;
    he knows what is in the darkness,
    and the light dwells with him…”

Isaiah 6:1-9

1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. ² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!” ⁴ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. ⁵ And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for. ⁸ And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” ⁹ And he said, “Go…..”

Devotional:

I love today’s section on the object of our worship. The person of God and His great holiness, power, love, mercy and goodness were never more real to me than when I returned to Him. My life in contrast to His holiness did cause me to desire His cleansing, and also to desire His favor and healing. True worship of the One True God does, indeed, bring us into a place of the awareness of our sinfulness, and spurs us to confession before Him. The truly beautiful thing about Isaiah’s worship encounter was also his time of commission. The work of God for his life, his calling to the body of Christ, began with an encounter with God’s true exalted nature, awareness of his own deficiency in comparison, the desire to be cleansed, and finally hunger to do the Will of God.

As we take the time today to consider the object of our worship, I pray that His nature and greatness will be revealed in new and profound ways. Take time to meditate on the Word, whether in the scripture passages above or on the ones that the Lord leads you to about Who He is, and what that nature means to you. What does God reveal to you in His true form? I am continually, like Isaiah, made aware of my need for Him for my right standing. I am daily reminded of my need and gratitude for my Savior, of my dependence on God’s grace for everything that I do, and of my love and indebtedness to my Father.

Psalm 95:6-7

⁶ O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker.

⁷ For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

Prayer:

Thanksgiving:

Lord, I bow before You today, a person of unclean lips. I need You, Lord, and I thank You for allowing me access to You great and holy throne by the blood of the Lamb.

Confession:

Woe is me, Lord, for I am a person who needs You to undo my fleshly heart to become like You. I need Your holiness. I cannot be right without You. I freely confess that I depend on You. (Take time to release anything holding you back to the Lord. Today can be the day that the pervasive sin that is holding you back from him can be done, my friend. He is faithful!)

Supplication:

I lift my heart and needs to You today and ask for Your intervention. Sometimes it is easy to grow weary of bringing my needs to You, but I continue to do so even when I don’t see change so that I will not be tempted to take it up for myself. I leave my needs at the foot of Your cross today and ask that You will remind me throughout this day that I can leave them there. (Take time to journal your needs and requests. Note progress, victories, and answers to prayer.)

Intercession:

I lift my family to You today. I receive Your grace, mercy and intervention. (Journal needs, requests, progress and victory for each individual.)

Thanksgiving and Consecration:

Father, I bless You and honor You for all You are. I thank You that Your holiness has made allowance for us. You are worthy of praise. Send us forth under Your wing with Your protection today. In Jesus’ Name I pray, amen.

Blessing and Benediction:

2 Peter 1:2-4

² May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. ³ His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,⁴ by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Go forth today, blessed in the knowledge of His great love for you!