HIS NAME IS JESUS

He is the Light. Walk in His Light & Follow Him (John 12:46 kjv)

My Worship, His Desire

Throughout the word of God, we are instructed, even commanded to love the Lord God with all our heart, even with everything that's within us:


And you shall love the Lord your God out of and with your whole heart and out of and with all your soul (your life) and out of and with all your mind (with your faculty of thought and your moral understanding) and out of and with all your strength. This is the first and principal commandment. (Mark 12:30, Amplified Bible).


The scriptures tell us, in fact, that the Lord "seeks" out worshippers ... He seeks out those who will worship, lift up and exalt Him:


But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him (John 4:23, KJV).


Ever wonder why? Is it for the sake of the Lord only, that He calls upon His children to lift and exalt Him, to glorify His holy name, or are there benefits even to us, His children, that the Lord offers to us, in so doing, benefits that perhaps even we may be unaware of? Because the Lord is always mindful of ministering to His children, I can't help but think there is most definitely a blessing (perhaps more than but one) awaiting us, as we exalt Him. Of course God knows the beginning from the end, and He most assuredly knows what benefits are to be extended from His hand, to us, in accordance to the promises He's made to us, by way of His word, promises He will, beyond a doubt, keep, as we draw nigh unto Him, through the very act of our worship and praise towards Him ... praise from our hearts to His. Let's look into this a bit further:


1. Worship Him for His "word", for even His word is magnified above His name:

I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise Your name for Your loving-kindness and for Your truth and faithfulness; for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word and You have magnified Your word above all Your name! (Psalm 138:2, Amplified Bible).

For those who may not understand just how greatly, or how highly, even God honors and respects His own word, the above scripture verse surely reveals this to be so. Here we are told, God magnifies (has made great) His word, even above His name. How extremely grateful I am for the word of the Living God!


2. We can, with confidence, know that the word of God, will forever sustain us. God so highly esteems His word (again, even above all His name), that His very word is, yea and amen! 

Thy word [is] true [from] the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments [endureth] for ever (Psalm 119:160, KJV).

For all the promises of God in him [are] yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us (2 Cor 1:20, KJV).


3. Worship because He's holy:

Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God [is] holy (Psalm 99:9, KJV).


Ok, so we've looked at a few verses that tell us we should worship God, but because we so often struggle in doing so (due to various reasons), where might we discover from His word, reasons, with promise, that we should do so, that we should honor Him from the depths of our heart? What is His word on this? Let's take a look ...

If you remember, earlier, I mentioned benefits God's word says are ours, simply through worshiping Him. Listed below, are a few of those benefits:


1. Being a worshipper, and doing His will, gains the attention of His ear:

Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshiper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth (John 9:31, KJV).


2. To exalt Him ... to lift Him up, offers us the promise, that men, yes, even all men (i.e., men, women and children) shall be drawn to Him. So, when praying for the salvation of men (of family, or friends, acquaintences, and yes, even ones own enemies, etc.), lift up the name of the Lord, in praise. Worship the Lord, that mankind might be drawn to Him, by the very power, and prsence of His Holy Spirit. It is His word to us, that as we do so, He will draw mankind to Himself.


Worship Him:

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High (Psalm 7:17, KJV).


The promise if I do (Jesus own spoken words):

And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all [men] unto me (John 12:32, KJV).


And, from the Amplified Bible:

And I, if and when I am lifted up from the earth [on the cross], will draw and attract all men [Gentiles as well as Jews] to Myself (John 12:32, Amplified Bible).

It is quite obvious, from the Amplified Bible, this verse denotes Christ being lifted up on the Cross, and because of His sacrifice on the Cross, all men will be drawn, and attracted to Him.  I might add, that "lifted" from the Strong's Concordance means: to lift up on high, to exalt, to raise to the very summit of opulence and prosperity, to raise to dignity, honor and happiness. It seems in this verse, that to be "lifted up" can apply to both Christ's being lifted high (or up) on the Cross, yet, at the same time, a few of the additional Greek meanings might very well apply "lifting up", or  "exalting the Lord", to mean, lifting from hearts of worship, with the promise in either case, of drawing the hearts of men, to the Lord.      

So, why worship Him for "His" righteousness?  Why?  Because, His righteousness is what has made me acceptable to my Heavenly Father.  It is through faith in Jesus, and by His very righteousness, I am able to enter into the most holy place, before my Heavenly Father.  It was Christ's sacrifice for you, and for me, that has opened the door to us, the door to forever dwell in His very presence.  Should not this reason alone, cause each of us to want to rejoice before Him, to want to sing and shout praises to His holy name?  As He was lifted up on the Cross, might we not, from our hearts, lift Him up, through the lifting of our hands, and the praises of our lips?  I pray it be so!


