Principles of Worship: Get a Job
This article is an introduction to the principles of worshipping God. In it, we hope demonstrate for the reader the fundamental principles governing serving (working for) someone, whether it be man or God. We invite you to open your Bible and your heart to consider it.
Would you work if you didn't have to? Most people wouldn't. Most of us would prefer to just enjoy the good things in life without ever having to break a sweat, open a book, or listen to a boss to get what we want. But life isn't quite that kind. We do have to work. We do have to sweat, study, and obey the boss. And doing work has its obvious reward: a paycheck, and sometimes additional benefits! That paycheck then enables us to purchase "the good things" in life.
There are a lot of different jobs in the world. And everyone is free to choose whichever job they want. However, every employer is also free to choose which person he wants to hire for the job. That tends to narrow our choices down to those jobs at which we are best qualified. So we go to college to improve our skills and broaden our choices so we can do a job that 1)will reward us well, and that 2)we can enjoy. Sometimes we're lucky enough to get a job that does both!
By now you're probably wondering how this fits into serving God. There are lots of ways to serve God, and each person is free to choose his own way. In fact, the U.S. Constitution guarantees a person's right to freedom of religious choice! Personally, I encourage you to exercise your freedom of choice; don't be bound by what other people or organizations say about serving God. Serve Him the way you choose. But please bear in mind that God, like any employer, is also free to decide which form of service he accepts. And just like any employer, God has certain prerequisites for those He chooses. He has stated what He expects of those who serve Him, and those requirements are stated in the Bible.
Any good job-hunting manual will tell you that before you go apply for a job, you need to prepare carefully ahead of time. You need to gather all the evidence of your qualifications. You need to make your appearance suitable. You need to learn about the organization you are applying to work for so you can answer any questions they may ask you about your reasons for desiring to work for them. And you must keep a positive attitude, showing confidence (but not arrogance!) in your ability to do the job. Wouldn't it be nice if every employer had a manual available at the library or online that you could read, that would specify all these things for you? It would list the exact qualifications, the proper attire, info about the organization, and even additional tips for how to make the employer choose you over the other applicants.
Fortunately, God has made available such a manual for all who would seek to serve Him. The Bible shows what you need to do to be saved and how one joins the church. It has commands and examples of how the servant of God behaves. It contains history of the Lord's church and information on contacting the Guy at the top. It most importantly, the job has BENEFITS!!!
Everyone realizes that if they want to keep their job and get promoted, they can't always do things their own way. Every employee must work to please his boss. If the boss isn't happy, then the person could lose his job. So the first principle of working for someone is:
YOU MUST WORK TO PLEASE THE ONE YOU SERVE.
Many people have the impression that being religious is supposed to make the man feel good, to serve his needs and desires. But that is not true. Religion is the way of serving and pleasing God, not man. Church services aren't designed to be fun or a social activity. God didn't intend for the church to be a recreational organization. We don't go to church to please man, but to please God. That is the first thing one must learn in order to serve God. Deny self and follow Christ. Matt 10:37-39
If the work performed by the church doesn't meet God's requirements, God will "take away its lampstand" (Revelation 2:10). If an Christian doesn't make his ways right, God will "erase his name from the book of life" (Rev. 3:5). Anything the church does without authority from God is sinful. Also, anything the church fails to do that God has commanded is sinful.
We could reference several Biblical examples of people who tried to serve God their own way instead of His. Cain...Nadab & Abihu...King Saul...and the New Testament Jewish leaders. All were more concerned about what they wanted to do for God instead of what God wanted them to do. But perhaps the story that most accurately reflects this principle is of Elijah on Mt. Carmel with the priests of Baal (1 Kings 18:16-40).
This principle eliminates the employee's freedom to change company policy. A guy from the mailroom doesn't give orders to the CEO! Likewise, the lowly Christian doesn't give orders to God. We must give God what He wants, not what we want. We do things the way He says, not the way man says. That brings us to the next principle, which is closely related to the first:
THE BOSS'S PROPERTY ISN'T FOR PERSONAL USE!!!
You wouldn't hold a family reunion in the CEO's office. You wouldn't serve a meal on the boss's desk. And you definitely wouldn't pay for it with the company's money without specific permission! Yet many people believe they can use the Lord's building for parties and meals and other social activities and pay for them with the Lord's money, even without having permission from the Lord.
And now our third principle. If you've been up to the Canadian border, you know that it is possible to stand with one foot on US soil and the other on Canadian soil. But you can't live that way and be pleasing to God. This third principle is stated in 1 Corinthians 10:21, which says, "You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons." You can't live with one foot in the church and one foot in the world. God doesn't allow moonlighting. No employer in his right mind would tolerate an employee who also works for the competition! Neither does God. You must be loyal.
Thus, our third principle in serving someone is:
YOU CAN'T SERVE THE COMPETITION OF YOUR EMPLOYER!!!
God expects us to be sincere in our service to Him. We must have the proper attitude AND the proper actions.
written by David F. Sims, doing my part to "turn the world upside down" (Acts 17:6)
All quotes taken from the New American Standard Bible.
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