I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High (Psalm 9:2, KJV).


3. I will bless Him because He gives counsel to my heart:

I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons (Psalm 16:7, KJV).


And, from the Amplified Bible:

I will bless the Lord, Who has given me counsel; yes, my heart instructs me in the night seasons (Psalm 16:7, Amplified Bible).


When I need direction, when I'm unsure of my decisions, when my heart falls into times of struggle, the Lord gives my heart counsel. It is the desire of the Lord to give me peace of heart. As I receive counsel from Him, from the instructions and direction of His word, my heart enters into a place of peace:


Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.] (John 14:27, Amplified Bible).


4. Be thankful, and praise Him for His extended goodness and mercy:

Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for [he is] good: for his mercy [endureth] for ever (Psalm 106:1, KJV).


For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD [endureth] for ever. Praise ye the LORD (Psalm 117:2, KJV).


5. He releases our soul from the very prison it's trapped in, that we might offer unto Him praise:

Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me (Psalm 142:7, KJV).


And, from the Amplified Bible:

Bring my life out of prison, that I may confess, praise, and give thanks to Your name; the righteous will surround me and crown themselves because of me, for You will deal bountifully with me (Psalm 142:7, Amplified Bible).


A benefit indeed, is this promise. The very benefit of freedom ... freedom from bondage! Freedom to praise the Lord.


6. Not only will my soul be released from the prison it's been held in, but, He will cause my soul to live, that it might freely praise Him:

Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me (Psalm 119:175, KJV).


Oh, but we have "MUCH" to be most grateful to the Lord, for! Let's take a moment to thank Him for all His provisions: We thank You Lord, for all Your goodness, for all Your provisions to us, and Lord, we do give recognition, honor, glory and praise to You for Your great love, and for all that You've done (and will continue to do) for us! We bless You Lord, in Jesus most wonderful name, Amen!


7. The Lord opens blind eyes, but what about the eyes of the blind heart? Does He not give spiritual sight to the heart that has been blinded by sin? Amen, indeed, He does, to those who so desire to see!

This verse speaks of the healing of the physical eyes of a blind man:

And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw [it], gave praise unto God (Luke 18:43, KJV).

From the Amplified Bible:

And instantly he received his sight and began to follow Jesus, recognizing, praising, and honoring God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God (Luke 18:43, Amplified Bible).


Here speaks of the spiritual eyes of man:

Then the disciples came to Him and said, Why do You speak to them in parables? And He replied to them, To you it has been given to know the secrets and mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has [spiritual knowledge], to him will more be given and he will be furnished richly so that he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is the reason that I speak to them in parables: because having the power of seeing, they do not see; and having the power of hearing, they do not hear, nor do they grasp and understand. In them indeed is the process of fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, which says: You shall indeed hear and hear but never grasp and understand; and you shall indeed look and look but never see and perceive. For this nation's heart has grown gross (fat and dull), and their ears heavy and difficult of hearing, and their eyes they have tightly closed, lest they see and perceive with their eyes, and hear and comprehend the sense with their ears, and grasp and understand with their heart, and turn and I should heal them. But blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear. Truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous men [men who were upright and in right standing with God] yearned to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it (Matt 13:10-17, Amplified Bible).


As Christ's followers, we (if we so desire) have a promise of opened spiritual eyes, eyes to see and behold wonderous things in the Kingdom of God:


Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law (Psalm 119:18, KJV).


Wondrous, from the Strong's Concordance means: extraordinary, marvelous, surpassing, difficult to do, beyond one's power, wonderful)

I could go on and on, for hours and hours, and write pages and pages of reasons why we should worship the Lord, to not only benefit Him, but to reveal through His word, the many benefits available to us, as we do so. However, it is my prayer, that we worship Him with all that is within us, for the sake of Him, and Him alone, and not for what we can get, or obtain, from Him. May our reason for worshipping Him, not be to benefit us, but rather, may our worship be for the very reason that "we love Him", and desire to honor, lift and exalt Him, as indeed, He is worthy of such!


Praise ye the LORD. Praise, O ye servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD. Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD'S name [is] to be praised (Psalm 113:1-3, KJV).


You might want to read the above Psalm in it's entirety. I believe you'll be greatly blessed in doing so.


The greatness of His love and blessings be upon each of you!

In His love ... Marcia